Nine Amulets

1831 Solano Avenue, PO BOX 7580, Berkeley California 94707-9991, United States

I krisetider tænker folk sig om to gange, før de bruger deres penge. De bekymrer sig om at få enderne til at mødes. Livets raffinerede glæder betragtes som forfængeligheder nederst på prioriteringslisten, med andre ord slet ikke en prioritet.

Vi skal ikke lade frygten få det bedste. Lige nu, mere end nogensinde, har folk brug for kunst og at være i nærheden af ting, der bringer mening ind i deres liv. Dette er en tid med kamp, men også en tid med forandring, refleksion og vækst. At forberede sig på forandring er ikke en dårlig idé, for den vil komme. Kunst og smykker kan være en del af positiv forandring. Forandring er godt, men forandring er også udfordrende.

Vi er trøstevæsner, og det gør vi ikke, medmindre vi er tvunget til at ændre os. Men når det hårde kommer i gang, og vi ser fare, ændrer vi os, fordi vi skal tilpasse os for at overleve. Så uden at blive fortvivlet, bør vi hilse forandring og de kampe, som denne pandemi bringer os alle, velkommen. Vi skal engagere os i måder, hvorpå vi kan omdanne modgang til en mulighed.

Med Covid-alderen kommer dyb refleksion, rolig planlægning og kreativitet, fordi vi har tid alene, afbrudt vores liv.
Vi har intet andet sted at tage hen end til vores inderste steder og i os selv. Det kan være skræmmende, fordi vi ikke er vant til at være i så dyb isolation og være i kontakt med os selv. Alligevel, hvis vi kanaliserer disse energier korrekt, kan vi transformere denne frygtelige tid til en stærk oplevelse. Og hvordan passer smykkefremstilling ind i dette?

Right now, more than ever, people need art and to be near things that bring meaning into their live

This crisis is making me think about the meaning of what I do. Am I catering to commercial ideas, or am I going deeper into creating something of lasting value? I take the longer road, and I spend the extra time. I am more patient with my creations and give them ample time and care to grow into something beautiful. Without such a decisive and drastic change of pace this pandemic brings, I probably would never have such deep reflection. But the result of this is even more profound because it meets our humanity after all.

Jewelry may be considered a vain and unnecessary item, but that is a contradiction. If we reflect on this issue a little closer, we will find that jewelry is associated with our most precious gift in life: our humanity. Jewelry is not about the jewelry pieces but about us. We use it because of others. Jewelry is intricately linked to our social life and how we interact and present ourselves socially. This is so self-evident it's an indicator of how happy and socially connected we are. I notice that with myself.

When I'm socially disconnected and worried about "being serious about life," jewelry gets dust in some drawer or box. When I'm happy and socially connected, my jewelry is being used and is with me everywhere I go. During these times, I feel I'm more alive. So, the useless becomes the most useful, or rather, part of the most essential things in life.

Our life happens while we live it now, not in some distant future. So jewelry, in a way, can serve to, or at least be used as a reminder that life happens now, and we don't know for how long we will have the privilege of having it.

 

 

Photo credit: Rhandi Purnell

Twitter: @bettyycrockerr

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