Yes, so well articulated that I relate to this with my own experience. Juggling is my art, and offers many lessons on being flexible in finding a rhythm that suits my body with muscular dystrophy.
Juggling is an amazing art form! My sister was really expressive with it for a short period of time. San Francisco has a terrific small circus community so I often get the opportunity to see it here and there.
I can only imagine the adaptations that you've had to make over time. I think it's so wonderful and inspiring we can find new ways to enjoy our art while working with our bodies changing needs ... and also don't want to minimize that sometimes there is frustration and grief in this process.
Happy to hear anytime more about your own experience of navigating this!
Being able to share what I love for other's to also enjoy is a real treat.Such as performing in aged care homes and making it interactive for the audience to get involved. Inspiring people to become a beginner again and learn to juggle is another wonderful experience. Seeing them experience the joy of doing something they never imagined doing.
There is a fascinating story in this questions. Which I intend to write. Long story short, I followed my intuition and was flexible with the path I had to follow. Originally I set out to run a juggling class for people with a Muscular Dystrophy Support organisation but they weren't keen, however it wasn't a dead end, they gave me several industry contacts that I followed up on and one of those contacts suggested Older Care Homes as a starting point. I had a friend who works in one and put forward a suggestion and he spoke to the right colleague and next minutes I know I'm getting paid to Juggle.
Thank you for writing this. I have recently been diagnosed with osteoarthritis and am coming to terms with what this might mean for my creative practice as a textile artist. New constraints but also new approaches.
Sending <3 and softness around that diagnosis and the things that are changing for you with that.
It's not easy to adapt to our changes, but I've done it, and I've seen so many people do it, and some amazing work comes out of it even though it's not necessarily what we wanted in the first place. My dad was perhaps my best example of this - he was a woodworker/carpenter/wood artist my whole life and for a long time made really large scale things (whole kitchens, for example) but later had to adapt smaller and smaller ... but he continued creating til his very last day.
No pressure, but a few pieces perhaps also of interest:
An online friend, Nancy Ricci, a long time knitter and spinner, has had to pause these crafts due to repetitive stress injuries. She started baking. She’s baking bread and loving trying new recipes. Nancy says now she thinks about dough, not yarn, all the time.
Not only the body will have limitations but also my mind. If I am not managing with care my thinking and emotions I can’t make art and certainly not with joy. I am not only a believer in rest and not pushing but also managing my mind drama. Thank you for this read.
Kathryn, Thank you for seeing me… And so many others here.
I am in the same place and we are too often unseen. <3 <3
Yes, so well articulated that I relate to this with my own experience. Juggling is my art, and offers many lessons on being flexible in finding a rhythm that suits my body with muscular dystrophy.
Juggling is an amazing art form! My sister was really expressive with it for a short period of time. San Francisco has a terrific small circus community so I often get the opportunity to see it here and there.
I can only imagine the adaptations that you've had to make over time. I think it's so wonderful and inspiring we can find new ways to enjoy our art while working with our bodies changing needs ... and also don't want to minimize that sometimes there is frustration and grief in this process.
Happy to hear anytime more about your own experience of navigating this!
Being able to share what I love for other's to also enjoy is a real treat.Such as performing in aged care homes and making it interactive for the audience to get involved. Inspiring people to become a beginner again and learn to juggle is another wonderful experience. Seeing them experience the joy of doing something they never imagined doing.
Love learning about this! How did you get started sharing this in older care homes?
There is a fascinating story in this questions. Which I intend to write. Long story short, I followed my intuition and was flexible with the path I had to follow. Originally I set out to run a juggling class for people with a Muscular Dystrophy Support organisation but they weren't keen, however it wasn't a dead end, they gave me several industry contacts that I followed up on and one of those contacts suggested Older Care Homes as a starting point. I had a friend who works in one and put forward a suggestion and he spoke to the right colleague and next minutes I know I'm getting paid to Juggle.
Thank you for writing this. I have recently been diagnosed with osteoarthritis and am coming to terms with what this might mean for my creative practice as a textile artist. New constraints but also new approaches.
Sending <3 and softness around that diagnosis and the things that are changing for you with that.
It's not easy to adapt to our changes, but I've done it, and I've seen so many people do it, and some amazing work comes out of it even though it's not necessarily what we wanted in the first place. My dad was perhaps my best example of this - he was a woodworker/carpenter/wood artist my whole life and for a long time made really large scale things (whole kitchens, for example) but later had to adapt smaller and smaller ... but he continued creating til his very last day.
No pressure, but a few pieces perhaps also of interest:
https://createmefree.substack.com/p/6-artists-respond-to-how-health-challenges
https://threadstackcommunity.substack.com/p/threadstack-interview-with-lia-pas
Happy to hear anytime what you'd like to share about your experience. <3 <3
Thank you.
<3 <3 <3
An online friend, Nancy Ricci, a long time knitter and spinner, has had to pause these crafts due to repetitive stress injuries. She started baking. She’s baking bread and loving trying new recipes. Nancy says now she thinks about dough, not yarn, all the time.
Not only the body will have limitations but also my mind. If I am not managing with care my thinking and emotions I can’t make art and certainly not with joy. I am not only a believer in rest and not pushing but also managing my mind drama. Thank you for this read.
This is so hard. And with unpredictable health issues, it's hard to make adaptations. Thank you for articulating this