This was a saying I think I heard first from my mother, although others said it too. It refers to the reactions we have when things go well and when they go badly. Its point is that overreacting to the good times makes it harder to bear the bad times.
If there is a truth that should be declared boldly in the modern era, it’s this. We have multiple examples of people (all of us, really) who have found themselves in sunny times and never put back for a rainy day. 2008 saw many of us lose our homes and livelihoods. We never thought things would change. Many of our parents went through the Depression, Second World War, Korean War, and Vietnam War, and we thought we were immune to a downgrade.
The same thing happens in craftwork. Things can seem to be going great guns with many projects ordered when suddenly health, supplies, money, and/or creativity begin to flag. An overabundance of commitments outside the shop can also become an issue.
What is the answer? I don’t think there is an answer. For myself, the solution, when one is needed, revolves around an inner resolution to continue on. This, in turn, seems to stem from a daily discipline of work. I work when I can, even if it is for only half an hour. Every day, I try to put my hands on the wood. Also, fortunately for me, I have been blessed with like-minded partners along the way because, as sure as the night follows the day, too much laughing leads to crying.
