Above all – The Show Inspired Woodworkers

DSC_0013 DSC_0128 We had such crowds at the show throughout the day today and at my demonstrations I hardly had chance to do anything but answer questions and find a little rest between bouts. I sensed a little apprehension as to whether we would actually conclude the bench-build by the end of the show because of that but we will press on throughout today. DSC_0078 It has been great fun and had it not been for help from Steve, Robin and David and a couple of others too. I met a wonderful couple called the Schwabs who drove all the way from Jacksonville Florida just to see me. Steve and Robin both drove for 6 and 7 hours too to help me with the bench and visit and we had a good time.
DSC_0052 The end of the show reminds me of the reason I came in the first place. Life is not so much about networking but more about connecting. DSC_0044 Networking somehow interfaces differently. I had breakfast lunch and dinner with friends I knew and those I met along the way. Sometimes it was with families like the Chidwicks and at other times it was a bunch of guys around a table in unknown restaurant none of us ever heard of. Other times it was sitting in someone’s booth or mine and then at others it was in the hotel breakfast lounge. As we build and teardown the show venues we chat between walls and greet one another from show to show. Sometimes its relaxed and others it’s intense, but at the end of the day, a lot of these guys have done this for three decades. DSC_0122 They’ve grown to rely on one another as I have this circuit. There is a kindness and care I feel when I see my shrunk-wrapped bench neatly placed in my demonstration area at each of the shows when I arrive. It would be all too easy to take that for granted. Throughout the show I have felt cared for and many things were taken care of without my asking for it. There is no way I could get to everyone or list all of the people along the way who have been so kind to me so I just hope that whoever reads this blog, whether they are with The Woodworking Shows staff, other vendors, visitors to the shows or members of the guilds or whatever, that they feel included in this massive, massive THANKYOU!!! from Paul Sellers and his family.
Blessings to every one of you.