Building a Sacred Place

Yes that's me, I've spent the past week working on a rocket ship on a nursery school playground. Really, it's what I do. I'll post a picture next week when it's done.

I am a very fortunate woodworker. I have had many opportunities to create devices or spaces for play. Building places for children to play is a sacred activity, because you are creating sacred space. Play is a powerful artistic and spiritual activity although we as a culture do not always give it that respect. Most of the time we are throwing around phrases like “stop playing around” or “ we need to stop playing and get to work”. As I learned back in my days as an educator, play is the work of children and if they are denied this developmental activity it can effect development of imagination and physical, mental and emotional strength. Play also helps children to over come fears, and develop confidence. Play is powerful stuff.

Like artists children use play to reflect life. Their play allows them to over and over again play out the situations and emotions that make up their real lives. Now I’m talking of imaginary play not games of competition or chance. In imaginary play children act out the roles of adults in their lives or characters they have read about or seen on TV. They are acting out domestic roles, jobs they see grownups doing, or they might fight against injustice or even monsters of all kinds. It is an activity that has to happen in order for the child to gather the confidence to work with others, share, and self-advocate.

So as I build a space I constantly imagine the movement of children through it. These imaginary children tell me when to sand a contact surface raise or lower work spaces or when to make something totally silly or to keep it simple. I have been fortunate to be present when real children enter a space I had a hand in making and see their minds light up as they see what’s before them. That’s an amazing feeling that you have created something that gives a sense or moment of wonder to someone. It's so cool to be able to make life fun!

Jeff 3 2 1 blast off

Here's a great article on play from Scholastic http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=10175

If you want to see more of the spaces I've built check out the link http://www.jkcwood.com/Exhibits.html