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Presence vs Presents

12/2/2014

3 Comments

 
Picture
It was a normal day before Thanksgiving, until I got a remarkable call from someone wanting a commission piece.  

The client wanted a custom, heart shaped clay jigsaw puzzle with each piece representing 3 generations of family members.  I said "sure I'd be honored to do this; let's meet Saturday morning."

As we talked through the project I learned that one person needed a major organ transplant.  Either she or her brother would be donating one of their organs right after Christmas to save her.  WOW!  

The puzzle idea stemmed from her heart.  A desire to pull a busy, geographically distanced family together through a very symbolic gift. She'll present the puzzle with a reminder that each person is a piece of the family and when interwoven, the family is complete.  When one piece is missing from a puzzle, it can crumble or has a gaping hole.  

We decided to color each person's piece with their birthstone color.   Each person will take their ornamental piece as a reminder of love that binds and holds together what matters most.

This is no ordinary commission piece for me.  It's one that has given me pause to reflect.  In a season of "must have lists", too many lose sight of thoughtful and precious gifts to share. 



It's easy to check off those lists, but a gift like this puzzle says so much more.  It's asking for presence instead of presents.  Presence doesn't disappear after the paper is cleaned up and the novelty of the store bought gift wears off.   It's a treasured gift too often overshadowed by hectic every day life.   It's a present that will be etched in hearts, not a thing.  It's a memory to cherish.  Is there really any better gift to give?

I'm thrilled to be a part of this project, and I'm thankful for the reminder of the value of presence over presents this season.





3 Comments
Ainslye Gilligan
1/5/2015 10:57:34 pm

That is so cool Jayme!!!

Reply
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6/19/2016 09:09:51 am

Homophone- this is exactly what I remember while I was reading this blog. A homophone is a word that sounds the same as another word but has a different meaning and/or spelling. “Flower” and “flour”, for example, are homophones because they are pronounced the same but of different meaning. Of course you can't bake a cake using roses or orchids, right?

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12/20/2015 11:30:14 am

Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year, because I really do like to give gifts.Choose any of them to share a laugh and give them a gift they'll remember for a long time to come.

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    Jayme Teague

    Clay artist
    Artistic Adventures' Owner and pottery instructor 

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