I've been making things for even longer than I can remember, and my parents have the archival evidence to prove it:  salt-clay dachshunds, construction paper brooches, spool-and-tape sandals, Barbie clothes and stuffed animals crafted from Dad's neckties.  Announcing that I needed some privacy, I'd shut the door to my room and spend silent hours hunched over whatever tools and materials I could get my hands on, trying to figure everything out.
    Even after decades of doing it, transforming an idea into reality is still a powerful experience for me, a kind of alchemy.  And although I do still spend a lot of time alone in a silent room, trying to figure things out, I also get the satisfaction of sharing my solutions with clients and viewers, and of watching my students achieve their own alchemical moments.