Craftivism: Spinning in solidarity and silence

If you would like to join us just head to the "All the Wool" channel on YouTube or search for Ewethful going live. The times for this week...

Today & Thursday (January 28th/29th) 6pm pacific

Friday & Saturday (January 20th & 31st) 7pm pacific

Sunday Feb 1st 2pm pacific

Craftivism. This is a daily community of makers creating a quiet space online in resistance to the horrible policies of the current US administration both domestically and abroad.

If you are in the US contact your senator and tell them no more funding to DHS without changes to ICE and Border Patrol tactics. 

Making is how many of us cope with stress,  anxiety, heartbreak. I hope to be here once a day quietly spinning in solidarity for Minneapolis and all of those suffering at the hands of our current administration. 

please join us in making or just sit in some quiet moments to process.

we are all humans.  we are all neighbors. 

stay healthy.
stay safe. 
be kind to your neighbor.
speak up. 
and make so many post things.

To ask me a question
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdkoshX7grvAiOcNxwAlUqFskm-opVlE1h_L6jmdO-CvGX8kg/viewform?usp=sf_link

Find me at:
https://www.ewethfulfiberfarm.com/
Blogging at http://www.beingewethful.com/
Ravelry group: Ewethful Fiber Farm & Mill
Handspun audio podcast

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Transcript

0:01

Hey everyone, it's been a bit, and this is Kim Beagler, owner of Youthful Fiber Farm and Mill. And I am recording just, this is just an audio podcast, not on YouTube or anything like that, just for you all here that listen. And I first off, wanna apologize for not being consistent at getting the YouTube audio up on here. So I will try to be better. I really will. I. Wanted to come to you today to talk about something new that we're doing in the community, which is, I've been going live on YouTube once a day, and it just started over the weekend. The idea being to create a quiet space in a very not quiet world right now, and to have this space sort of be a space for makers to come together in solidarity. And in creating a form of resistance to what's happening in the United States, in Minneapolis, across the country, and really globally as a result of our current administration's. Quite honestly, horrible in most circumstances, policies, and a lot we're all I know all over the world, are feeling a bit overwhelmed to say the least by what's happening in this country. It's hard to get off of our phones, I think for a lot of us because it's like, what is the next horrible thing that's going to happen and it's just continuous. So I wanted to create this space where we could come together since this community is all over the world, all different time zones. I'm gonna try to mix it up a little bit, but I wanted to let you know kind of what. Has come out of it for me just in the first few days because I start, I came up with this idea before actually the death of Alex Prety. I, I started thinking this, like, what if I just, you know how people will sit and just watch fireplaces going and that sort of thing, and I really enjoy, one of the things I enjoy on YouTube is sometimes I just put on a maker just making, and there's like a little music on, but they're not talking. And that's kind of a peaceful place for me. And I thought, what if I did that with spinning? Like I wonder if anybody would watch if I just sat and spun. And then our country's just gotten more and more tense. And more and more frightening and more and more angering and all of these things. And so the idea of it became a little bit different. Like, what if I can bring other people in the community and outside the community together to just have some quiet moments? Where we can just process rather than being overwhelmed by everything. And so that's where it started from, and I'm doing it every day. I will put in the show notes here what times they are for the rest of the week, and then I'll just kind of have to go week by week. I won't be able to do it every day. I realize that's not necessarily sustainable, but some things have come out of it that make it seem more sustainable to me. So I thought I would share those with you, and I hope for those of you that have joined us so far that you're realizing some of these same things. And there is a chat going. I'll say that participants are chatting while we're doing this. Not tons of chat, but there is chatting happening so that you can connect with other people. I am not seeing the chats until after, and so, I'm not really responding to them because. Otherwise, I know I would be distracted, too. Distracted by what's going on. And also it would be weird for me to watch myself spinning'cause I would have to have, it would just, the camera would be different. And anyway yeah. Okay. So here's some of the things that have. Come up for me in the past few days, and as I talk to other people that have been doing this in the community, uh, one of the biggest things is community, right? When I, like I said, when I first thought of this idea, it was more just to create a quiet space for anybody. And that still is what this is for Anybody who wants to come and just find quiet and hear the war of a spinning wheel, then this is a wonderful place to do that. But also. A sense of community popped up very quickly, especially as I was watching the chats and seeing people get to know each other. And some of us already know each other, but some people are just finding youthful in the community. And so it's just really, and it's so odd because I'm not watching the chats. I don't see the camera, you know, I don't see myself spinning, but I know it's like a very innate sense of you all are out there with me. And that, that is everything. Um, especially right now, and I know there are lots of us that I live with somebody obviously, but for those of you that don't live with anybody, like it could feel more isolating right now. And so here's a place and a time each day for community. I really thought when I talk about sustainability, I thought, oh, is this gonna be like to commit to this? Is this gonna be too much for me? And maybe it will at some point, and maybe I'll have to necker it down or not do it every day. But at this moment, what I'm finding is so quickly it became a part of my routine. And honestly, I, um, I haven't been doing a lot of spinning. I've been having a hard time sitting at my wheel. It's like the idea of like sitting in that chair and putting that effort in, it hasn't been happening. And so this has changed that for me where I am now. Holding myself to sitting down and taking that hour at whatever time during the day it is and doing it. And it feels really good. It feels really good. The silence you all. That is something else. I thought, especially the first night I was doing this with you all and I thought, Ooh, this is a lot of silence. It a takes a lot in me to not talk because I'm used to, in all the other videos I do filling in the space with my thoughts as I'm processing and working, and that sometimes is where like the golden nuggets of fiber processing come out is when I'm just saying the things, so not saying the things. Is a little bit of a challenge, but I'm settling into it and I actually, I'll often be like, if I'm gonna speak, I feel like, oh my gosh, I'm breaking everybody out of their really calm space. You can always tell me not to do that, ever. Just stay silent the whole time. That's fine. But it's become more comfortable. And I do have up on my tv I have like a gardening channel. Show on mute just so I, but I don't even, I've noticed the last two days I don't even look at it. I don't look at it at all. The first day or two, I think I was like sort of a little awkward and not sure, and now I don't even notice it's there because I'm so intent on the spinning and my brain is just quieting and my brain doesn't go. And you all are welcome to comment or reach out to me. My brain doesn't go to dark places. As during the day when my head's just like going and going and going, it's so much easier to get to a dark place in the world than just with everything that's happening. But I notice when I'm spinning in those quiet moments, and I think part of it is because there's community and I know you all are there too. I don't go there. Like a lot of my brain just settles. And a lot of it is more hopeful. And just processing, right? Like there's just like the random thoughts processing through my head as I sit and spin, but it's not dark in the way I thought potentially it could be with the silence. It's wonderful is what it is. I, one of the big things. And probably maybe the last thing I'll talk about is just realizing how, and my friend Gail messaged me and she has been joining in each day when she can. And she said it's like, it's just so good. Not only the community aspect, but it's a chance to not look at our phones. Right. Hopefully. Everybody's just like putting it on their phone or their computer and not doing another thing at the same time. Obviously that's up to whoever, but what I'm finding is I truly can't do anything else, right? My phone is videoing and it would be awkward for me to go run to my computer and start looking at what's happening. And so I think that's for a lot of people. If you're on your phone, you can't actually just start doom scrolling. Or getting caught up in wherever it is, you may be getting caught up, even if it's just reading the news, which is a majority of what I do. It's so easy to just, what's happened now? What's happened now? What happened now? And a lot of times it's not good. And so it's this, this time where our phones are otherwise occupied, our brains are otherwise occupied, and it's just calm. And it's one of the few moments of calm, I think, other than when I'm asleep. So, that's where this has gone with me and I'm so interested to hear. And you're welcome to come on. Today, I'm gonna be posting this, it is Wednesday, January 28th, and I'll be on YouTube live at 6:00 PM. Also Thursday, 6:00 PM I might as well tell you since I'm saying it, Thursday, which would be the 29th, Friday and Saturday the 30th and 31st I'll be on at 7:00 PM And then Sunday, which I'm gonna go for this on Sundays, is around, I think I said 2:00 PM uh, which is nice because I know there are a lot of people in Europe and other places that enjoy joining. So there you go. There's a little bit about that and, um, some unexpected benefits. Joys, I don't know of creating that quiet space of resistance, of solidarity, of community, of hope. So everyone, thank you so much for listening. Like I said, I promise I will be better about. Trying to get my weekly if I get them out weekly, trying to get them up here on YouTube. There are so many places you can find me. You can find me in the YouTube lives. If you need some quiet time and some solidarity, you can also head to the we website, youthful fiber farm.com. You can come join us in the Patreon community. We have a lot going on. So I've gotta get off of here and go work on all the things we've got going in Patreon. We have a spin to knit along coming up and other things. And if nothing else, join my website. You can find that or join my website. Join my newsletter. You can find that on the website. And I think that's what I've got for you all today. Everybody, take care. Be kind to your neighbors. It is not the easiest time to say the least. And um, we're all in this together. We're all humans. We're all neighbors and, uh, we need to keep up communication and stop being so divided. It's not gonna get us anywhere. Okay, everybody, take care of yourselves. Make so many pretty things. Talk to you soon.