Busy Hands, Happy Brain

I was driving my son to the dentist yesterday and we were half way there when I realized I had forgotten to take my current cross stitch project with me. I almost never go anywhere, especially a doctor’s office, where I know I’ll have to wait for a significant amount of time, without taking something to keep my hands busy.

After checking in with June, the dentist’s assistant, I sat in the waiting room and reached for a magazine. I paged through and didn’t have to go far to come to an article totally suited for my situation. Now tell me this isn’t the pinnacle of irony…here I forgot to bring my cross stitching and the article was all about how doing things with your hands is good for your brain!!! They actually listed many of the things I love to do, like cooking and baking, knitting and crocheting and the things I love best…cross stitching, and quilting. Oh, and last, but not least, writing.

Most evenings, after dinner, I head to the family room to sit and relax with my feet up after a long day at work. There is always at least one project waiting for me, sometimes two or three, so I have a choice on which one I feel like working on. I keep a journal so I know when I began a project, what I worked on, for whom I was making it and when the project was completed. I take photos of my work and keep them in a binder. The photos show me what a project looked like when it was finished.

On the very rare occasions when I’m in front of a television with nothing to keep my hands busy I feel like I’m wasting time. Reading this article woke me up to the fact that when I’m waiting in a doctor’s office, or watching TV, or even sitting in our beautiful garden, listening to the waterfall, when my hands are busy I am keeping my stress level down, It calms me, and there is a sense of accomplishment in taking something plain and empty and making it into something beautiful.

I was an avid reader when I was young, and had no time for using my hands, except to hold a book. It wasn’t until I was in my 20’s that I began making things. I liked the idea of making small gifts for people I loved. It was like giving a piece of myself to them. Then I saw a cross stitched quilt and I fell in love with cross stitch. So I went to the local craft store and bought a counted cross stitch piece kit. I had no idea it was geared for someone who was not a beginner. After weeks of great frustration I put it away and when I sold my house and moved years later, it went into the trash, one less thing to pack for the move. Years later I came across a very small, very simple cross stitch kit. It was a Christmas ornament. I bought it and stitched it in one evening and it came out beautifully. This time I moved with baby steps and I have worked my way up to the projects I love doing now. I’ve done several cross stitched quilts. They make a really special gift for a new baby.

But stitching is just the tip of the iceberg. It’s about doing something that you love to do. It can be as simple as mowing the lawn, or planting some seeds in the garden. Maybe you remember the old saying “idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” The best thing about busy hands is that they can produce some very satisfying and meaningful things in our lives. Does your family have a treasured quilt from a talented grandmother or great grandmother? How about a hand carved music box, or hand made cedar chest made by your father or his father? Wouldn’t it be nice if something you made could become a family heirloom?

I think of my mother. She was one of eight children raised during the Great Depression. They owned a house in the city and a small farm just outside that little city in upstate New York. My grandmother would take the children to the farm as soon as school ended and they would work on the farm all summer. In order that they would have food for the winter, my grandmother had them working hard preserving the bounty of the farm. They all spent many hours chopping fruits and vegetables and cooking them, boiling jars, filling those jars with the food and sealing them in the canning pot.

My mother told me many times how much she hated all that work especially because there were many years when she had to work at the farm preserving food and missed the first two months of school. Because of this she didn’t graduate from high school until she was twenty one years old. So even when I begged her to teach me how to jar my own food she told me she had vowed never to do it again and she didn’t. Thank God for computers because that is how I learned to make delicious homemade blueberry and strawberry jam and how to make old family favorite recipes from summer fresh produce and preserve them to eat in the winter months. Another great reward from canning my own produce is that I know exactly what goes into that jar, no preservatives or artificial ingredients, only farm fresh, local produce. I’m saving money and getting the highest quality product. I believe this is called a win win!!!

I didn’t learn canning or quilting or cross stitching standing next to my grandmother or my mother. I had a desire to learn and taught myself, using the internet, a few classes and some really good books. Little did I know that “working with your hands can flood your brain with natural antidepressants.” The article further stated that when I’m counting stitches it is known as a “cognitive distracter,” which means when I’m busy counting those stitches I’m distracted from stress. I may not have given a second thought to my stitching being a “cognitive distracter,” but even before reading this article I was very aware that all the wonderful and enjoyable things I do with my hands make me happy and lessen my stress. And there I was in the dentist’s office having this all confirmed for me.

I encourage you to find something that suits you, something you really like doing. Remember to start small and let it grow in stages. The first thing I quilted was a pot holder, it was a good first step. Keep in mind that busy hands make for a happy brain and there are great rewards that come from being an artist and creating something uniquely yours. Get your hands busy and make your brain happy.

You know I think I’ll just have to write some hubs on how I make that awesome blueberry jam, and maybe some of those very treasured family recipes. They will make your brain AND your tummy very happy!!!