Spiritual Upcycling

The Ash Wednesday bidding calls us to “amend our lives”. There is an element of this kind of spiritual work that takes apart and re-makes.

We turned this process into a physical and spiritual art form for our Lenten retreat this year. Using personal garments, fabrics, and keepsakes, we engaged in the process of tearing up and re-weaving. I invited Jaz McBride, an artist from the most recent Ventulett Exhibit, to team up with me for the retreat and we called it: Spiritual Up-Cycling, The Power of Textiles. I thought you might like to hear some reflections from the retreat and be inspired to reflect on your own. I have woven together their reflections here for your reading.

The Notion:
“I love the concept of upcycling. It’s a great word that represents a new cycle, a new iteration, something that is brought up, or made better.”
“The process of taking scraps of our lives and favorite garments, repurposing the colors and textures into something new and beautiful, was joyful.”

The Preparation:
“Preparing for the retreat was particularly Lenten, in deciding on the three items I wanted to “up-cycle”. Two shirts represented things I want to more fully take up to get closer to God, and the other represented something I want to let go of.”
“We each picked remnants that attracted us for whatever reason and wove them into our own creation."
“I made a list of things I wanted to let go of before I went to the retreat. And then lo and behold I just let it be, following one moment after another.”

The Process:
“The remnants I picked started to reveal a pattern.”
“The khaki fabric with the black flowers was from a friend, and was more about being ok with cutting up something with sentimental connection.”
“I used an ancestral piece of tea-stained lace napkin at the bottom, for a foundation.”
“The Lilly Pulitzer fabric is a lot about letting go of societal definitions.”
“At the top, chartreuse yarn and the yellow button for the sun signifies growing towards.”
“My weaving was not planned but it evolved.”
“The entire piece speaks to me about letting my inner child come out and play more often.

The People:
“Our art collective in the parish hall was a collaborative of creativity.”
“Underlying the whole experience was community.”
“We ‘meditated in the community’ with each other by sharing what our discarded items represented, which led to sharing memories, which led to sharing laughter and joy.”

The End:
My work is unfinished, much like the work of my life.
And, “it needed some tassels to dance!”