This is from Gumnut's FabFebFive prompts on Tumblr
It was something he had loved for a long time.
Wicker intrigued John. The vast range of patterns, of different objects that could be made from a simple process of weaving prepared strips of bark. It was a therapy he didn't know he needed, it left his mind free to wander where it needed while his long, slender fingers took a strip of pliant bark and wove.
His astronomy professor had introduced him to weaving as a way of concentrating. Recognising the young teen's need to move his hands while he concentrated, stimming he was told, he had tried various other tasks to do while in class, but they were all either noisy and distracting or just plain distracting.
So it came as a huge surprise that weaving gave him the needed stimulus for his hands while not distracting from the lesson in general. Soon John was coiling, platting and twining as well as wicker weaving, and he had a large variety of baskets. He gave them away.
As he progressed through university and into NASA, he continued weaving, although rarely due to his heavy workload. And he was so pleased he had.
Sitting here with his brother Gordon, fresh home from hospital and rehab from the hydrofoil crash, John is so thankful he kept the skill going. They sit in pleasant silence as John teaches Gordon to weave as therapy for his shattered fingers.
There are mistakes and tears and even tantrums. But by the time Gordon is able to walk and swim again there are a new collection of baskets the Tracy's have acquired.
And each and every one of them is treasured.
