How is it that one chooses fourteen classes out of one hundred forty?  This isn’t like college where a lot of the classes are “required” and in some area that is of no interest to you.  No, the John C. Campbell Folk School is a place where nearly every class is of interest to me.  Who knew such a place existed?

So how to choose?  Well, some Student Hosts pick a theme.  Maybe they have an interest in blacksmithing or jewelry making, so they take mostly those kinds of courses.  (And indeed, there are classes in both of those subjects nearly every week.)  I, however, can’t imagine only focusing on one craft during my time at JCCFS (surprise, surprise).  Instead, I have just a couple rules that I’ve come up with to guide my decisions.  And since I’m not a big follower of rules, the first rule is that any rule can be broken at any time.

1 – Take classes that don’t have any physical end product that I have to lug on to my next destination. The garden shed class fits this quite well – we’ll be building a garden shed for JCCFS.  So all I take with me after the course are the things I’ve learned:)

2 – Try something new and/or something I’ve always wanted to learn.  Thus, my list includes learning to play the mountain dulcimer and learning to spin yarn.

3 – If a class has me making things I’ll have to take home with me, take it only if what I make can be easily given away.  Thus a class on making wooden toys and blacksmithing.

4 – Take only classes that are of interest to me.  Thus, quilting will never be on my list.  Nor dying fabrics.  Believe it or not, there are actually some things in this world that I don’t have an interest in doing.

How wonderful is a life where my biggest decision each week will be which class to take the next?