Let it go, it’s just clay med

 
By Dr Natasha Abeysekera
How many times have you been asked what you have been up to and been unable to respond with more than “just work” or “work and study”?

Yeah – me too.

This realisation hit me like a tonne of bricks, of course only after two years of already being a doctor. 

Then the googling started and I looked at them all.

• What hobbies can you start as an adult?
• What hobbies can you start with no skills?
• What hobbies are suitable with little spare time?

We all tell our patients not to be Dr Google, but honestly google in even general situations can be overwhelming. My journey through medicine has been standard – hard work in high school, university, and now as a doctor in training. Coupled with a social life and family commitments - there was no time for hobbies.  Now I was left trying to figure out what hobbies I could start as an (almost) 27 year old female with very little skills outside of medicine. To save you all the trouble, I am going to be documenting my journey through hobbies and finding the work-life balance that we all talk about.

 Let’s talk about clay
On an early Saturday morning, post-several sneaky Friday arvo beverages – I booked my first introduction session at Mas & Mieke Ceramic House. The first words out of the ceramics teacher was “You are going to fail multiple times during this session and that’s okay – it’s just clay”. While confronting initially, Olivia was right.

The basic techniques of pottery falls into two categories - throwing or hand building. There are different purposes for both techniques and some ceramicists chose to work in a single mode. After a handful of sessions of both, my personal preference is throwing. There is something uniquely cathartic about feeling the clay whip around the wheel, attempting to control the chaos and sometimes, just watching it flop. Another lesson I’ve learnt is clay will become exactly what it wants. Even with the right pressure, technique or Ghost- level guidance, clay tends to take the shape that fits how it’s been made, prepared and throws. While you may want the perfect ceramic salad bowl of your dreams - the clay may just want to be a vase and that is okay. What’s more, you may not know that until the process is complete. 

All in all - I would recommend giving ceramics a go. There is no prerequisite skills or knowledge needed. You can turn up on the day and just give it a go. You can go solo or with friends. 

As a cherry on top - on Fridays Mas & Mieke offer clay and sip sessions, so you can bring your favourite beverage along too.

That’s it for clay today - stay tuned for more adventures on ‘hobbies for adults’!