Do all humans make?
The short answer is, "most." But why?
May your week ahead be full of creativity. ~JRC
Of course, we [almost] all make things. It's human nature to be creative. But what we each make can vary greatly. From crafting a dinner out of leftovers to penning a poem for a speech, creativity manifests in a multitude of ways. And while not everyone is destined to be a celebrity chef or the next poet laureate, we all have in us the ingredients to make.
But why do we love to do it so?
When I refer to making, I mean creating something tangible. It can be physical, like a chair, ephemeral like a meal, or written or performed like a story or song. What ties these various forms of expression together is that a thing is produced. So when I say "make," I mean "to make a thing."
And yes, even in this context, we almost all make.
As children, humans start expressing genuine creativity as early as one year (and sometimes sooner). Sure this creativity is limited, but in these early months, we all learn to make things. From stacking a few blocks to making "music" with pots and pans, kids enter the maker space eager to create.
This maker foundation grows almost exponentially during early childhood. By a year and a half, most kids have begun to draw recognizable shapes with their crayons. And that "kitchen tools music?" Even for the less inclined, chaotic banging soon gives way to rhythmic clapping.
Toddlers, in particular, are expert makers. Without the constraints of knowing the "real world," three to five-year-olds imagine all sorts of possibilities. These magic-filled interpretations show up in colorful drawings, elaborate playtime stories, and stream-of-consciousness discussions.
But as kids start to engage more with conventional learning, it caps creativity. Formalities like studying to read, write, and do math, take precedent. Indeed, research suggests that creativity peaks somewhere around the age of five or six - right when formal schooling kicks in.
Although stifled by learning the necessities, creativity - and genuine making - continues. Some teens specialize in creativity and vocations like writing, music, and sculpture become their professions. Others steer away from professional “artistic” callings but still find creative outlets in their hobbies.
It's safe to say that a vein of creativity runs through the whole of human experience. The more creative among us make making a part of our everyday lives. But one need not be a professional painter, screenwriter, or designer to make things. No, it is very much to the contrary. Everyone can do it, and possibly needs to do it.
Making is essential to being human.
Ask almost anyone, and they'll share a creative maker hobby they have. Knitters, painters, crafters of all kinds; people love to make stuff. And it's always fun to learn who likes to make what.
Many actors, directors, and musicians - creative types - have maker hobbies on the side. Film director David Lynch is an avid woodworker. So is Daniel Day-Lewis. And Metallica frontman James Hetfield, a recovering alcoholic, picked up woodworking to cope. Other musicians like Bob Dylan - an iron sculptor, and Taylor Swift - a custom snowglobe maker, create tangible things too. And Academy Award-nominated actress Margot Robbie, what's her secret maker skill? She's a pretty good tattoo artist, so I’ve read.
Yes, creative people love to make. Duh.
But what about famous people who aren't known for their artistic creativity? Take "politicians," for example. It seems the only creativity a politician can muster is talking constituents into votes! Now now; politicians are people too. And Presidents like paupers have their hobbies. Of the surviving US commanders-in-chiefs, there is a remarkable diversity of maker skills.
Jimmy Carter is a carpenter and key figure in the non-profit Habitat for Humanity. Bill Clinton plays the saxophone, and George W. Bush is a skillful portrait artist. Barack Obama writes prolifically. And Donald Trump is all about the "art of the deal," which doesn't qualify here (but I couldn't find anything else to mention). And what maker hobbies does Joe Biden, our current president, have? He's an avid car lover and self-professed "gearhead." Although I don't think he does any wrenching himself.
What do all these famous people say about their maker hobbies (those with one, anyway)? That it's a reprieve from their otherwise hectic lives. And the same goes for us common folk too.
Working hard at creating a good meal, even after a long day at work, helps some people relax. Seems paradoxical, but if you have a maker hobby, you know it’s true. The same goes for avid quilters, fervent scrapbookers, budding painters, and life-long model railroaders. Laboring away at these and any other maker hobby can be the best escape from all else that ails us, even when our preferred diversion from work happens to be work too.
Making then is a good kind of toiling; a perfect way to unwind from the flurry of life’s activity.
So why is it so satisfying to make? And why do so many, if not all of us, do it? It seems that many contributing factors center on that it just “feels good.”
How? For one, making stimulates the brain in positive ways. Doing so releases feel-good hormones throughout. This happens because creativity connects many cerebral regions at once. For lack of a better description, it’s like all that activity squeezes out the feel-good juice.
Another reason (one I am rather fond of): making takes us back to that childhood state of learning-as-play. As discussed earlier, learning for a wee kid is synonymous with playing creatively. Yes, play prepares us for adulting later on, but kids don’t think of it that way. Kids play - we all play - first and foremost because it's fun. Making then, especially for adults, is one of the few ways to recapture that joy, the magic of childhood.
Whatever the reasons for creating things, life is better when we do. From childhood to full-on adulthood, making connects us with ourselves - perhaps our better selves. Making then is an expression of who we want to be as humans. And as we make, we are perhaps the most human we will ever be.
So go ahead; everyone is doing it.
Make.
Until next time.
JRC