Stretched thin! Dads, I’m not talking hair, but rather our time. It’s math, like it or not. There’s 168 hours in a week. Then we subtract our litany of duties, tasks, and time-stealers like sleeping, eating, working, traffic, activities, around-the-house projects, chores, errands, budgeting, and of course, … shucking the corn for dinner. I’m sure that made your top ten list as well.
It was my daughter’s turn to get “Special Time” with me, but I was having trouble dividing my time (see math equation above) and making it happen. So I invited her outside to help me shuck the corn. I have found that my daughter (and maybe yours too) likes to share her thoughts and feelings with her daddy.
As we connected, I began connecting strips of husk. It was no different than doodling while on the phone. I braided rope, tied knots, and goofed-off while listening. She noticed, kept talking, and copied me. After 10 – 15 minutes, we had a necklace of braided corn husks and an amulet made of corn silk and shank.
We were very impressed with ourselves and decided to check with Dr. Google. Apparently, the Native Americans knew about Dadnamics because there were whole websites devoted to replicating the native craft of Corn Husk Dolls. Yes, their skill far exceeded our own artisan level. That’s okay. We will have more corn to shuck this summer.
