A four year old girl stares at the gnarled hands of the man holding flat-nosed pincers and a steel rod. He is shaping a metal strand into a coil. Dexterously he bends and shapes the metal, and the fascination of the girl slowly changes into recognition. This is not her first time watching him. As she looks on, she foretells his movements; knows that he is aiming to make jump rings. He puts the pincers down to pick up the pliers and begins cutting the coil into open-ended round loops that clink gently as they fall onto the long flat leather-lined table beneath.

He picks up the pincers again, but a pair of inexperienced small hands clamp onto his wrist. “Let me,” the soft brown eyes of the girl plead. His smile holds a hint of surprise and expectation as he relinquishes his hold on the worn tool. It is his turn to watch.

She is unaccustomed to the weight of the pincers and finds that she cannot maneuver them with ease the way he does. Biting her lip, she understands that apparent effortlessness requires hidden strength. Her hold tightens, and with one hand grasping the ring, she brings the metal ends closer together into a slightly crooked circle.

“It doesn't look right.” Her voice carries a timber too serious for her age. The man takes her hand into his own, and together they correct the roundness. “Everything can be fixed,” his action says.
Father and daughter have bonded in complicity to make beautiful things.