Project 30: Fly.

Task 29/30: Learn to make an origami paper crane
Complete: December 14, 2008

It seems like such a small thing to be in the project, but here I am ranking learning how to twist and fold paper up with seeing Broadway and riding horses on the beach. One of the main themes of this project was to do things I've always wanted to do, not just that I hadn't done. With all my crafty ways, one of the things I've never really explored much is Origami. Like many skills in life, I have always marveled and sat in awe of the people that seemed to concoct the most lovely creations from simple paper, but never had the focus to acquire it myself. A few years ago, a friend even got me an Origami set for Christmas, and yet it wasn't enough of a kickstart to really take me away from other things that held my interest more. At Burning Man, I've frequently seen people give out cranes as gifts, and I thought they were so touching and sweet and seemingly perfect for the setting. Then, this year there was the Temple of Community, a larger than life crane that served as a Memorial. Again, I marveled at the shape and meaning and mentally noted that I would like to learn to fold paper so beautifully.



This entire project is a lot about flight. Not just the dozens of times I have done take offs and landings this year, but about flying free and independent in my spirit and willing to just jump and raise my wings. As I struggled to really find one solid last task that didn't seem repetitive, I was suddenly in the art store standing in front of this box that said "Learn to make 1,000 paper cranes." Before I knew it, it was in my basket and I was checking out, still unsure that this was something I could really do. But the more I thought about it, the more I thought that holding this as one of the last large tasks, with a goal of going forward making 1,000 cranes, I could happily carry this project forward into the future in a really neat way.

I came home and busted open the box to see it filled with 1000 3x3 squares of rainbow colors of paper and a sheet of instructions that seemed vague if anything. I struggled getting started, but thanks to some clever web resources and a quick Youtube video, the very basic skill that had always been out of my reach was mine. I folded 3 my first night and then 8 the next, upgrading for my last one to the larger sheets of paper that came with my older Origami set and making it MUCH easier to complete the cranes without them looking a bit mangled. Tonight I made one completely from memory and am sort of eager to get a more advanced book and try different things. It's exciting finding a new art. I have .01% of the cranes needed to get a possibility of luck, but this project is most certainly 100% MISSION COMPLETE!