WHEN IN DOUBT, GRAB A BUCKET BY MAXWELL LANUM

When I was younger, my dad and I used to do something called “Bucket Projects” where he and I would collect random excess materials in his shop and put them in a singular bucket. Once the bucket was full, I would dump out the contents, look at everything, use tools, glue, and my creativity to make something. Whether it was an art piece or a “revolutionary” invention, I used the objects at hand and the skills that I had to fuel my creativity. Now that I think of it, he might have been using me to help clean up the shop, but I didn’t care because my creative muscle grew stronger and stronger every time we completed a project. Once middle school and high school came around, I learned a few more skills and felt the need to turn them up a notch. I started to do Bucket Projects with a welder and scrap metal. Still, every time I feel that I need an outlet or that my creativity is low, I go out to my shop with a bucket and the goal of making anything that my heart desires. To me, creativity is not only a tool, skill, or mindset, it is a part of my soul, and it has been for my entire life.