Well, finally throwing my hat in the ring!
I've been making knives for about 15yrs now. Really didn't have much interest in going for my journey Smith for years. The last few years I've been attending Spirit of the Blade in Troy Ohio. Many of my friends and mentors that attend are JS and even a MS. Add to that, several of them are on their way to their JS this year. Good luck to them all.
My Dad passed this year and one of the last conversations we had, he told me I should go for it. He said you're never to old to have a dream. 6 days later he passed. My wife and friends encouraged me to attend SOTB, even though I didn't know if I could go back into Dad and my shop. It was a rough few weeks, looking over and him not being there but I found a new drive and passion for what I'm doing.
And so the journey begins.
This year I'll be getting my forge, anvil, hammers and even a press. Time to start kicking it in the ass.
Welcome David. Just let us know how we can help in your JS journey. And remember that is all about the journey, not the destination. The real prize is the gains in your knowledge, skills and knife quality in pursuit of that stamp. The stamp itself is just a souvenir from the trip, the quality of your knives will be the real proof that you took the journey.
