Every year I determine to avoid the crowds and do my Christmas shopping early. Every year I usually put it off until I can't purchase online and I'm fighting the crowds once again. I'm sure I'm not the only one who experiences this.

Why don't we just put our busyness aside and find nice things for our friends and family? It seems to me that often this is because our brains can only handle so much input before we reach overload. Compound this with the fact that sellers are all competing for your attention and your wallet. The mind can only take so much of Amazon before one's eyes begin to gloss over.

Then I stumbled upon Etsy. [via]

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Designers, artists and the aesthetically elite know who they are. Their vocabulary is filled with statements such as, “Form follows function” or “Less is more,” and they like to think up esoteric phrases like “The devil is in the details.” For some reason in their past, they have earned the right to be heard, and they have the funky glasses to prove it.

On the other hand, there's Gabor.

Gabor is a mechanic. I am his most loyal customer…a loyalty of necessity since I drive a 14 year old Volvo with 233k+ miles on it. When I complain about seeing him again, Gabor reminds me “it's good for the economy.” Often he answers the phone with a flat, “What.” or “Yes?” He isn't interested in impressing anyone.

Being an incurable designer myself (sans funky glasses), I can't help but notice the chaos and mass disorganization of his shop whenever I drop off my car. It is not unlike one of the many storefronts in India. In these shops you can ask for the tiniest item like a screw for a radio, and in seconds they will disappear into the darkness, pull out a shoebox, and unearth precisely the part for which you are looking. Gabor's shop reminds me of this. It may look like a disorganized mess, but he knows exactly where everything is located.

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While driving from Washington to Virginia, I took a little detour to Florida where I met Abelardo Parra. Born in Colombia, he was the only child of 10 who was deaf from birth. From what I could interpret from our conversation, he explained his initial anger toward God because of his situation, but later God later brought transformation to his life. He now uses his art to honor God.

I took several pictures of his sculptures during our visit. I understand there are more in Columbia, as well as a large sculpture currently on the campus of world renowned, Gallaudet University. He works in both hard and soft woods, as well as stone.

Anyone interested in his art may contact Deaf Missions International by emailing Thomas Ferrell. Tell him I sent you.