Feeling the dance of age, I join a pottery class. It isn't until I let go of expectations that I truly begin to learn how to create | Nova Weetman

A pottery class begins with hands-on work that feels primal and playful, bringing back childhood experiences of making with mud. Initial attempts can be uneven, but small pieces can still be fired and glazed, with progress emerging over time. After years of postponing due to limited availability, weekly classes become possible when life allows. In a warehouse studio, participants introduce themselves and share reasons for joining, often describing burnout and high stress. Many are healthcare and mental health professionals seeking relief, nervous-system calming, and greater presence in their bodies. The teacher then starts with foundational wheel techniques such as centering and dropping in.

"As soon as I gripped the lump of clay and tried to centre it on to the plate, I was hooked. There was something primal about having my hands and clothes covered in smears of white. It brought me back to making mud pies as a child. My son seemed to understand the properties of working with clay in a way that I didn't but I still managed to cobble together some small pieces and left them to be fired, my name carved in the bottom."

"When I collected the glazed pieces , I laughed with the studio technician at how neat my son's bowls were compared with my wonky ones. She suggested enrolling in a longer course but regular classes weren't possible at that point in my life, so I shoved my indelicate pots to the back of my cupboard and forgot about pottery for a while. With my youngest child now in his last year of school, I have more time for committing to something weekly."

"Before we receive our bags of clay we go around the room and introduce ourselves, explaining why we have enrolled. I've always found this daunting, and can feel my heart racing as I think of something to say. I explain that I am there to create intuitively; to stop overthinking and just play. Others talk about being burnt out or close to it. They are mostly nurses, emergency doctors, social workers, occupational therapists and mental health practitioners, and have signed up hoping pottery will help to calm their nervous systems, reduce stress and allow them to be in their bodies."

"Our teacher begins to introduce us to the basics: how to centre, how to drop in,"

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