With a lump of wedged clay in his hand, a potter sits at his wheel. After he throws the clay onto the wheel, the potter anchors his elbows to the inside of his thighs. His secured hands are ready to begin the most important part of transforming this lump of clay into a beautiful piece of pottery.
He is ready to center the clay on the potter’s wheel.
As the clay spins and wobbles unevenly, the potter places his cupped hands on the clay and adds pressure. He works the spinning clay up and down between his hands until it is perfectly centered. Then the potter gives the clay its shape, its form. Then it can become a beautiful vase, a cup, a bowl.
But without being properly centered, without the clay yielding to the pressure of the potter’s hands, the clay becomes a misshapen, uneven piece of pottery – cracked and unusable.