Craft Story

Meditation Bench

A meditation bench crafted from reclaimed cedar, originally salvaged from a World War II aircraft hangar in southern Alberta, where Canadian pilots once trained. A piece of history, reimagined with purpose.

I had ordered some distressed, reclaimed timber for a stair project: Douglas fir beams and laminated 2x6s that came out of an old World War II airplane hangar used by Canadian fighter pilots in southern Alberta.

I don’t know if the guy was being funny or just clearing out scraps, but buried in the pile was a single piece of cedar.

I kept it, knowing I had found something special.

Years later, a good friend asked me to build a meditation bench, and I knew immediately what I was going to use.

The Bench That Waited

Some pieces of wood just need time.
Time to become what they were meant to be.

I had ordered a load of reclaimed timber for a stair project
Douglas fir beams, laminated 2x6s, salvaged from a World War II airplane hangar in southern Alberta.
A place where Canadian pilots once trained.

Buried in that pile was something different.

A single piece of cedar.
Weathered. Unassuming. Out of place.

I don’t know if it was included by mistake or intention,
but I kept it.

It felt like something worth holding onto.

Years passed.

Then a good friend asked me to build a meditation bench.

And immediately, I knew.

That piece of cedar had been waiting.

Shaped slowly, by hand, the form revealed itself.
Not forced, just uncovered.

The curves. The balance. The feel of it.

Simple. Grounded. Quiet.

Now it sits in a space meant for stillness
a piece of wood with a past, given a new purpose.