Finding voice in wood: A journey from Miami to the Bay Area

PETALUMA, Calif. -- In the quiet workshop at Two Rock School of Woodworking, Timber holds up a hand plane that fits perfectly in their grip. The tool feels more connected to the wood than any of the big industrial saws nearby -- intimate and direct.

"This is the real tool," Timber says, cradling the plane. The connection between craftsperson and wood is immediate.

The path here started in 1980s Miami, where a young Timber felt out of place. Their grandfather, an artist and goldsmith, had encouraged them to paint and sculpt, always tinkering with something new. But South Florida in the '80s wasn't kind to someone who was different.

"I think one of the main reasons I couldn't thrive in South Florida back in the 80s is my queerness," Timber explains. "And I ran to the gay ghetto that is the Bay Area as soon as I could."

Since 1996, the Bay Area has been home, a place where being themselves was never a question. Here, Timber's fascination with how the natural world intersects the built environment could grow. The career path wound through landscape architecture, then farming, and finally woodworking, but the core interest remained: that blurred line between human-made and living.

Now at Two Rock School of Woodworking, Timber hosts weekend students learning the basics -- how to use machines safely and join two pieces of wood properly.

"There's a reverence you develop for not only doing the work, but learning how to do the work the right way," Timber says. Teaching others has become as important as the craft itself.

During the pandemic and Black Lives Matter protests, Timber found inspiration in activist Tricia Hersey's message that "rest is resistance." This led to a series called "Rested," made from sinker redwood-ancient timber that had fallen into a Mendocino river and been recovered from the bottom.

The result looked like a simple bed, but carried deeper meaning. "I made a place to dream a better future," Timber explains. "This idea that you could rest on giants, that you could, by osmosis, soak up their integrity and knowledge."

At Two Rock School of Woodworking, Timber can bring their love of both craft and craft education to their home. The school continues as a place where students learn fundamentals and discover their own connection to wood. It's about making objects that matter-not through elaborate techniques, but through respect for the material and the process.

"It's about placemaking and imbuing objects with meaning," Timber says. "It has to do with the quietness of a piece of wood and allowing it to have a voice. That's all I want to do."

Follow Timber and Two Rock School of Woodworking on Instagram.