Ill keep it as short as I can I am an ex builder with back issues for many years forcing me to quit my chosen trade and onto another which was driving until my physical health said no more and the medication also stopped me from doing my job . I have 2 herniated discs that are high risk for repair and a likely outcome would be wheelchair bound due to the surrounding damage around the base of my spine. I have pain on back and legs 24/7 even with strong painkillers and was at a point where to be honest I was losing the fight. I was looking on the internet one day and a picture popped up in wood and I looked at it and thought how is that done this set me on a mission to watch and read as much as I could to find out how this is done. I then purchased a very old Axminster scroll saw so old in fact in was snapped in half at the base I fixed it to a board to hold it together and practised on that for a couple of months to see if I could get to grips with it and put up with the pain of sitting , the sitting side did not work out to well so I now sit stand sit stand like a lot of us do . I then thought you know what when I am scrolling my pain is there but I am not so focused on it as I am more focused on the cut and hey presto it is my best form of treatment I have found yet not just for the physical side of dealing with long term pain but also the mental side as well which is as equally as bad as the physical. Since then I have moved onto a Hegner and am now trying the pattern making side out to so I can help others with their requests etc I am also dabbling with Pyrography kind of . How long have I been doing it now less than 2 years so compared to most on here I am a newbie but I like what I do and it has without doubt got me through a rough time. I just wish I had found it when I was a tad younger so I could of spent a lot longer at it when fully fit . The satisfaction you get from making something from nothing especially when it was wood destined for the chipper or burner still drives me to pick up all scraps. I like to make as much as I can from reclaimed stock including as some may know Vinyl records I like to keep my options open on what to cut etc. That is my story of how I got to Scrolling and why I will carry on Scrolling. May I also say Thanks for all the encouragement from fellow scrollers without that I would not be as far forward as I am now