Almost every piece of wood that makes up William and Sharon Kooienga’s modest log cabin home in Dowelltown, Tennessee came from their land. The upper floors are thick Sassafras. The massive walls are solid cedar. And the fire place and chimney all hand selected stones from the property itself.

I’m immediately fascinated by the love and hard work that clearly goes into maintaining his property. I pull in slowly, taking it all in and feeling as though I’m in a very special place.

William’s love for woodworking is present throughout the house. A knotted tree trunk carefully polished and positioned on the wall serves as a staircase rail. The mantle appears to be a slab of osage orange, one of his favorite to work with. The coffee table is a cross section of a massive tree trunk.

As we’re talking in his living room, William gets a call from the LeQuire Gallery in Nashville about some pieces he’s soon to deliver for their new Green Hills Mall location. Despite his deadline William gives me his full attention and a tour of his remarkable home.

Unless you know what to look for, most visitors might think they’re lost coming out to visit William and Sharon, but if you can get an appointment it’s well worth your patience.

A “No Trespassing” sign greets strangers who often know to take that seriously, especially in rural Tennessee. The one lane gravel road cuts through limestone and winds its way deep into the hollow. Along the way visitors are greeted by pieces of art in the natural wooded landscape.

The first house on William’s property you come to is currently occupied by a friend of William’s who grew up with his sons. Josh works in William’s shop up the hill. He directed me further back in the hollow before hopping on his bike to start his day working on a chair.

It was a nice slow drive as it was with gravel mounds formed to direct heavy rains into a nearby creek, but the occasional braking for guineas brought a huge smile to my face. William later tells me the guineas control the ticks.

William shows me where he spent the winter painting through the colder weather. When I asked him how he’ll tolerate the room in the summer, he points to a large spread of branches from a tree outside a large wall of windows. “I’m waiting for those buds to open up and shade this entire window.”

William loves living simply, and if you get to know William, you’ll see a consistent philosophy behind it that is deep and meaningful for him. Both he and Sharon use solar power and get their water from a spring using a 12 volt pump. Now that their two sons have moved out, they’re thinking about getting rid of the toilet. For William, modern living is a distraction that creates far more problems than they are worth.

William and Sharon keep chickens in an awesome mini log cabin chicken coop adorned with metal farm equipment parts. William said they used to keep goats and would milk them to make cheese. They keep a garden and occasionally hunt their own meat. William says the 100+ acres provides plenty of deer and wild turkey. And nothing goes to waste. Hanging above guests in the living room, in fact, are beautiful bird sculptures made of deer bone.

William first began working with wood teaching a class in a private school for challenged youth in the mid 70s. He remembers how successfully creating something reached and helped heal a part of his students’ spirit in a way nothing else could.

William has always been deeply in tune with his spiritual journey. In his early 20s, William traveled through India and Europe. He took inspiration from the architecture of religious temples. Before moving to Tennessee, his family joined a Sufi community in Asheville, NC where they lived and experienced spiritual-based intentional community living.

This weekend William celebrated his 60th birthday with family and friends, and he tells me his main focus these days is personal relationships with his wife, his family and being of service to others. His most satisfying works are for individuals, and he shows me recent pieces he’s sold.

To William, time has a quality many of us yearn to know where holidays are just another day free of consumer driven madness, and where age 60 might as well be 30. It keeps his spirit fresh and expressively reflected in the works he creates.

You can see some of William Kooienga’s masterful woodworks at the LeQuire Gallery in Nashville and soon at their Green Hills Mall location as well as the Rymer Gallery. Next month, join me as I take you on a tour of William’s studio and some of the amazing works of art we’ll make available to you here.

Here are more photos from today’s trip.