(Springfield, Mo.) -- For some, retirement means kicking back and getting some much-deserved rest. For others, it means finally having the time to do something they truly love.

That's the case for retired Springfield, Mo. orthodontist Stan Horsch.

"It's almost like you're turning a piece of pottery, only you're doing it with cutting tools instead of your hands," says Horsch.

It's new hobby for a new stage in life. When orthodontist Stan Horsch retired, he decided to take on a new challenge.

"When you consider what I was doing before, it was all with my hands. So, I knew that I had the digital dexterity in my hands, and that's what it takes to do some of this wood turning," says Horsch.

A true craftsman, now he's creating more than smiles, but, he's creating some of those, still, too.

"The wood tells you what to do sometimes. If you've got, I'd call it a design mode, in the back of your brain, it's sort of... {You} look at that piece of wood and, as you're turning, your hands start doing this and pretty soon you say, 'Ok, that's what needs to be done,'" says Horsch.

Horsh first picked up the hobby a year after retiring.

"My neighbor had an old, rusty lathe that he told me I needed to borrow," says Horsch.

Instead of buying a boat, like many of his friends, he bought a lathe.

"I use this all year round and it doesn't cost any more than your fishing boat," says Horsch.

Now, he's spinning out dozens of works

"I go in spurts. Right now I'm in a spurt," says Horsch.

It's local art, using local wood.

"Yeah, mainly, because it's free," laughs Horsch.

"I've seen a lot of local, regional, and national artists work, but we have some of the finest wood turners in this area that I've seen across the country and Stan Horsch is one of em," says Eunice Wallar, owner of Waverly House Gallery and Gifts. The gallery features Horsch's work, among others.

Horsch sells some of his work, but, he doesn't create for the money.

"I use most of em for firewood," jokes Horsch.

That's just a joke, of course. He does it for fun, to stay busy, and to add a little more beauty to the Ozarks.

Contact: dmagditch@kspr.com