A clean slate

Has the Universe ever given you a "clean slate?" If it has , then you know what a gift it is to start fresh. You also know the fear and anxiety that goes along with such a gift. Recently, I was provided with a "clean slate". I was forced to make a heart wrenching decision to close the doors on the restaurant that I owned. Not an easy decision. What came next was surprising to me. I not only lost my livelyhood, I lost people in my life that I believed to be close friends. Added to this, I became a single Mom. My former husband moved very far away for business, leaving me playing the roles of both Mom and Dad to our 10 year old son.

That is where my sad story ends. Now for the good part. I have been given the opportunity to do the work that I am passionate about; my jewelry and other artist endeavors. I have never felt so satified as I have been for the last several months working in my artist studio. Each day that I wake up, I am "charged" and inspired by the work I am creating. Starting over is good, especially when one follows their heart and does what they love to do.

Leaving my comfort zone behind, approaching the unknown, is like standing on the egde of a cliff and jumping off "free falling" to the next level. It's been a leap of faith. I am still "free falling" but, I believe that I will make it into the next chapter of my life safely and much more satified.

I wanted to publish a picture of my studio for two reasons. One, so that those interested could invision where I do my work. Two, 'cause it's a bit of a mess and this may be the kick in the butt I need to organize my supplies. It's kind of a before and after picture, this being the "before". Perhaps in the near future I will be posting the "after" picture for all the world to see.

I spent the morning surfing the web, looking for craft shows to participate in this coming Spring and Summer. Any ideas? Then I decided to take the afternoon off and play in my studio. I made some very cool journals out of old cereal boxes, clippings from 1950's magazines and collected stamps. I had too much fun.

Gotta go and encourage my 11 year old son to finish up his homework.