Summer trips, for me, are usually a cross between exploring a new area (Gettysburg) and seeing something that I have always wanted to see. This trip was precisely that. I have always been intrigued by Falling Water and the opportunity to camp in an area where we had never been was an absolute plus. As a child I was blessed to spend a part of every summer on Long Beach Island, off the coast of New Jersey. My grandparents house, bought when I was a mere 6 months old, was located on a bay lagoon. I would lay awake at night listening to the water lap the bulkhead and the rigging of the sailboat next door slap the mast. I had always assumed I would grow up to own a house on the water. Falling Water is one better than that, it is a house built out over the water. The stairway in the living-room, hidden by a retractable set of windows, actually leads down to the water and is just before the falls.
Inside the home you hear the water everywhere. The house is built with expansive decks that allow the dwellers to experience the outside world from all different angles and levels. There are no photographs allowed while you are inside the home but even in the photograph above, you can see the decks. The house is actually cantilevered overed the water by three concrete fingers.
The house itself is constructed of concrete and because of where it is located, the concrete was actually mixed bag by bag. No heavy machinery was used to excavate the site or to help with the construction. Our visit was everythhing I had hoped for and more. It is truly a work of art and I found myself wanting to travel back to visit during the different seasons just to see what the experience was like for the Kaufmans that had the home built.
Connect is the word that I have chosen to guide me through the current year. On this perfectly wonderful spring like day just a week ago, Mark and I ventured outside to forge a connection with nature. It was a short walk, just out to Three Pond and back, but it was just what we needed. Since we have opened the shop we have become very sedentary out of pure exhaustion. Forcing ourselves outside is necessary for our sanity. By taking the time to walk, like we did when we first met, we are connecting with each other and nature. Around the pond on this beautiful day we were greeted by gaggles of geese and a raft of ducks. It’s interesting that a group of ducks in flight is a flock but in any other configuration, they're referred to as a raft.
We took photos, lots. We talked, lots. And we had fun. As the year progresses I am hoping to be mindful of the different connections I am able to forge on many different levels.
There are times when I attempt to accomplish more than I am capable of. It happens. I feel it usually around September or October and then BAM! My body comes to a screeching hault. I experienced just that knock down, drag out, winner take all kind of moment just about a year ago. Being me, I ignored it and believed that I could work through it all. Ha!
Last year I chose the word flourish. I truly believed that I was ready to flourish both physically and emotionally. Coming off a diagnosis of diabetes and fybromyalgia I felt that I could manage those new realities, open a business and still manage to flourish. Looking back, I am grateful that I did not perish in my own ignorance.
In October, while I hadn’t done anything to Flourish, the word Fascinate started to whisper to me. Much like the devil sitting on my shoulder; "Sure, you couldn’t flourish but I am sure, if you really tried, you could Fascinate.” It didn’t feel right. I bought the book, Fascinate. While an interesting read, I just didn’t feel comfortable that I could do anything with it. It felt egocentric and vain. How would I Fascinate anyone, and do I want to? A good question. I spent the past week during my break from school dealing with vertigo, a fybromyalgia flare and a lot of congestion. Fascinate was beginning to worry me. There were days I didn’t get out of bed until noon. That was a big problem. I believe that in order to Fascinate, I need to be able to engage, connect with the world. Through the rough and tumble that was the last week of 2016 I found myself zeroing in on “Connect.”
As an introvert, Connect has a varied number of meanings for me. As a business owner, I would like to try to connect with all those who enter my world through the shop. As a teacher, connection is the magic behind making a difference for a child. As I perculate the different layers of connect I will entertain the different meanings and commit to a plan to make connection a real and vital part of my 2017. I ask you, what one word will guide your life and actions for the upcoming year? I loved to hear!
Some years, like last year, my word comes to me sometime in the fall screaming for attention. In October of 2014, BRAVE, showed up on my doorstep and just wouldn’t leave. I wasn’t sure why I needed to be “brave”, but I listened to the universe and allowed “brave” in. This year, quite the opposite.
In the days that followed Christmas I was still contemplating different words. Some of those words included, produce, make and create. I know that in 2016, I need to get some things made, but those words did not feel right. I searched for quotes that included that collection of words and again, I came up short. One day I happened upon the the illustration above. It seems that MOPS chose as their theme for 2015, Fierce Flourishing. I liked that!
I also liked that the quote above included my word for 2015. While the year has ended, my need to be brave continues as I struggle to deal with recent diagnoses.
Finally on the morning of New Years Eve, I committed to Flourish.
Flourish means to grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way. Synonyms include grow, thrive, prosper and although any of these words would do, flourish seems to capture the essence of what I need to achieve for me this year.
In real world terms, what does flourish mean for me? It means I have a bit of work to do. Currently Mark and I are in the process of planning our next steps. A little scary and a whole lot exciting.
Home alone on a Sunday evening always causes me to spend a bit of time reflecting on life and other such things. It was a day, just like today, in October of last year when my word, BRAVE, whispered in my ear. I could not think of a good reason for that word, but it just would not be quiet. In fact, as the year drew to a close, Brave was like the constant drone of a hip-hop bass line.
So, I decided to be Brave. In 2015 Brave looked like the inside of a doctor’s office when I really did not want to hear anymore news, good or bad, I had had enough. It looked like the inside of a hospital when I was preparing to take a test that I knew was going to be very painful. It looked like the inside of a hospital when friends were dealing with medical challenges that they and I found hard to face. Brave is the smile I wear when the news is not good but my friend needs a smile and a strong shoulder to lean on. Brave keeps me searching for answers to pain that just will not subside.
Brave was also the ability to multi task when pain got in the way and I needed to finish just one more report card or my lesson plans. Brave was the opportunity I took to teach back to back workshops in cities 4 hours away from each other because I knew that I would grow from the experience.
But, while I was in Seattle this August, in a not so nice part of town, in a hotel by myself, I realized that being Brave was so much more than I was prepared for. Once home, school started, early; I was required to take a four week online class to keep my IB workshop leader certification, I was facing the need to change my diet completely as I stared diabetes in the face and the pain was ever-present.
Then the reason for my word revealed itself. The opportunity to purchase a retail business in the quilting industry. Just one more thing piled on my plate but necessary from my perspective. You see, I need to retire from teaching soon because of how the stress affects my health and, I have wanted to own a quilt shop since I experienced my first shop in 1978. That’s a long time.
Mark and I worked hard to develop a business plan taking advantage of the SBDC. We took classes that dealt with running a quilt shop like building sales, creating momentum, “open to buy” inventory management, appropriate POS systems, inspiring creativity and supporting newbies to the craft. We attended workshops and seminars that kept us busy from before 8am to way after 9pm and we soaked it all up.
When we felt ready, with everything, we contacted my bank with our mentor’s blessing. I have been with this bank for nearly 30 years. Our meetings went well, our interactions were all positive and we were told that we met all of the requirements for the loan. Then, here’s where Brave comes in, on Black Friday, we received the call that while we were good candidates, we weren’t quite good enough.
After careful deliberation and a great amount of soul-searching, I am calling on my word once again. Today I am being Brave. I will continue to look for the funding and hope that the funding arrives before someone else purchases the shop. I will continue to be Brave and I will put myself out there, again. I know that I have grown as a result of this experience. I also know that you cannot win if you do not play the game. I also know that the right opportunity is out there and I need to be present just in case it shows up when I least expect it.
Here’s to being Brave, taking chances and being willing to work for something that I want. All for the love of quilts!
There are some things that I am not very good at and one of them is secrets. This week I am “vaulting” several secrets and my head is about to burst. Mind you, I do not feel that way about secrets that someone shares with me. No, it is mostly my own secrets or secret situation that I am a part of that I have a difficult time keeping, well you know, secret.
Every year a choose a word to guide me. This year, my word is BRAVE. I wasn’t sure what would be involved with living my year bravely and then I had a few medical issues that required a certain braveness to put myself in a situation that would allow me to figure it out. Since we have a couple of concrete diagnoses at this point, I continue to be called upon to be brave as we try to put all of the puzzle pieces together.
Brave is the word that I use to describe what I face when I try to make significant changes to my lifestyle. It is easy to do what I have always done. Now I find that my health and well-being depend on my decisions in a way that they never have before and I need to continue to be brave in the choices I make.
I didn’t realize until this week why my word for 2015 really needed to be BRAVE. This is the secret part. I can’t share why being Brave is so necessary to my life right now but I assure you, it’s big. So, without sharing my secrets, I am asking for support, good thoughts and prayers. In the end, what will be will be and I will be better for taking the journey. Right now, I’m doing my best to be brave; My Word, My Story, My Year.
This evening I am hosting a group of inspired women prepared to take that next step toward living the life they really want. Or, everyone’s just coming to drink wine and play with scissors. Either way, it’s all good!
This evening I am hosting a group of inspired women prepared to take that next step toward living the life they really want. Or, everyone’s just coming to drink wine and play with scissors. Either way, it’s all good!
The brave thing to do would be to plan as if nothing stood in my way. Unfortunately, I am also a realist and I realize that, in fact, many things stand in my way.
The brave thing to do would be to move in a forward direction, one step at a time, until I am putting many steps together. So that’s what I will do. I have taken out the beautiful calendar that my dear friend Bunkey purchased for me and I am going to schedule in some “must-do’s.” I always feel better when I create a list and start attacking it. That will be my goal for this evening!
Look at this, my "brave" necklace arrived in the mail today, all the way from Oregon! I am so excited. Every year I tend to buy something small that will remind me of my word, throughout my day. This year I spotted this little gem on Etsy and I just had to have it. There is a little bit of a sparkle inside on the dictionary page and that makes it all the more sweet! I cannot wait to start wearing my new present!
