THE CARDS ARE STARTING TO COME IN!

Oh my gosh.  I received my first two cards in the mail today for my house of cards project.  If you were here, you would see my excitement!  One of them was from a beautiful girl I first met at a business expo.  She met with me last week and has some feelings of not having friends, not having a job, and insecurities about her future.  She has a beautiful personality and I am so grateful for the time we got to spend together.  What we talked about will remain largely between us but she truly enjoyed looking through the cards that had animals on them and she chose a card with a cute little dog on the front.  Her card simply reads, Hope Healing Happiness.  I spent about an hour with her and we talked about so many things that could give her those feelings again.  Just spending this hour meant so much to me and I think it meant a lot to her too. 

The second card was from a networking customer I met this year and I love the message on the cover.  It is a Helen Keller quote: HOPE sees the invisible, feels the intangible and Achieves the Impossible.  Thank you Roger Fillyaw of Bullseye Gunsmithing for participating in this project and for your kind words!

Pat Deere

Story #1 - Addictions

Why am I doing this project?  I think it is easier to share as a story.  This could be anybody's story, but today, it is mine.  Addiction is something that affects everybody in some way, personally, emotionally, or financially.  In my opinion, it is a disease that can't be understood easily and some would argue that it's not a disease.  Not my point.  I'm only sharing my perspective and experience.

I am a person who has been greatly affected by addictions.  I have lost family and friends to the drugs and alcohol.  Sometimes people give up hope.  I never do.  As long as a person is alive, I believe there is hope.  I also believe in miracles.  This is one of my personal stories of Hope, Healing, & Happiness.  I hope it inspires you to share yours.

The name and relationship of this person is not important and will remain anonymous.   So, I will just say this persons name is Chelsea (because I always liked that name).  I went to meet Chelsea at the breakfast I know she attends that is hosted 7 days a week by the community she lives in for people like herself who have struggled for any number of reasons.  I thought the breakfast started at 6:30am but it started at 7:30. Disheartened, I spoke with a volunteer and left my card with a phone number on it to pass on to Chelsea if he could.

As I was heading to my appointment, my heart jumped at the sight of Chelsea walking towards me.  I pulled my car over, and parked it in the middle of the road.  She reminded me, I would probably want to pull over to the curb.  In a matter of a few short minutes I was told she has been sober for 10 months which is the longest stretch of sobriety I have seen her go through since childhood.  She has a job, and a place to live, and is excited about joining us for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.  Hope, Healing, and Happiness overcame me all at once.  She was crying and I was crying and we hugged.

This is just the beginning of what is to come.  I can hardly sleep.  I was so excited when I saw her I forgot to even get her phone number.  When I opened the door to give her a hug, I forgot to put my car in park and it stalled out.   So you can see, I was just a little excited.

I believe sharing these stories will be healing to me and to those who experience them.  Thanks for letting me share my story with you.

How it began...

ArtPrize is a huge art competition in Grand Rapids and I have wanted to participate since it began.  Seeing anything from pop bottle flowers covering a lawn, to beautifully painted murals, mosaic art, sculptures, and anything in between inspired me.  I loved the diversity of it all and I loved the fact that anything was game.

Since the first year, they have changed things a bit, added a juried aspect to the event, and it appears to be getting bigger.  But, I needed an idea I could really get excited about before I sent in a proposal.

With all of the negativity in the world and statistics documenting it everywhere, I had a real need to eliminate it from my life.  I choose to focus on the positive whenever I can.
 
So, how do I combine my passion for glasswork with my passion for my card and gifting business?  That's where this blog comes in.  There is too much to put into a short description. More to come!  And, you can participate.