Comfort Zone

  I know,  I know. Where have I been? To say that it has been an eventful and busy last few weeks is an understatement. A few weeks back I was contacted by my previous employer (yes, the one who laid me off) and was offered temporary work. Since I believe in the "water under the bridge" principle and was also in need of work, I accepted. Job searching is brutal to say the least, and I can't turn away suitable work, on top of the fact that my unemployment benefits were ending the same week. Incidentally, as my temporary work came to a close, a friend of mine reached out to offer me some side work as a caretaker for her elderly mother. As much as I do not want to be paid to do this, there's no arguing with my friend. Just as I've told her, I'd do this for free anyway, because sharing time with her mom is the absolute highlight of my week! 

  Talk about timing though, right? Well, I'm not done yet! After accepting the caretaker side gig, my previous employer offered me my old position back with the exact pay I needed and flexibility I was looking for. The best part is that I can do both jobs without feeling overwhelmed or tied down! I do not believe in coincidences; I know that Jehovah God had been providing me with what I needed and now, this too, was an answer to my prayers. My husband and I are still sharing one vehicle but, get this! His office is literally across the street from mine! 

So, between my two part-time jobs, house projects, personal errands, and, you know, everything else in life, it's been pretty busy. But, this is not a complaint. Honestly, I like keeping a busy-balanced routine, emphasis on the balanced part. Now, does this mean I'll stop blogging and posting stuff? Nope! I may not be able to post as much, but my goal is to blog once a week and still share savvy finds on my social media so make sure you follow me on those! 

  This leads me to something else I've been contemplating to do. Really, this was my husband's idea and I cannot stress this valuable truth enough to everyone: find those who truly believe in you, even more than you believe in yourself, and never let them go. A few days ago I found my old sketch binder with all my old artwork, sketches, and doodles. Ever since I was a little girl, I loved art, especially anything to do with flora and fauna, and I was always drawing or sketching something! But, as many of you can attest to, as you grow older it seems that other things crowd out the very things that you love to do, the things that help you to regain your balance and truly relax the mind. Although this was true in my case with art, I never fully stopped trying to get back at it. 

 The Creative brain never really goes away, so finding that old binder and going through all my sketches, remembering the stories behind each one, really made me want to get back to it! This is where that valuable truth I mentioned kicks in. My husband is one of the extremely rare honest people I've met. Just because he's in love doesn't mean he's going to 'tickle my ears' to spare my feelings, so his opinion carries a lot of weight with me. When he tells me "you can do this" or "you'd be great at that", or "honey, you should get back into drawing and artwork and start your own Etsy store", I believe him. Of course, I doubt myself and my abilities constantly. I think we all kind of do that.

  As terrified and nervous as I am to say this, I'm going to give this digital art thing a whirl. It is neat to sketch, draw, and design things on the iPad, although I prefer paper and pencil. But, the idea of doing passion work, sharing it with others, and having them like it so much that they want to have a piece of it is a concept that resonates with me. Digital art is new to me in the sense that I've always done my sketches with paper and pencil, but I've been using the Adobe Fresco app, since we already use Adobe for other things, and I must say, I am impressed with it! I'm still learning the ropes but it has everything I need, and the more I use it the better I understand it. That being said, I'm practicing my art skills and hope to have an Etsy shop open soon! I am terrified because, as I said, I do not think I'm good, but this is why we surround ourselves with genuine people who truly believe in who we are and in what we can do. I'm comfortable with my ability to sketch, but to share it with others who are a million times better than me is a little scary, not gonna lie. But that's why I learned this other golden truth: you can't continue growing if you stay in your comfort zone.

 So, there you have it! That's what I've been up to these last few weeks. It has been quite the ride without a doubt. Literally taking each day at a time, focusing on what I can do, what I have, and what is within my control. Everything else beyond that rolls onto the hands of a much more powerful being that has no limitations and that has the desire and ability to give me what I need, when I need it. As always, I appreciate every single one of you for encouraging me throughout the last several months, and beyond. I'll write soon! 🫶

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