”There are seasons for making the thing and seasons for becoming the person who can make the thing.”

~Kate Van Horn

It’s been a while, I know.

I’ve rounded a corner, or more Tokyo drifted into an extended break this summer and I’m not mad at it! Frankly it was what I needed. After the show in May I had taken on several big freelance jobs that lasted thru July so those paired with a couple trips to see family I was suddenly staring down the nose of August and well, here we are!

I think everyone is feeling like time is moving super fast these days. The summer was a hot one which always effects my energy levels so the fact that I got any jobs done was a miracle. But after they finished and I had the chance to slow down and maybe rest a bit I was not feeling as rested as I usually do. To be honest I was not feeling good at all. As is the usual routine in Summer, I would plan a battery of doctors appointments to catch up and be ready for the Fall. This time I was needing to address some chronic stomach issues and what do you know, your girl has stomach ulcers! Yep, plural. I am now on a high powered acid reducer for a few months and need to go back in October to see how they’ve healed, fingers crossed. I’ve been on the meds for a few weeks now and I do feel a lot better thankfully. But it’s got me really taking a hard look at my habits and what I’ve been doing and not doing that has gotten me here. Starting with managing stress, my own workload and getting my body moving. C’mon 60 degrees!

The sky and the water always call.
I’ve made a handful of cloud cyanotypes this summer that I’ll have available in my shop here soon!!! Working on an archive sale as well.

So in addition to taking care of my gut, literally…I’m also looking at an official ADHD diagnosis that I’m hoping will help with motivation, prioritizing things easier and just existing without overwhelm. What an exhilarating thought! I am leaning hard into the potential there is for me to feel better mentally and physically and what that could do for me and my life and how I want it to look. What do I have to do for myself to be able to live the way I want to live. This is the question I’m being called to answer right now. I need to actually engage in the transformation I’m being pushed into in order to become strong and healthy enough at my age to do life the way I want to and that takes me away from the studio and from making into the rest of life. I’m not in my 20’s anymore so it looks and feels very different so I need to adapt. Photoshoots in Iceland are not for the faint of heart! (Yes, that’s a goal!!! :)

So when I found the quote above online it was a huge ah-ha moment. It is exactly where I am right now and while I do have work I want to share and classes I’m planning to teach, the priority for me right now, is my health and wellbeing. I know this is the season I am in right now because it makes me even more excited to think about where it will lead me in the future. And God knows we all need things to be excited about.

Thanks for being here~

Coffeeshop Dispatch Vol. 13

Coffeeshop Dispatch Vol. 12