Things still hurt a little. Darling, sweet, heroic Rush hid all reminders before I even entered the apartment right after The Event. But one time I went into the study and caught a glance of Sugar's empty water bowl. Ouch. Yesterday I walked into the downstairs bathroom and automatically moved my left leg out of the way because that's the side Sugar would always hurry past me to get to his food. Ouch. And then, of course, there's the guilt over noticing (and enjoying) every vomit-less, poop-free inch of my floor. I like leaving every door in my home open without fear of an 18-year-old cat peeing on anything I hold dear. And that makes me sad.
But even through all of this, I can recognize that my hoodie-wearing, pumpkin-loving, crisp air (er, well, we're getting there) month is slipping away and it's time to move forward. No matter that my eyes water periodically or that I still cannot hear out of my right ear (infection, remember?) So I come, dear readers, to set aside my story of loss and share my joy of creation:
A tiny little business has been growing inside of me. As performers, we are all somewhat self-employed. Some of you know I recently starting selling Usborne Books (AND WILL BE HAVING A BOOK PARTY IN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO!! please come) and making my own hair accessories. This December, I am hoping to acquire an embroidery/sewing machine to delve further into crafting. Beyond that, I hope to teach private lessons from my own home in the not-too-distant future. So I've decided it is time for me to market myself. A friend from Samford is designing business cards for me and I have been working on a website.
My next task, that I would love tons of input on, is to brand myself. Just this weekend, I was inspired to give my "business" a name. It will pull everything I'm doing together and take me to a new level for marketing. But what should the name be? I've been playing with variations on my last name and here are some ideas:
Hoppy Arts: Live. Learn. Create
Art Hop: Live. Learn. Create.
The Artful Hop: Love. Hope. Create.
The Art of Hopping: Helping hopeful artists
Hopping Creations: Artists, Dreamers, and Doers
Hopeful Artists: A book, a dream, and a hop
...or some combination therein. Please share your thoughts on the names and taglines I have come up with so far and feel free to send in your own! I'm quite excited about our plans for the future, and I know I need to concentrate on that. As my Dove chocolate wrapper said this evening: A good love is delicious because you can never get enough. There will always be loss inside our hearts that grows with every passing soul. All we can do is be still in the Lord and praise His name for the time that we have together.
