The time that has passed since the beginning of the new year has flown by at a furious pace. I am currently sitting on a plane, where I have exhausted all of my reading materials, projects and To- Do lists and my calendar planning meeting with myself. Having  unexpectedly spent twelve hours at an airport four days prior, I had a gift of time to buckle down on my computer and slowly process the inundation of communication that I needed to attend to…and then some. The fact that I could actually enjoy twelve hours alone at an airport is a sad commentary and one that I will deal with in another blog post.

BLOG POST…that leads me to why I took paper to pen and began to write in the first place. My blog, sorely attended to, re-designed yet lacking in new material, but not without a slew of unfinished posts, begun in earnest, about a myriad of topics that I so want to address. It is not that I am actually lacking in new material, just the completion of it. There is nary a moment that goes by, whenever I get to think (which is often, for my husband tells me that I think too much) that I do not scribble on a piece of paper an idea, a concept, phrases or quotes, projects that I want to document etc. Why? I ask myself, why this need to share? Burdened by time constraints, as we all are, why blog at all and frankly who really cares what I write? Aside from the fact that I enjoy writing, why take the time to squeeze it in? I do not feel that I am being harsh, just honest. I follow many successful bloggers, and when asked why they blog, almost all of them reply that they love the community that their blog has created, of like minded readers. They feel like it gives them a forum to connect with kindred spirits.

 

I suppose that could be the reason I write and share, to try to get to that point, for I am way too small with very little readership to have what could be called a community. Hmm…maybe it is the teacher in me that enjoys disseminating information. It might be that sometimes I feel like no one is listening to me in my own family.  Ha! Ha! Anyone ever have that same feeling? It might be, as I stated earlier, that I really do enjoy writing, when I can find the time, as three of my children do as well. It might be that as each day unfolds into another, I question more, the why of life…  As I continue to ponder this question, I realize that the real reason that I write, is that blogging is tied to Life’s Patina and Life’s Patina to blogging. My mission, when I started Life’s Patina was bound up in our tag line, “to celebrate the beauty of life, past and present, good or bad, challenges or not. My blog enables me to share the beauty I see in life with the written word embodying thoughts and emotions, as Life’s Patina shares the beauty in life with the physical objects that we hand pick that can uplift one’s spirit. Both are an intrinsic part of life to me and are bound up harmoniously in what we try to do here at Life’s Patina.

I am not going to pull any punches here, and as it is with all new businesses and juggling them with a family, it is a tremendous amount of work. Work that again makes me puzzle sometimes, in a weak moment, an even greater question that “why do I write”. “Why am I doing this at all?” This question has caused me to stay awake at night, not that that is hard to do these days (more blog post material). I re-think it over and over again, carrying on various conversations with myself, most of them redundant in nature (more material). Does anyone out there feel that? That when you make a decision that changes the things that you have always done in a particular way, you constantly ask yourself why? (more material)

 

The answer that I always come back to time and time again, as I argue all the pro’s and con’s with myself, is that I LOVE IT!!

I love the people that I meet in the barn sales and the conversations that ensue…

the relationships that are interwoven in time and come back as someone I have not seen in years walks into the barn…

the small world that we live in…

the delight that we see in some faces when they walk in the barn…

the appreciation that is expressed when someone finds the perfect something that they have been looking for…

the people that I work with…

the creativity that I get to use on a daily basis…

the women who tell me that they read the blog and that it hit a chord…

I am so incredibly lucky to do what I love!!  I made a change in my life that has been my largest period of growth since having my children and becoming a mom. I am fully committed to it and I want to make it better! I, along with the woman who kicked me in the butt and made me take hold of my dream and make it a reality, have taken the last few months to make some changes that will hopefully, help us to share even more of what we do, how we do it, our inspiration, which might end up being yours and our thoughts and emotions, which you might be feeling as well but think you are the only one in the world who does.  For our loyal readers and customers, we have some additions for you this year that we are really excited about.

NEW TEAM MEMBER

The most exciting, is that we have added a new full time member to our team, Maggie Bangham. She comes to us with a Degree in Communications and Public Relations from Temple University. Her past experience is as an assistant buyer for Urban Outfitters, and a Product Developer and Production Manager at United By Blue. She is adding creative organization along with her other skills to our team and is a roll up your sleeves, do whatever it takes kind of girl, which we love. She fits right in and we cannot wait for you to meet her when you are at the barn next!

 

SUMMER SALE DETAILS

The  dates of our Summer Sale are Friday, May 29th, Saturday May 30th and Sunday May 31st. Our theme is All Things Vintage and we are gathering a collection of items that take vintage to a whole new level! Fun food items, a vintage car, and other summer surprises are on the agenda. Come out and visit us!

 

EXCLAIM YOUR LIFE EVENT JUNE 7TH, 2015

We are announcing the date and the theme for our long awaited EXCLAIM YOUR LIFE EVENT !! and the theme is TRANSFORMATION ~ June 7th from 10:00 until 3 pm ~ Experience a transformational day of surprises on the farm at Life’s Patina. Full details coming later this week and a registration link.

VINTAGE RENTALS, STYLING AND STAGING SERVICES coming in 2015!! Stay tuned for a full unveiling of these services and a special event!

 

As it takes me longer to write a post than the hour and fifteen minute flight where I began this missive, it is now Mother’s Day, a little less than a week later and I have finally been able to get back. This day makes these written words a little more meaningful to me. As the sounds of the cars buzz by outside the open window of my mother in laws’ house, I find myself in a different setting than I am usually in on Mother’s Day morning. How ironic, as I complete this, that my life seems to be in a different setting these days as well. One foot in the land of the path of an empty nester and one foot rooted firmly in the world of motherhood. A different type of mothering is occurring these days for sure…teenagers and twenty somethings…exacerbating at times liberating at others. How can they possibly know everything at 14? Yes, a different setting than what I am used to…but that is material for another post.

 

My deepest gratitude to our supporters who help me to continue to do what I love!!

~Meg