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"How did it get so late so soon? It's night before it's afternoon. December is here before it's June How did it get so late so soon? My goodness, how the time has flewn!" Dr. Seuss
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Somehow, that feels like the story of my life.
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| I'm a GRANDMOTHER! (I keep
telling those kids I'm much too young to be a grandmother ..shows
how much THEY listen. ). JT (currently 12,) and Kaitlynn (aged 9 and
a redhead,) Joshua, almost 3, And Chelsea, borne 03/03/06 are the apples of my eye.. I used
to have pictures of them online, but my one of my daughter's-in-law is a bit afraid of
the internet and asked me to take them offline. Sigh. Suffice it to
say they are delightful, bright and beautiful. They live too far
away for me to spend as much time as I wish with them.
Newsflash, we are going to have two new baby boys in the Spring of
2008. Both my daughter's in law are pregnant, both with boys.
Both planned and very much wanted. What more could any grandma ask?
(To see them more often????)
I was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, spent a decade as an army officers wife, settled in Massachusetts with a spouse and three children. A corporate move brought us to Nashville, Tennessee, in the late '70's. The spouse left a few years later but for reasons unknown, I stayed, The children are grown and gone. And somehow I'm still in Tennessee. A true puzzlement, since I miss the ocean so very much. I used to live in a house filled with big kids, and big dogs. Today, I am owned by a small black cat, named Jezebel, (The above was written in 1994. The fur-family has grown since then.) Blue, a shy feral grey ghost of a cat was adopted when she had a litter of kittens on our front porch. She hides from strangers, and will not be held or allow us to put two hands on her. But she will stand on a countertop and demand an ear scratching...with one hand, please. After dogsitting for my son for a week I realized that I still missed the dogs that filled our home in the past, and my son and his wife gifted us with Max. He's a 5 1/2 lb Pomeranian; you may have seen his picture on the photos page. As the Nature's Gift mascot, Max accompanies me to work every day. He has abandonment issues. He won't bark when people come in, but you aren't allowed to leave. A year or two ago he was joined by Starr, a big overgrown tricolor Sheltie we had rescued. Starr needs constant reminding that the cats live here too, and that they were here first. Life is never dull. |
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My life today is mostly spent doing my favourite things. I'm grateful
for the chance to share them with you.
I'm an active and grateful member of two 12 Step recovery programs.. They have been the foundation of my spiritual path. I've been fascinated by computers ever since the day in the early 80's when my then husband and eldest son brought home our first one...a Commodore 64. That was my downfall, folks. I discovered there was a world outside my door. I discovered the magical world of BBS's that predated the Worldwide web that you are reading this page on. For well over 10 years I was a sysop of not one, but two Fidonet Bulletin Board Systems, The Homestead, (Nashville's second oldest continually running BBS) and Promises...a Recovery BBS. Once again, this computer has for years been bringing gifts into my life that can't be repaid. The friends I've made online have enriched my life in more ways than I can say.
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In the early '90's I received some devastating personal news...I was
told that I was totally disabled, and that I would never be able to work again.
Since by then my marriage had been over for several years, and I needed to be
"self-supporting through my own contributions"...well, it was a scary time.
There were some gifts behind it, though. That was about the time that my Albert,
the gentlest and most accepting person I've ever known, entered my life. And the
time free from the demands of a 40 hour week allowed me to pursue my old
fascination with Aromatherapy, and to contemplate putting the few aromatherapy
blends my friends had been buying online.
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I learned to write HTML code... got a proper business
license, and started studying in earnest. And so Nature's Gift was
borne. For several years, Nature's Gift was an expensive hobby, "a
hole the money went down". Thank goodness for the credit cards that
let me buy the oils I loved, and explore better quality and new
aromatics, with absolutely no cash coming in. And for those early
clients who trusted my nose and my instincts back before I could
ever dream of having the oils I sourced tested. And for Rick, my
first employee who took up the slack when I couldn't handle both the
administrative "stuff" and pack orders. (If nothing else reminded me
that I was disabled, Rick's presence always did. I couldn't do it
all, after all!). No one was more surprised than me (or perhaps
Rick!) the first year that Nature's Gift showed a net profit. It was
small, way under $1,000, but it was there! See, it never was about
making money; it was about being free to do what I love, and the
small disability income gave me that freedom. And THAT is why I can
honestly say that having my greatest fear come true contained the
greatest gift of my life.
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Over the years, the business grew (perhaps beyond my ability!) and we've
added a talented staff who function so well in my absence that I'm really not
needed much. We outgrew the space available in our home, and leased a small
building (with a large warehouse!) The move even allowed us to open a small
retail "factory store" for local clients or out of state visitors. The
shop lasted for a couple of years, but since the online business continued to
grow far beyond anyone's ability to predict (or understand!) we chose to close
the shop to turn that space into more packing and pouring space to keep up with
the online business. When our lease expired we moved next door to a much larger
building. Right now there is far more space than we'll need...but that little
house next door seemed huge when we first leased it. |
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Late in the summer of 2002, my old friend Rick, my father, and my life
partner Albert both left us. Two these special men were taken by
Cancer...Rick in far too short a time, and my Albert after a long
brave battle. My dad lived past his 100th birthday, so I suppose it
may have been time for him to go on home. The response of all the clients that I've corresponded
with for all these years...all the friends I've not met yet, was
overwhelming and heartwarming. I had forgotten how many people out
in the wide world really do care about our Nature's Gift family. The
loss of these three dear men confirmed something that I suspected
before, but now I know:
Life is eternal I thank Carly Simon for sharing the lovely song these lines are taken from. |
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Hard to believe it's now 2007 and has been five years since the above was written. Nature's Gift continues to grow. We are so aware that what we do can make a difference in people's lives. We're grateful for the opportunities we've been given to make a difference.
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