2025 ARRIVES

And it's noisy and chaotic and I'm feeling the need to spend a couple of moments in reflection.

My husband gifted me a smart watch for Christmas. I had wanted one primarily to track my physical activity, but it does so much more than that. I'm not accustomed to paying a lot of attention to my heartbeat, so this is a bit of a change. One really interesting thing I've noticed is that my heartbeat drops by at least 10 beats per minute while I'm here in my craft room making cards! 

I don't have to think very deeply to come to the realization that for me making cards is truly an act of love. It calms me and keeps me in the moment - it's a very small thing, but it ripples outward in ways that I can only begin to sense.

From the beginning of this little blog (March 22, 2019), I've made a conscious decision to leave politics out of my posts and make this place one of peace and creativity and I will continue to do so - however, it's hard to think about leaving 2024 without some mention of our global chaos and how it tumbles out into our atmosphere in erratic and destructive patterns. If a small moment of calm and loving activity can break some of these patterns, that has to be huge.

So, for anyone who may find his/her way to my little blog, I wish the best for you in what will no doubt be a very challenging year. I hope you'll join me in setting aside time each day to perform or create a small calming act of love. It sounds silly to suggest that handmaking cards can solve the world's problems, but hey, we have to start somewhere, using the gifts we have!