Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Chuppahs on My Mind


This is what happens when you blink—nearly a month gallops by and you still haven’t put pen to blog (so to speak.) As it turns out, chuppahs have been on my mind the past few weeks. Recently I had a phone session with a career counselor at my alma mater. I expected us to focus on my interest in a new career path, but instead, when she asked me to tell her about myself, I mentioned my love of creating art and particularly, chuppahs. She listened and then suggested that I give myself some time to focus on chuppah making and marketing—while simultaneously gathering information on the other career path if I so desired.

I realized that her words, “Decide a time frame in order to see whether there’s a market for this (or similar phrase), and then reassess,” stirred an inner resistance: I don’t want to do that, because what if I might fail? And furthermore, even if I can’t make money doing this, I want to do it anyway! I realized the layers of thoughts percolating about making and selling quilts are ever-present and I need to deal with them in order to move forward.


A few weeks earlier, my sister had put me in touch w
ith a lovely friend of hers whom she thought might have some ideas for spreading the word about handmade chuppahs in South Florida where they live. I touched base with her friend, but then we were out of touch for several weeks. One night I thought, I really need to talk to her and find out more about her ideas for networking. I sent a ‘mental message’ and within a minute she had emailed me! She offered to put me in contact via email with a few people she knows, and asked me to send some information about myself. Of course, procrastination tiptoed in in its trademark way. Days went by and this to-do item was not getting done. Were my images good enough, would my description really capture what my chuppahs look like? I finally gathered up some favorite photos, wrote from the heart, and decided to bring a chuppah (or two) on my next visit to Florida, even if that means folding them up inside my carry-on because I don’t want to let them out of my sight!

Which brings me to tonight. I’m listening to cars driving on the wet roads, as another band of wintry weather slips into Colorado. Winter’s persistent, and as it is nature, it knows what it’s doing. I once read somewhere that when we feel confusion, it’s really just our way of not wanting to choose a way…in other words, chuppahs have been on my lips lately, but I haven’t yet really tended to them. Chuppahs also came up in a conversation I had with the head of an Expressive Arts program—he asked me about myself and I mentioned my fascination with chuppahs as an art form. So, it’s time to follow this passion further. Next time…find out what it’s like to take chuppahs on a road (or plane) trip to Florida!





 
 
 

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