"The trouble is, you think you have time." ~ Buddha

i'm a sucker for quotes. there isn't a scrap of paper in my home that hasn't been graffiti'd (verb creation. love it.) with some type of inspirational nonsense. i've got agatha christie on cereal boxes, nietzsche on envelopes, and oscar wilde on my arm. (not tattooed. god forbid i get stuck with one mantra. i'm a shape-shifter.) i've even painted a couple of the walls in my house with that chalk paint so that my favourite quotes can be plastered in my room until i tire of them. i confess.... sometimes i take a picture of the things i write on my wall and put it on my facebook page.  (gasp! the nerve!)
   

i'm proud to report: i've succeeded in brainwashing myself with all of this carpe diem crap. it's fantastic! i'm impulsive by nature and my walls seem to agree with all of my decisions!

"be free. be brave. do epic shit. collect moments/ not things. live in the sunshine./ swim in the sea./ drink the wild air."

kinda barfy, i know, but i believe in these ideas. i even have a quote to support my actions in relation to this belief!(obviously.)

"to believe in something and not to live it, is dishonest." well thank you mahatma gandhi. i couldn't have said it better myself!

those of you who know me, know that i took these philosophies to heart this summer when i chose to run away from the store like a shoplifter on crystal meth. (i've experienced that first hand. she was really fast.) now, i happen to have an incredible sidekick named arden who is EXACTLY LIKE ME!! if you've met arden you know this to be true. she's actually slightly more responsible than i am, so throwing the store in her lap seemed like a pretty wise decision. my mother is convinced that i've lost my mind. that's kind of true. ("if you've never lost your mind, then you've never followed your heart."-unknown.) i discovered two things:

1. arden is my angel/fairy godmother/unicorn.
2. the cheezy quotes are right. following my heart is absolutely the right thing for me, even if it means sacrificing the traditional idea of "success." even if some of the experiences i stumble upon make my heart hurt.

don't get me wrong, i LOVE my store. i LOVE the pretty clothes, the art projects, the people, the frenetic energy, and the fact that i'm contributing to the reduce/re-use/recycle movement. (grade six kaela would be proud.) but there is a quiet centre of myself that loves being out alone in the world. i love watching a day unfold without the aural clutter of civilization. i live in two very different realities and i'm comfortable in both. but which makes me happier? i don't know. or if i do, i'm not sure that it's an answer i'm comfortable with just yet. 

i guess i just want to say thank-you! thank-you for supporting this little store of mine whether i'm physically in it or not. this shop was once one of my dreams. i copied out inspirational quotes furiously while i was trying to open it. running away from everything: another fantasy of mine! the point of this blog? to share my experience with you: it's worth it. taking risks, doing ridiculous things, following your heart even when you're terrified of losing everything........it's worth it. even when you fail. (which i have. many times.) no one can take away courage. no one can ever tell me that i'm not brave. the quotes are little tidbits of truth.


"You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop."   ~ RUMI