Hi there

After the SHAC this morning, where we taped together two pencils and went 3-D on a treble clef (don’t ask!), I spent the day alone in the workshop store room at Clarity, where we keep all the craft stash we use at retreats and courses. You know, ink pads, brayers, blending mats, pens etc etc Why? Because Linda and I are each hosting a one-day class the Sunday after the Open Days, and while Paul gets Linda’s materials ready, I’m in charge of my own! I’ve got about 4 more hours tomorrow morning to finalise it all, and then that job’s jobbed! A lot goes into these days! Tomorrow I’ll get all the project printing done too, so I can fill all the Guest folders. etc etc etc …

I’ve quite enjoyed today. Sometimes the brain needs a rest, and then counting card and paper is a pleasant distraction. It’s ticking a box, and saying, “done!” No matter how small the action, you can still tick a box and say “done!” Sometimes, when things are so overwhelming that the head goes into super spin cycle, I even write lists of things that would NEVER normally make the cut! Things that I just do in my stride, and don’t even think of as a job to do. Like Empty the dishwasher. Feed the cats. Make the bed. Clean my teeth. When you list all the little things you don’t even register when you’re doing them, you realise just how active you actually are! Added to which, it gives you that much needed sense of accomplishment, that feeling that you ARE getting stuff done – even when you think you’re hopeless.

On a creative note, I so enjoyed showcasing those landscape masks and tree stamps yesterday! What a great little collection of Nature stamps and masks. If you missed the demos, you can always go to our website and watch on Catch-up. CLICK HERE. The project downloads are there for you too. Just print them off and start storing them. It will be a perfect index of what was on when!

Those layering stencils are pretty cool too. All available HERE

Things are challenging right now, but we at Clarity are a resilient bunch, and we will get through all this upheaval and change. Sometimes I get hit by a wave of fear, like a physical shudder that goes through your whole body to the core. Have you ever experienced that? It’s not pleasant. But then I just get with my hands, keep busy, and guess what? Yep, it passes.

Today I was walking along one of the corridors at work and Jilly was standing just ahead as I paced towards her. “Need a hug?” she asked. “Yep. You?” I responded. “Yep, me too.“ So we took a minute, just to give each other a proper hug. And that helped a lot. There’s a lot of love and consideration at Clarity. There’s always somebody offering to make a cuppa, or making sure I’ve eaten. Sue offering mini Mars bars, Jim offering bananas. One of the guys found me in the Craft storeroom in the afternoon. We checked over some work, had a little banter, and then he said something very poignant: “We trust you, you know. We know it will be fine”. That hit home too.

Time to chillax.

Love always

Barb x x x