Just Another Day
(or is it?)
by: Stephanie Andrews
Hello friend,
“The only difference between an extraordinary life and an ordinary one is the pleasures that you find in ordinary things.” – Veronique Vienne, French Designer, Author, and Artist
A picture of me in France as I plan for a writing workshop there.
Do you have a bucket list? A list of items you’d like to do before your last breath? This week was my birthday, and I often think about my bucket list on this day. My list is long, quirky and seemingly unattainable. I’ve been working on this list since my kids were little. Some things have been crossed off, but once they are, it typically adds something else because I want to learn more or go deeper.
This was the book that inspired this writing workshop. The book provided some answers about affording my wanderlust, and the author, Rolf Potts, is teaching the workshop.
This week was fun, loving, and grueling. You know those weeks that you feel so far behind that you cannot catch up? Yet, my family and friends were showing me so much birthday love and support that it made my tasks much more bearable. I still feel like I am in a tunnel of work, but I see the distant light.
Why am I sharing this? ( I would like to know that, too.) This week, I hit a writer’s block with you, and I felt frustrated that the words would not flow, that my thoughts were too disjointed, and that I was just piecing things together (which I am!). So you are experiencing this post as a reaction to work through it, and not give up.
Bucket List item #22 Learn how to sketch and watercolor my travels. This beautiful Paris street scene is by Claire Caulfied art.
It is difficult to experience flow when my heart is not in it. My head is thinking about a mystery coffee table, a rug that did not work, a few estimates to get out, and lots of things to do. The ordinary moments of work, that are building a little dam in my brain, instead of flowing through like they usually do. What is the big deal? Why does it feel so monumental this week, versus other weeks? Does my birthday have anything to do with it, or is that just a coincidence? In a couple of weeks, I am going to Paris for a writing workshop. Will I have anything to write about? Aaah-there it is. Insecurity, fear, and doubt. I am feeling overwhelmed with my work to get done before I go, and then I am afraid that the trip could be a folly.
For this workshop, I am staying in the Latin Quarter in Paris. ( Bucket List #5-Live in Paris for at least 3 months and learn French!)
On my bucket list #14, write a book. (Ugh.) Ever since starting this blog, this goal has been in the back of my mind. I am just beginning to step into this possibility. I must say that this post feels a bit like a patchwork quilt of my mind; a little bit of everything. I know that my quilt is different from yours, yet there are common threads. Birthdays, bucket lists, friends, family, work, and some of the stresses in life that are small but feel big. I know that I will get through it, but right now, I will share it with you.
Item #63 on the bucket list-make a Korean style quilt with excess fabric samples. Here is a book on Etsy to show how to do it! This book is gorgeous, but in Korean.
Feel free to share your patchwork quilt with me: Stephanie@
Hope to see you soon,
Stephanie