Pain: -n. physical, mental, or emotional suffering

I am not afraid to say it: I am a huge fan of the show Grey's Anatomy. I've never been real into medical dramas, but a couple of years ago I got hooked and recently I have gone back to the beginning of the series- Season 1: Episode 1- because it is just as true in fiction as it is in life that everyone has a story. Everyone's pain, hurt, triumphs, and victories make them who they are. These are the things that cause us to make the decisions we make. So I wanted to see why these characters are the way they are. What brought them to these points in their lives?

I am now about five episodes into Season 3 and as I was watching last night the character Miranda Bailey was performing a surgery on a young girl who had a chromosomal defect that caused her to feel absolutely no pain. She had no sensation of physical pain whatsoever. While Dr. Bailey was in surgery she made this comment to her intern:

"Everybody wants a life without pain. Where does it get you? Pain is there for a reason."

I don't know what your circumstances may be now, or what they may have been before, but I encourage you to confront your pain. Physical, mental, or emotional. Learn from it. Use it to help others. Be glad you're not numb to the pain. Know that it is there for a reason and push yourself to find out that reason. If you are suffering or if you are in the worst amount of pain you have ever been in, know that there is One who has taken that burden freely. On the cross. And He is not only willing, but wants to take it from you. No amount of hurt is unbearable to Him or too much for Him to handle.

Until next time...

Sabbatical Over

After a two month un-announced and un-expected sabbatical, I am glad to say that I am back! For most people, holidays make it tough to keep up with things like blogs, hobbies, laundry, and so on, but they end up getting back on track shortly thereafter. For me, on the other hand, it became apparent after all of our traveling in December that I needed to rest my body and mind. I was over-tired, over-stressed, and overwhelmed.

To be completely honest, I have been unsure whether to even continue TheLoudWhisper as a business due to financial reasons and time restraints. My wonderful husband told me that he supported my decision to close it up if that's what I felt I needed to do, but encouraged me to hang in there with it. He reminded me I had just finished my first year of craft shows and should be excited about the prospects of doing better each year forward. Still, I was unsure. Then I read an article online saying to not publicly announce that your company donates money to a charity because most people read into that as a marketing ploy. This upset me the most- the thought that some people would mistake my heart for making and selling jewelry into a marketing strategy. And then there was the fact that though I may have time to make the jewelry, I don't generally have time to keep up with my Etsy shop, or as you have all been witness to, my blog. This trifecta had me convinced to close it up until...

Until I remembered the customer who bought a necklace for a girl who had been admitted to the hospital for a cutting incident; the customers I have gotten to talk with at shows about hope and help; the customers who have said that they have been personally affected by depression or lost some one to suicide and they too want to help spread the message of hope. From the beginning these have been my goals for my business. To inspire hope. To be a voice, even if it's just a whisper, of these loud, screaming issues that are being stifled by shame and judgement. Is it a tall order for a little 'ole stay-at-home mom making jewelry during nap time? Probably. Is it expecting a lot from just jewelry? Maybe. Is the cause worth it? Absolutely. And as I have said from the beginning, making jewelry is something I can do, so I'll do it for the cause.

So, I have decided to keep going. I have also decided that some things would need to change so that I don't feel so bogged down by the business. That being said, I have closed my Etsy shop and will no longer (at least for the time being) be selling online. I am going to focus solely on lining up craft shows for 2011 and gaining support through this blog. I am not going to stress myself out about blogging everyday, but am going to discipline myself to blog several times a week so that I can keep in touch with you: the reader, my support system, my encouragement.

You will also notice a PayPal Donate Button is now at the top of the page. I currently donate 20% of every sale to To Write Love On Her Arms (which I am anxious to bump up) but after that, show expenses, supplies, taxes, etc. I have very little left to keep things going. It's the old adage, "You have to spend money to make money." Unfortunately, though, you also have to make money to have anything to spend and it gets difficult to afford to be in shows. However, though, shows are where I get to meet people and have the most success of not only selling my lovelies but also getting the message of TWLOHA out. So I am asking for your help. I also have a couple other projects that I am hammering out the details for that is going to require more finances than I can put towards it. Again, I will be turning to you for help.

I love you all and I have missed sharing my thoughts with you. Thanks for sticking by me and for supporting TheLoudWhisper. Most of all, thanks for being apart of the movement. Until next time...