Where do I begin to express the immense amount of gratitude I feel for the year that has brought me so much and blessed me in untold ways that I never expected?
Let’s start in January 2024, when we turned over a New Year, and I lit my bayberry candle to welcome prosperity & abundance into my heart & home. Celebrating with my little one (who lovvveesss staying up until midnight) and wearing the paper hats, blowing the plastic horns, and watching the ball drop. It was also the month we started our Magickal Market of Witchy Wares, and pulled off that event despite that big snowstorm we had the night before!
February brought in lots of love during the cold Winter month as I snuggled our new puppy Raven, whom we had rescued the previous September. Watching her run & romp in the snow filled my heart with joy and it grew 3 times that one snowy day.
March heralded my birthday, which I celebrated quietly with close friends & family ~ I’ll wait for the Zero Hero birthdays to go all out, which is still a few years away. It also brought in lots of luck as I found a 4-leaf clover in my front yard and put it on my altar (which my puppy promptly ate!) Oh, was she ever one lucky dog that day!
April was a month for Spring Renewal, and although it continued to be cold, hearing the birds chirp early in the morning brought that season into my ears and heart. Not to mention, we sprang the clock ahead and the later light gave me a productivity that only Father Sun can charge this Aries with! It was also the month that we all felt and survived a 4.8 earthquake on the East Coast - that was a trip!
In May, I was nostalgic about my Mom…a lot. I get wistful to hear her voice again but I also still communicate with her spirit - wherever she may be - especially when I am connecting with my own daughter and think aloud, “Mom, you were right!” How she must be smiling hearing me say that on the regular!
In June, I was visited by April - a friend of mine for the past 15 years whom I hadn’t seen in some time. She’s one of those people that no matter how much time has gone by, we just pick right up again as if no time had passed. It was also the month where I almost died. We had a tornadic storm on Wednesday, June 26 and I thought I could drive home and beat the storm, but what ended up happening was I drove right into it. I was terrified and incredibly grateful that I survived that traumatic ordeal. The trees in the front of my house…not so much. I lost several large trees, but thankfully, none of them landed on the house.
July brought me some much-needed down time, and as usual, we closed for the first week so I could get down to the beach to visit some family members and celebrate the 4th of July with my daughter at the beach…during a heat wave! It was so stinkin’ hot, and we were glad to come home to…a broken air conditioning system. Thankfully, the heatwave didn’t last long (9 days, but who’s counting?) and I have a few portable AC units that kept the house at a tolerable temperature.
Fast forward to August when guess what? It’s already back-to-school for the Lehigh Valley and there were some beautiful rainstorms, especially the one on August 14th, when it was fully sunny out while it rained. Lots of rainbows were seen that day. August is also a time of remembrance for me, as it is the month when my Mother passed away, so I invited my siblings to come join me for a Celebration of Life for my Mom.
September holds one of my favorite days of gratitude - Labor Day - and while it may seem like a minor holiday, it was the day that I finally made the decision to do some major re-arranging in my home, and open up my bedroom in a way that allowed both the light and the wind through my bedroom windows. I’m still adjusting to the change, but I was never so grateful as I was on that day as I engaged in a labor of love to create a sanctuary for my spirit.
Now October - don’t even get me started! Bats & Ghosts & Spiders bedecked the walls of the shop along with purple & orange lights to herald in my all-time favorite holiday: Halloween! I loved decorating and we had some of the nicest weather for Trick or Treat in Hellertown. My daughter was thrilled! And she’s STILL eating on all the candy she received from Trick or Treat.
Finally, November, which we’re only halfway through, but I can still find so much gratitude, even in only 15 days of November. I finally, FINALLY went to my hairdresser and got rid of my two-tone hair and decided to add blue & purple in my hair for the upcoming 9-Year Anniversary Celebration for Kindred Spirits Crystals, Books & Gifts. I’m so excited to celebrate this milestone and regularly call driving into the shop my “Dream Job.” It was a dream of mine for so long, then it was a thought, then it was a plan, and then…it was my business.
Word cannot convey the amount of gratitude I have for all of you, my kindred spirits, for allowing me to serve you in some way for your spiritual connection to your spiritual journey; for making acquaintances and friends along the way; for the kindred conversations I get to have each day I’m there; and for the incredible amount of love, energy & support that is exchanged through that space.
Thank you to each and every one of my customers for being the reason I keep showing up for these past 9 years. The connections that have been created never cease to amaze me, whether it is me connecting with customers, or customers connecting to one another.
I couldn not have imagined the untold benefits of running my own new age shop. Sure, I want to pay my bills - isn’t that why any of us goes to work every day? - but to be able to help other people day in and day out is the real benefit. To be able to offer a listening ear, a warm hug, or shared experiences - that’s where my gratitude comes from - from being with all of you, My Kindred Spirits.
