Glow by Lady E

  There are days when I paint strawberries. Not because I need a strawberry illustration. Not because I have a product in mind. Not because I am developing a collection, creating content, testing a concept, or planning to sell anything afterward. Sometimes I paint strawberries because I want to see if I can paint them differently each time. Sometimes I put blobs of paint on the paper and let the blobs determine the strawberry’s shape.  And sometimes that is enough. I think we have become far too practiced at asking what everything is for . What will this become? Can I monetize it? Can I post it? Can I turn it into content? Can I sell it? Can I teach it? Can I build something around it? Even joy has somehow acquired a business plan. A hobby cannot simply be a hobby anymore. It has to become a side hustle. A quiet afternoon becomes a content opportunity. A new skill becomes something we should master. A beautiful moment becomes something we instinctively reach for our phones to ...

  How many women wait until they’re thinner, richer, prettier, or more successful before allowing themselves to enjoy life? I was one of those women.  I’ll wait ‘til I buy this for my son before treating myself.  I’ll wait to finish all the orders before I rest.  I’ll wait until my face clears up before I wear a blush.  This journey is teaching me a lot of things.  And one of those things is that I don’t need to earn delight.  I stopped auditioning the day I realized life wasn’t a panel of judges. No one was holding up scorecards. The only person waiting for me… was me. And that was a big revelation to me.  It was like one of those moments where you go, “why didn’t I think of that sooner” Yeah.. Why didn’t I think of that sooner? I was programmed through circumstances over the years to put myself last.  I guess there’s also that part of society that tells you to think of others first.  I grew up that way.  Serve others first.  ...