A Secret Garden
March is upon us; the wheel is turning again, creaking at first as the brave new buds appear but before you know it we'll be rushing headlong towards summer and taking it all for granted. Do you ever wish you could slow it down, press pause at a certain point; the first snowdrops maybe, or bluebell time? In melancholy mood I want to savour every moment, my 50th spring; when you put it like that each new season has a greater value - how many times will I see the wild garlic or the willow flowers?- and I know I'm so lucky to live in a place where those seasonal signposts are a daily joy. My dad recently told my brother he had lost his feeling for where he was in the year, unsure if it was snowdrop time yet, since moving from the farm to the town and so spending less time outside. As for me, I've been in the next door garden this week, discovering the Victorian "Barley Twist" edges of the lawn which I doubt have been seen for years under the overgrown borders and tumbled rockeries. The garden isn't mine, it has strange plants that I don't recognise and it makes me miss "home" and my own lost garden again, but it's a haven and I'm glad of it. I'm never happier than when I'm lost in a garden.
Apart from my occasional trips in to the garden, to gather sticks or hack through the undergrowth, I've been busy with all sorts of odd BCTF preparations, whilst wrestling with guilt trips about my lack of a regular income. I call myself so many mean names before I've even got out of bed that it's not surprising confidence is low... but so far I'm managing to meet all the targets I've set for myself, new work is happening every day, spread sheets, catalogues and even the odd drawing are being created and I'm starting to really look forward to April.
One useful thing I discovered whilst filling in last month's sections of The Makers Business Toolkit planner was that many of the people who buy from me via my Etsy shop or Facebook are people who have followed Witchmountain in one way or another for a long time. I really love that I feel as though I've known some of you for years, what would I do without you?! But, in trying to train myself to be more businesslike, I realise that I need to reach new people too; BCTF will hopefully do that but I wonder how else to do it? I've made a little survey just for fun and it would be great if you could take the time to fill it in , it's multiple choice, anonymous and very quick. Thank you.
Now the night has crept upon me and the fire has got low, it's time to think about sleeping and talk to the cat about her plans for the evening; it's raining outside but I don't want waking up at 4am by beast scratching at the bedroom door like a demon.
Reading: "Dip" by Andrew FusekPeters Listening To: "Dead in the Boot" elbowWebsite: Wooden-boy the arty adventures of musician Sycamore Sykes, including my favourite greetings card of the moment for book lovers and introverts everywhere :)