Slow Pace During Fall

Hello, hello again.

I love this fall weather because lately I have noticed that it actually forces me to slow down and enjoy a slow paced life and doing things. As I stepped into September I noticed something which I have never noticed before which I knew was always there but there was more understanding and clarity and that was that Fall Season is much slower paced compared to summer and with that comes the seeming increased volume of work which can be done. I never realized how fast paced summer was until this year and yes it makes sense because people are rushing in and out of our beautiful town and if they stopped by the store they wanted to buy a product that day and not the next and if you do not have what they want then you miss out on making a purchase. So the cycle goes and you are always trying your best to make sure there is enough product and makes you run in production and miss on enjoying the process.

Don’t get me wrong, I love having different people come by and making contact and enquiring and buying products but if I am not careful I miss on the joy of watching a guest come in, walk through enjoying the textiles and the process and then they settling on a particular product. But I did enjoy this summer.

As a believer and follower of Jesus He reminds us that we are blessed to be a blessing and what a better way to offer it than through prayer.

As I was thinking of this post and what I would like to share I thought of the many things that crossed my mind during the summer and one which stood out the most was the fact that I had this feeling that Imbali has truly evolved into a community place where people come and go. There are a number of reasons why I came to that conclusion and I will share a few:

1.    I had an elderly woman walk into the store the other asking if I could help fix her sewing machine which for some reason had just sopped working and of course I did. During the course of fixing her sewing machine I learned a number of things about her including that she was a self-taught seamstress who chose to learn in order to be able to mend her clothes and those of her husband and she loves doing it. At the end of our time together she looked at me right in the eye and said, “you are so kind and generous and you exude that and that is something I have not found much here in the city. It looks and feels like people are grumpy, sad and not wanting to help when they can help.” My response to her was pointing her to Jesus who lives in me and how He loves us and blesses us to be a blessing to those around us.

2.    A while ago I had a gentleman coming and asking about me about taking on a small project to fix a carpet for his grandmother and so he brought it in and we are working on fixing it because I know that this is going to be a blessing to the wonderful woman who owns it.

3.    We have people coming through asking for help with a thread, a needle and all sorts of things and these all contribute to making Imbali a place where people feel welcomed and know that they can ask for help and we will give it.

It has also been a place where friends stop by to ask about life, what I am doing and if there is anything they can do to help, or sometimes they stop by to share some challenges and difficulties they are going through and I always pray for them because I know from experience that everytime I pray for someone they leave feeling different to the way they came in. This is the greatest blessing and gift I can offer someone. As a believer and follower of Jesus He reminds us that we are blessed to be a blessing and what a better way to offer it than through prayer.

One of the things that happened recently and caused me to pause and reflect was that I had an elderly couple who were on holiday stop by to ask questions. The questions and the answers I provided led to the woman wanting to come back for a 2 hour weaving workshop which we did on a Saturday from 3-5pm and what a blast we had. I got to learn a bit about her and her family back home in Canada and when she finished she took her piece of fabric with her and I am sure she will make a beautiful item with it. As I sat and listened and watched her weave I was reminded again of one of my personal values as Cecilia and that is: People are very important and should always come first before projects and money.

So today I am writing this from a friend’s living room in Canada and I am grateful for friendship and relationships. Please pray for me as I speak and represent Creative Hands and the products I have with me that they will all find a great home.

Cecilia