History behind a greeting card - Sail On
I thought it would be interesting to introduce a new "blog post series" which I'll post in every once in a while. Basically it'll be a little history behind some of my products and what inspired me to create them or use the sayings, poems, etc. which I use.
The one thing which I've found over and over in running my handmade business is that people seem to love and appreciate the "real thing". Everyone wants to see the real side of life...the genuine and honest side. I will do my best to share the raw emotions of life with you in this series.
I've had so many sweet customers share their stories with me and that is very precious to me. I'm always deeply touched when someone will purchase something and then tell me why they're buying it...what it reminds them of...how it touches them...what they're facing or going through...those are the moments when I feel like all the hard work of running my own business is worth it. That's what seals the deal for me to keep on running this business. You may never know how much it means to me that you, as my customer, trust me enough to give me a little glimpse into your heart. Yes, I know I'm gushing a little but I do have the sweetest customers and I appreciate each one of you.
This story hits right close to home for me. It still gives me shivers when I think back to this happening when I was in my teens. I didn't know how to swim and was too embarrassed to admit it to my friends since I was the youngest one in the group. School was out for the summer, my grade and I had graduated and to celebrate a bunch of my girlfriends and I went to a friends house for a sleepover. We started off by canoeing out to my friends dock for some swimming before nightfall.
We didn't all make it to the dock right away. I was in a canoe going out to the dock when it tipped over. The lake was deep enough to drown in and I didn't have a life jacket on. My friends also didn't know that I didn't know how to swim. I have an uncle who drowned so that was the first thing I thought of. I knew that you generally only go under so many times before you don't come back up again. At least that's what all the old stories say. I was getting farther and farther away from everyone else. I remember going under again and wondering if this was actually my time to go. I also remember feeling tired of trying to stay above water and feeling so relaxed about just letting go. My next memory is dripping wet, sitting on the dock shaking and crying and wondering who got me there. I never did find out how I ended up safely on the dock.
I had no idea until later, that during this time, I had a praying mother at home who sensed that something was terribly wrong and was crying out to God to not let me drown. What would we do without praying mothers? I'm so thankful for mine!
We were all fairly shook up for the rest of the evening. Later on someone made a campfire and we all sat around it to do some singing. Someone suggested this song and I think that's when it really hit me how close I had come to drowning.
This song has been very special to me since then. I don't think I ever really took note of the words of this song until that night. It holds a lot of mixed feelings and emotions for me. Whenever I sing this song, I'm right back out there again reliving that fateful night.
"Letting go, moving on to my destiny; Didn't know this step could be so hard and yet so easy; Wanting to cling to all the mem'ries; Yet wanting to be free, Needing the shelter of the past; yet wanting to sail uncharted seas.
Time will tell if the choices I've made were right; But for now I've got a dream and I must hold on tight. Saying good-bye is never easy; Yet that's what we must say. We must take comfort in believing that we will meet again some day.
Sail on, sail for distant seas, Sail on, it was meant to be. Sail on, cast your fears away. Sail on to a brand new day."
A number of years later when I was making graduation cards, I came across this song and new that I wanted to share this beautiful message with others.
Thank you for taking the time to read a little behind the scenes of why I made this song into a card.
Have a beautiful day and remember to cherish those around you.
@ Mildred Friesen
Thanks for dropping by my blog, Mildred!
Hi Jennette, just came across this and you’ve just freshly posted it! Amazing! What a memory! I am happy for you that you can have a job and occupation that you love and share with people. I wish you well in your venture for many years to come.
Leave a comment