JOURNEY JOURNALS
I no longer make these journals but want to share my story
Click on Album in the Menu to see past journals.
Thanks
MY STORY
I’m an artist. After 15 years of following the art fair circuit peddling my “wares” I settled down to working and teaching in my studio, teaching online workshops and exhibiting my art in Galleries. I had just ventured out into making handmade journals when, on March 11, 2013, my daughter passed from this earth to be in heaven. She was 47 years old. I had her when I was 18. She was my life.
My life stopped. My art stopped. My studio went dark and I didn’t care.
She was a collector like her Mom and when I cleaned out her belongings at her home I found boxes full of little envelopes, tags from nice clothes, buttons and more buttons, little safety pins, sacks and on and on. No, she was not an artist, but she was a collector of little things.
After a few months went by I decided I wanted to purge my studio…get rid of a lot of the “things” I had collected. After all, the desire to do art was gone. The best way I knew to do this was to take these things and make them into journals so that is what I started doing. I then started adding her little collections to them and what I soon realized I was doing was making these journals in her memory. At that point they took on “life”. They became “The Journey” journals. On the front cover somewhere is written “The Journey” and on the inside back cover of each one is the statement “Life is a journey….Embrace it” Each one is dedicated to her memory.
She was always my biggest encourager. She was my cheerleader and she kept me pursuing my art at times when I didn’t think I wanted to anymore. She believed in me and somehow, making these journals became her way of continuing to encourage and support my art.
Gradually I finally returned to my art, to teaching to exhibiting, but the healing I am finding in making these journals, her presence in each one, that is what has helped in my journey of healing. I’ve poured my heart and soul into them and a little piece of me and a little piece of her are in each one. I take comfort knowing her memory is all over the world.
Her name is Shari.
Thanks for listening - Suzi
