​In all the excitement of having my great nephew for the Easter weekend, I forgot to share Poppy's 5th Birthday! Born here on the farm a twin, Poppy's mom wasn't able to care for both babies.  I found myself with a house guest until she was big enough to master the art of leaping the couch in a single bound, then tap dancing on the coffee table. I named her Poppy because when I first started out with my photography and my note cards, a friend of mine, Jacqueline Fernald, lived in Columbia, MO. She was in Poppy shopping...the gift shop/boutique on Broadway and 10th Street. Jacque saw the huge selection of note cards and stationary items and thought I would be a perfect fit.  She struck up a conversation with the owner, and now dear friend, Barbara McCormick. The two agreed I should bring in a sampling of my cards for Barb to look at. Well the rest is history. My cards have been at Poppy since I first began my journey as an artist.

​Barb has since retired after 32 years at the helm of Poppy. Before she, her husband John and their faithful dog Mulligan relocated to sunny California, they invited me out to their farm just east of Columbia. It is here that another major milestone occurred in my career as an artist.  Barb  learned that I was a huge fan of donkeys and mules.  It just so happened that she and John had three miniature donkeys along with a few horses.  I, of course,  jumped on the opportunity to visit their farm to photograph their critters.  Barb led me through the barn and down the hillside into an open pasture where the three minis where grazing.  She left me to photograph them at my own will after introducing them as Sophia and her two sons, Leonardo and Piccolo.  There was snow on the ground, a chill in the air and the donkeys had on a nice thick winter coat.  The two boys were more standoffish towards me, preferring to keep their distance.  However, Sophia was very curious and followed me as I moved around the field taking pictures.  I was trying to get Sophia over with the boys so I could get a family picture of all three together.  As soon as I would start to walk away to try and get them all in one shot, Sophia would follow me, sticking by my side looking to be petted and talked too.  I had a roll of candied Sprees in my pocket that I used trying to gather all three donkeys together.  The boys looked in my general direction but kept a distance from me; they were not falling for the candy trick.  Sophia didn’t seem to mind that the boys were being aloof, and she would eat all the candies I had to offer.  She ate two or three while we bonded in the field.  I tucked the candies deep in my pocket and tried to walk away from Sophia so I could get some shots.  I decided to lay down in the snow and wait for her to walk away, hoping she would go join the boys.  Instead, she stood over me waiting for me to scratch her nose. I was laughing as she nibbled a little grass through the snow next to me then nudge me to rub her face.  After laying in the snow for a while, I could feel the wetness soaking in and was starting to get a little chilled.  Sophia was still standing over me, so I just rolled over onto my back.  I scooted over a tad because of the sun, framed Sophia’s face and snapped.  Again, for me….history made. 

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People ask me all the time what kind of camera I was shooting with.  They figure I had some big fancy lens, high dollar camera because of the clarity and detail in the image I now call Sophia Smiling.  Truth is, I was shooting with my very first digital camera, a little Fuji XP pocket camera that I got for $108 brand new at Best Buy. I had always shot with film until my brother gave my mom a little pocket digital camera for Christmas the year before.  I had never shot digital, but I liked the compact size and portability of this little camera that I could put in my pocket.  I decided I would give my mom’s camera a try on my first outing in a kayak.  I had done several float trips in canoes, so when my friend Jacque offered me the chance to go kayaking for the first time, I jumped on that opportunity too.  How different could it be?  As we put the kayaks into the water and packed our snacks, I pulled my mom’s little digital camera from my pocket to verify I had it.  Jacque asked me if I was sure I wanted to bring the camera on my first time out in a kayak.  I assured her, yes everything would be fine…I would be staying dry as would the camera.  Thirty seconds later, I found myself upside down underneath the kayak in about two feet of water that seemed like twelve feet.  Perhaps it was the fact that it was early spring and the water was freezing or maybe it was because I had on jeans, two hoodies and boots that I sank like a log. I seemed to lack the strength to free myself from the bottom of the lake due to my added water weight.  Or maybe, just maybe, as I floundered in the freezing cold lake in water- logged clothing, it was the thought of how my mom was going to kill me for submerging her new digital camera in water that I immediately sprung to my feet and ripped the camera from my back pocket.  Despite all efforts to save the camera, I lost the battle to the frigid lake waters.  We continued on with our journey, the camera dead and me soaked.  Several lessons were learned that day….the hard way. 
 
Out of fear, I decided I better get my mom’s camera replaced straight away.  This time, however, I decided she needed something a little tougher.  This is how I ended up with the Fuji XP. It’s  waterproof, dustproof, shockproof…all the features my mom would need….(insert image of sheepish grin on my face).  So it is the little Fuji XP that I used to capture two of my very most popular photos -- Sophia Smiling and Two Eggs and a Chick. 

​Since then I have replaced my little Fuji XP with my IPhone.  I love the convenience of having a camera in my pocket.  Although I have limitations, I just learn to use it to my advantage.  Early on I was also able to purchase a used Canon Rebel from a friend who was upgrading.  I like to use my Canon when photographing my chickens or other critters that I don’t want to get too close to and interrupt their general behavior.  It also has a nice zoom for bringing things in closer and maintaining quality of image. 
 

​Another happy milestone, which is a direct result of my relationship with Poppy, is that I was able to land a deal with Avanti Press, the card company.  About two years after I first took my photo of Sophia, Avanti Press contacted me.  They had seen my photo on a blog post of funny animals.  As a result, I have leased the image to them to use for five years in their line of “Seriously Funny” greeting cards.  My photo of that very personable little donkey has now gone nationwide.  She has been spotted in drug stores, pet stores, hospital gift shops and party stores far and wide. 

​Looking back, I had no idea of how things would unfold. Who knew how getting my note cards into a little mid-Missouri shop would help get me to where I am now.   One path has led to another, which has led to yet another. I am grateful for how the journey has unfolded and every time I look at my sheep, Poppy, I am reminded of a beautiful saying….
 
”Enjoy the little things in life, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”   J. Johnson.

Earlier this month, I kicked off the 2016 art fair season at the Artists Boutique in Kirkwood, Missouri.  This is the start of my sixth year of doing art fairs.  It has been a slow progression from selling a handful of note cards from the back of my pickup truck at the Farmers Market to last year, showing in some of the top, most respected shows in mid-Missouri.  Though it has been a slow climb and immersion in to the art world, it has been well worth it.  I am a person who learns by doing.  I can read all the books in the world, watch all the videos and sit in on all the classes, but fact is, I learn best by doing.  The knowledge and friendships I have gained along the way are priceless to me in so many ways.  I feel good about where I am on my career ladder.  I’ve come about my success honestly, fairly, and with hard work, not to mention a tremendous amount of support and help from others for which I can truly say, I would not be where I am without their help. 

It took a long time for me to readily accept help from others, even though I have always been one to try and help others.  I finally realized that others enjoy helping me as much as I enjoy helping them.  With this new outlook on life, it has made my transition from blue collar, lower level management to independent entrepreneur a much more rewarding
journey than anything I have ever done before.  Old friends and new friends alike have rallied around so that I truly believe I can do anything I set my mind to. 

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​Last year, just two days before Thanksgiving, I was bundled up outside doing my farm chores.  My phone started ringing and I fumbled trying to get it out of my pocket.  It was my next door neighbor.  She generally calls when she has a raccoon in her garage eating all her cat food, my cows are loose and in her bird feeder, or she would like me to let her dog out while she’s gone for the day.  However, this time you could tell she was rattled as she stumbled to get all her words out.  She had just returned from taking her sister to the doctor.  They were told to get her to a specialist immediately as she had a blood vessel that had burst in her eye.  My neighbor was too upset to drive, and her elderly sister was in no condition, nor capable of driving such distance.  So within fifteen minutes of her calling me, I was picking up her sister who lives about a mile away. 
 
Despite living only a mile away, we had never met.  Over the course of twenty-six years, we had passed here and there along the gravel road as I was driving into town and she was out for her daily walk.  When I was a kid, everybody knew everybody or at least we acted like we did. We would sit on my grandparents’ porch and wave to all who passed by.  It’s a different world now; so when I would pass, she would step off the road and look away. So although I knew where she lived, I really knew nothing about her other than she was related to my next door neighbor. 
When I pulled up to her house, she came out wrapped in her coat and clutching a small handbag.  I got out and helped her in the car.  As we headed to the doctor in Columbia about an hour away, we shared some small talk about the weather and such. I tried to keep the mood light to keep her mind off of the seriousness of her condition, not to mention I have a weak stomach and human pain to others is perhaps my greatest fear.  That’s correct; I can’t handle pain of any type to others.  The mere fact that I was driving and accompanying my neighbor to the doctor was some sort of miracle in its own, but there were really no other options available.  I had to step up. 

Once inside at the doctor’s office, I helped my neighbor to a seat.  After letting the front desk know I had brought my neighbor in, they handed me four sheets of paper work that needed to be filled out.  I sat down next to her and asked if she could fill out the forms or if she needed me to.
  She asked that I fill them out for her.  So I turned to her with a big smile on my face and said, “You know what, I don’t even know your name”.  We both got a chuckle out of that.  Her name was Dorothy.  So we proceeded to fill out her paperwork as best as we could together.  I was able to fill out some very basics such as address and birthdate (in her 90’s) from her ID, however the rest of the forms were more of a challenge.  Did she suffer from this or that, did anyone in her family suffer from this or that?  It was all pretty much a guessing game as Dorothy didn’t really remember if she had any of the ailments listed or if anyone in her family ever had.  She told me to write on the forms that she was still alive so she must be pretty healthy.  I agreed with her.  Dorothy said she walks over two miles every day so that should tell them something.  When asked about what meds she was on, Dorothy pulled a crumpled piece of paper from her wallet that we soon realized was outdated. We ended up leaving it mostly blank too.  It made me realize the importance of keeping a list of current medication on hand especially for the elderly.  I let the receptionist know that I was only a neighbor and we pretty much guessed at all the answers.  I asked them to contact her sister for an accurate listing of medical history. 

When the nurse came to get Dorothy, I told her I would wait right there for her to return.  She grabbed my arm and told me to come along.  So for the next four hours I sat through Dorothy going from test to test— injected dyes, dilation, scans, etc.  In between tests, we would tell stories and laugh.  My ulterior motive was to keep her calm and to keep me from throwing up.  Just standing outside the doctor’s office, my stomach started to flip so I did everything I could to take my mind elsewhere.  My telling silly stories and asking her to tell me silly stories, probably served us both well.   I did my best to explain the necessity of all the different tests in as much as the results were leading to a procedure to be done right then and there.
 
The doctor told Dorothy she needed a procedure in which they would stick a needle directly into her eye and inject medicine that could cause infection, floaters, redness, itching and a whole set of other horrible- sounding side effects, but it was the recommended course of action.  After listening to the doctor and taking notes, reading the brochures and chatting with Dorothy, we decided it was the best course of action to take as it would need to be done sooner instead of later due to the bleeding in her eye.  While waiting for the doctor to return, I decided it was time for more stories and jokes as I stared at charts of eyeballs on the wall.  I now have an even greater appreciation for those in the medical field who hang art on their walls.  As I tried not to think about what they were going to do to Dorothy and her eye, I desperately wished there were paintings or photos of waterfalls and fields of flowers in the room instead of the medical junk. 
 
When the doctor came in with the big, humungous needle, I tried to step out of the room.  The doctor stopped me and said I could stay.  Secretly, I wondered if he could tell I was contemplating passing out so I could avoid the whole procedure.  For Dorothy’s sake, I sucked it up.  With tears in her eyes as the doctor and nurse prepared everything, I got up from my safe chair and stood by Dorothy holding her hand.  For 90-something years old, she has a great grip which helped ease the queasiness in my stomach.  She was a trooper.  I can’t say that I would have handled things the same way…actually, I’m 100% positive I would not have handled the whole day as well as Dorothy did.  I would’ve asked them to knock me out directly after they took my weight.  Her toughness and true grit reminded me a lot of my own grandma.  I know we were both relieved when the doctor finally gave us the thumbs up on the procedure, but my stomach flip-flopped when he told Dorothy she would need to come back every 4 weeks to do it all over again.  Throughout the day, I felt an extreme appreciation for my good health and felt a huge sense of empathy for Dorothy.  She took it all in with a smile and positive attitude.

​Starving, we stopped and grabbed a sandwich for the ride home.  We made it back to her house after dark.  I offered to stay with her until family could arrive, and she seemed grateful that I offered.  I cleaned out her medicine cabinet and went through each container and made a list of what she was on and what the doctor had added.  I made out a time sheet for her so she could manage her meds and went over the handouts from the doctor.  She showed me family pics on the fridge held up with old magnets and showed me a favorite passage in her ear-marked bible.  We chatted until family arrived.  I was profusely thanked for all I had done, but it had been my pleasure.  I enjoyed getting to know Dorothy and felt good that I was somehow able to help her when she needed it.

A few days later Dorothy’s family delivered a nice little note card along with a gift card to Walmart as a token of appreciation.  It wasn’t necessary, but it was a very kind gesture.  I’m not a big fan of spending money on myself too often; I’d rather invest it back into my business, but I had been needing new gloves for my farm chores.  The gift card allowed me to stock up on gloves and a new watering hose for the cows—all for helping a neighbor in need. 

​You may wonder how this all play into, “put good in – get good out”?  Well, it would be impossible for me to count the number of times others have helped me in my time of need.  So it feels good that I was able to help someone when I could.  Just a week or so after helping Dorothy, a fellow artist, Linda Sutterer, contacted me saying she was downsizing her art fair vehicle and offered to sell me her van.  Oh my, what a fantastic opportunity for me.  I have been hauling my art work in the back of my little pick up truck or strapping booth items to the roof of my mom’s car for the past five years now.  I have been dreaming of a van or utility trailer for some time…the day when I could fit everything inside one, safe area and haul it to a show without worry.  I rented a van in desperation last year when I overbooked myself and had two art shows to set up for in one weekend.  There is no way I would have survived that weekend without the help of others or without the use of a van. 

​​Earlier this month, the Artists Boutique in Kirkwood was my first opportunity to travel to an art show with my new van.  She’s twenty years old, but she’s new to me.  It was such a great feeling to load everything inside the vehicle and shut the doors…no climbing on a ladder and strapping tables and card racks to the roof. 

​​What a relief!  I am very proud of my new van and am looking forward to (hopefully) another fifteen shows this year if I get juried into everything I plan on applying for. 

​In my eyes, when you put good into the universe, good comes back.  Perhaps it’s the rose colored glasses I tend to wear.  Either way—Life is Good.