And so the Story goes...

In this dynamic, often chaotic world, over seven billion living souls share one undeniable bond: We are individually different and collectively human.

As such, each of us has a unique story to tell, and other people fill the pages of our lives with happiness, adventures, sorrow, pain, beauty, and love. The moments and memories we create and share with each other can sustain us in times of loss, give us hope for the future, and ultimately, shape who we are.

The older I get, the more I’m aware of the impact my words and actions have on others. I’m the first to admit that I’m far from perfect. But my heart’s desire is to be kind to others and live my life in a spirit of love.

I’m constantly juggling multiple tasks. When things get too crazy, I wonder if I can ever truly “slow down and be present.”

Writing is my life’s passion. Creating written works that touch someone’s heart – or knowing that I’ve made someone smile with something I write brings me such happiness and peace. My friend Valerie is a multitalented artist – who loves to sketch, draw, and paint. We’re creative kindred spirits.

Years ago, I had spinal cord surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota to reduce the spasticity in my legs from cerebral palsy. I was in a physical rehab unit for 12 weeks over 600 miles from home in the middle of winter. Cards and letters from friends and family kept me going through grueling pain and loneliness. So did writing.

Laptops were pretty much non-existent back then. But I used an electric typewriter from the hospital library to create a line of greeting cards.

Over days and weeks and between intense muscle retraining sessions, I came up with 200 card ideas – the outside and inside verses. But I couldn’t even begin to do the artwork.

In thinking of our lives as stories – and loving to read and write them all my life – I wrote an original snippet of text that would read like it was plucked from a page in a novel on the front of each card. The inside of each expressed a feeling or message for the recipient.

Unfortunately, when I got discharged, busy life took over. So, I shelved the card idea for a really long time. Valerie lived in California, and I was in the Midwest. Zoom and other digital forms of communication didn’t exist.

We began to collaborate when she moved back home. We've gone to a pizza place together for years. Before Covid, we could sit there for hours, flip open notebooks and sketchbooks, power up our laptops, and kick story and other project ideas around. We haven’t been able to go to our “creative hub” since 2019. But that hasn’t stopped us from taking a break from our individually hectic lives to de-stress and get creative.

We’ve created some beautiful keepsake boxes that hold letters, cards, and other mementos. We also wrote a children’s story.

Valerie surprised me with an amazing drawing of the two of us going into our pizza place together – to symbolize the creative projects we will tackle in the future. I was so touched, I turned it into our first card for our original greeting card line, called “And so the Story goes…”

It's the first greeting card I've seen with a person who uses forearm crutches - though I'm not sure if others exist.

The brand name is inspired by the story-themed opening verse of the cards. And by the ever-changing stories of our lives that are filled with memorable people and places that impact how our story unfolds.

Cards can encourage someone.

They can also say hello.

And express feelings we may hesitate to verbalize - and declare love.

Overall, cards are a small, heartfelt gesture we can make to show others that we care. Given the turbulent events of the past year, giving cards are also a tangible way to keep our hearts and lives connected when other factors keep us apart.

We can mail cards or hand-deliver them as a random act of kindness to boost someone’s spirits, express love, kindness, and thanks – or just create a smile. In a perfect world, a card might forge a path toward peace and understanding – And so the Story goes …