
It's a holiday tradition to capture our Small Business Saturday. Quite honestly, I had no idea what the day was going to be like considering the current climate. To my surprise, the day was nothing short of perfect! The attendees were in small groups as we followed the guidelines and there were only a couple of times, maybe three, that folks were required to wait on the porch. It was a sunshine day with mild temperatures and we broke our Small Business records! It doesn't get any better than that! I'm still in awe! The warm and fuzzy feelings of community support for small business in my little town shines like the brightest star! I was not able to capture everyone as it was pretty busy, but I want you to know how appreciative that I am of your continued patronage for the past nine months. Think about that for a moment, nine months! It seems surreal and unreal.
I'm so very proud of my customers for keeping their chins up and rallying through the not so good times.
The holidays feel very different this year, don't they?
The many, many things I've learned along the way. All good in the end, hopefully, the end is close, but in between the uncertainty and wishy-washy feelings that came and went like night and day have diminished. I guess I've been conditioned. I would imagine humans are built to endure certain things and come out a better person after the trials and tribulations. At least we would hope to strive for this outcome.
The good the bad and the ugly have presented themselves during this pandemic, but I'm happy to declare that the good trumped them all!
One after one learning experience that I believe has shaped me into a better human. All of which I'm appreciative of.
Right before Thanksgiving, a customer dropped by the store. I happened to ask them what they were thankful for. They replied that they were thankful for the clean air that they breathe and the clean water that they drink. That evening I thought about their thankful thoughts and allowed me to reflect. My friend's words had a dramatic impact on my thoughts. Don't you love it when that happens?
I've started to write that book! The book thoughts have been roaming around re-appearing every now and then, more often than not, and quite frankly I'm determined to launch the process.
It's so funny, I actually have considered writing several books all of which are completely different in their journey. I must narrow it down to just one for the moment. Even one can be overwhelming.
Our store is open some eleven more days before Christmas! Talk about feeling unreal, that does!

Joy To The World and Cheery and Bright have been our themes for this season.

Photo credits from Pinterest.
Lennis had reserved some cedar branches from a tree that we lost last year. He surprised me with a collection of twig stars like the one in this picture. I love them!

I've added a few new Lip Balms to the menu. Butterscotch, Cinnamon, and Mint Chocolate Chip join the line-up.
I've brought back Beard Balm for the holidays! It's a new and improved formulation. I did a bit of research to learn that eucalyptus encourages hair growth. That's a new addition and I've switched out argan oil with marula oil. The marula offers supreme healing effects.

A couple of weeks ago while Elle and I were on our morning walk she stopped to graze and I looked down and spotted a four-leaf clover! I snatched it up! About three days later she stopped in the same place and I looked down and spotted another four-leaf clover! The following week, ditto, and I plucked my third four-leaf clover!

I don't recall ever finding even one four-leaf clover let alone three in a week! Oh, what a lucky girl she was!
Little things... Don't forget that they still exist!
The next three weeks are an exciting time at Bittersweet. I'll be burning the midnight oil making every attempt to keep our inventory fresh and healthy.
Keep the faith.
Jill
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