Do you believe in guardian angels?

I do.

It's been one of the most bizarre, stressful, and amazing years all wrapped into one.

I lost my job in January. I interviewed like a mad woman all over San Francisco. Nothing was right for me, or for them. For the first time in my life I felt old. I was qualified for all of these positions, but felt oddly out place. Was all my experience for not?

Our store in Napa was on the verge of bankruptcy. The recession had not been our friend. Our customers loved us. But buying high-end furniture during a shaky economic time is not a smart decision.

Things were not looking good.

I started going to the store with Don. It was better than hanging out at home sulking.

I would bring in my laptop, perch myself on a stool and surf the net looking for jobs, blog about random stuff, and check email. It was hard going from an incredibly busy job to nothing. Our store was slow. Creditors were hounding us. We weren't sure if we would make it.

I felt empty.

We had no income. No health insurance. How did this happen?

Then one day a client came in and ordered a bunch of furniture using designer fabrics. We hadn't seen an order like this in a long time. "I know times are tough. I want to shop local and help local businesses." she said. We worked on projects for her all spring.

I think she was our guardian angel, because everything changed after that.

Our business started growing. Every month was better than the last. A lot better. Old clients were coming back. New clients were coming in. Our commercial clients were calling. The streets in Napa were busy again. Suddenly we were swamped. We could pay bills. Creditors backed off. We could breathe a little.

I knocked on wood every day.

The recession did not defeat us.

Then our second guardian angel appeared.

My old client called offering me a part-time freelance job doing social media and copy writing. I was turning my crazy little hobby into a paying gig.  

*Big fat sigh.*

You have no idea how much we needed that phone call.

I love my new freelance gig. The store is booming. Don is actually smiling. Sometimes.

As crazy as this sounds I'm glad everything happened the way it did. Everything happens for a reason. I know we're going to make it.

Knock on wood.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone that believed in us. Your thoughts and prayers helped those guardian angels find us.

Love you all,

Kris