From Under the Tree RSS

I have to go home! But I literally could not. Something was not letting me go away from that tree. What is it?

So I decided to take a few more minutes to pull a few weeds from under it.  A native totem is resting at the base of that tree making it even more special for us.  Everything about that tree is so dear. 

Summer! For sun lovers - a delight. For some of us, high temperatures are tough to navigate. How do you stay comfortable and look good?
I have an answer for that and it is LINEN.
There is nothing more simple and luxurious at the same time as the linen textile. Maybe it is the thousands of years of usage, maybe it is its unassuming beauty - it reminds us of nature, of freedom, of kindness to the skin.

I see the stress levels mounting around me. Scanning morning paper does not improve the optimism.

In the middle of the night, with my mind full of problems and worries, it saves me to give thanks for the true values in my life. For our sons growing up wonderfully. For my family, simply that they are alive. For my bed and roof. For my breath. I am thankful for the people around me who help me learn and see more. So many people are selflessly friendly, nice, good-natured people. Thank you for showing that heart to us. 
I am thankful to You for being our customers.

I was only a few years old when my family took a long risky car ride across the "forbidden border" of our East neighbor, the Soviet Union.
It took my dad 20 years to gather the courage to try to find his place of birth and place of trauma.

Perfect day last Saturday - sun shining, weather warm, gorgeous. I left for the store early as the new Alpaca socks arrived, I need to price these.

Our contractor was working on a garage, so I stopped by. “Gary, I maybe shouldn't be saying that but I was thinking about you. With all the surgeries you have been having, take a look if there is any stressful situation in your life that needs resolving. Stress contributes so much to accidents and health issues.”

He looked at me, startled, and said “You know, there is something. I never connected the two. But it's a tough one.” “I bet. Otherwise you would just have a cold. Don't ignore it, you are so young. All the best!”

I think that we need a reminder that, despite the circumstances, we are the ones that continue to create the world made for us. That we are an expression of life and as such, we give life to others. It matters.

Through the individual hearts, thoughts, actions - we help life to vibrate with more clarity and strength. Nobody will ever take it away, no muzzle, no six feet distance, no worldly upset.

We make a day better for a person on the street that seems lost and needs help. We wave to neighbors and express sympathy to a friend. We pay for coffee for the person six feet behind us.

A lady walked in our store, looking a bit rushed. She wore a mask (Washington has mandatory masks rule), she sanitized her hands at our sanitizing station, she observed blue arrows on a floor. I greeted her and she asked "How is the store doing? How are you guys holding up?"

I took a breath and stopped myself from answering her question by telling her EVERYTHING uncontrollably

There is a network of waterways close to where we and our store are. It is called the Salish Sea - part of it in British Columbia, Canada and part in the state of Washington, U.S.A.
The area is a home for many Native American tribes with numerous cultures and languages.

To have the courage for the next step, when you feel like curling in a ball with a pillow over your head, has always been a mystery to me. 

Yet, I want to share two survival skills that help me when the anxiety feels squashing me.

First - we are never ever alone.
We are never ever here just for ourselves - we are here to be of service to others.

Second - is even more important.
In each of us, there is a well of resilience.
It’s carried from your grand-grand-parents in your DNA. Via them, you have survived, like they survived moments of unimaginable fear and pain and it passed.

Seems like everybody talks about LOVE in February. Valentine rules the month and thank goodness!
Instead of focusing on the deluge of snow, rain or gloomy skies in our Pacific Northwest, it is so nice to attend to subject much nicer - like Love. 
And it is not only just nicer – the science already proved that oxytocin, the hormone and a neurotransmitter released in a body by emotions of love, truly does miracles. 

A timeless look, elegant yet effortless. Casual but refined, interesting but not overdone. Simple yet stunning. 

I keep dreaming. The words come to my mind thinking of fashion icons I admire but I don't wear what they do. Why is it so hard to define our special unique style?

It may be because defining your style is defining your identity and that is hard to put the finger on. It has as much to do with looks as with how it makes us feel – just like we love a good friend for how we feel together.

Sometimes there are times like these.
Or years like these. When not that much seem to be going right. I search the soul till it hurts, trying to see what I can’t see yet, and still come empty.

When the frustration boils over too far, I have a solution – “Go Outside”. “Go to that tree”. "Notice its strength devoid of any pretense".

My son Adam said "I am concerned about climate change in the next decades. During my lifetime this Earth will change to the condition that no human experienced before". You probably have the concerns on your own. I may not know the...

Third day without power and internet. Luckily the last holiday orders are sent out and I can stay home. The family gathered around the gas fireplace, little spots of candles around. Nothing to do, nothing more important than being with each...

His eyes were locked into mine, expressing as much shock as mine. "Wolf!" I uttered.It was a week ago, as I was driving slowly on a steep narrow road - a young wolf appeared on the left. He was as stunned...

”That's not what I want”, “Why did I do that again?” - my mind is spinning in circles on an occasion. OK, maybe more often recently than ever. So, my ears perked up hearing some new information on how the...

Summer is so beautiful! Unfortunately, the heat is not so easy on the body. For the sun lovers - it’s a delight, for sensitive skin people - it is a challenge. I would like to bring to your attention few...

My Mom is 86 years young and in a fabulous health overall. Except for the last several weeks, when her leg gave us so much pain that she could not walk for weeks. These were very different weeks, where both...

Earth Day is a great time to re-visit our thoughts and actions in regards to the environment. I am not going to preach to the choir the importance of the subject - if you read this message, that means you care. For me,...

 It has been a fabulous 10 years since we started Natural Clothing Company and we hope there are many more to come! That time helped us develop better our knowledge of textiles, introduced us to thousands of great people and taught us...

Keep your thoughts steady, keep your heart from racing, keep adrenaline low.  It’s my mantra. Underneath me, a few hundred meters of vertical space spread as far as I can see. Its beauty is lost on me at this moment....