Jesus is for the Wounded

Moving on with gratitude

Published on May 12, 2015May 12, 2015 by Jesus is for the Wounded4 Comments

Having just posted in every social media venue I can find, my Etsy shop online, and chatted with my Aunt Patty recently, the decision is final: I am letting go of my hobby business, Trinity Jewelry by Design.

Sometimes when we are drawn forward to an exciting new opportunity, we simply cannot hold onto the things of the past. I discovered this past week that the creative and entrepreneurial energy needed to make my new company, Two Step Solutions (TSS), a success will require my full attention. Lord willing I will participate in one final public event (my fifth) this coming weekend: a Fiber Arts Fest at a local farm and educational center. How perfect. Hemp, leather, and especially the friendship jewelry made from the Threads of Hope ministry will fit in nicely. Perhaps I will find my niche at last? So sweet. Me and the farm animals, with Border Collies chasing the sheep around too. Since it’s an outdoor venue, I should be fine with the adrenaline rush that usually comes with participating in an event. I am looking forward to it actually!

So humor me if you will with some pictures and a little reminiscing that captures the creative journey of these past 3 years. I began making jewelry to have a low-cost, portable hobby I could pursue in our home office. The first product was an adjustable 3-beaded macramé bracelet designed to represent the Holy Trinity. These were born out of an activity I introduced to a missionary family who was visiting our home for dinner with their three daughters. The bracelets were very basic yet also rekindled my experience with macramé over 30 years prior as a new graduate from occupational therapy school. A macrame lamp shade and a couple of plant hangers were my own “occupational therapy” after moving away from home for my first job out of State. Funny how things come back into vogue, eh?

macrame bracelets, adjustable bracelets, simple macrame, slider knot, 3-beaded bracelet, learn to macrame, Trinity Jewelry by Design — My first display in a professional office!

Eventually in my TJ by D journey, I discovered the world of YouTube videos. Amazing! You can learn just about everything including better knotting techniques, the value of better materials, how to take better pictures, branding, and so more right from your home computer. Etsy furthered my training with it’s excellent resources, support teams, and a relatively user-friendly ecommerce site to get you online before the world. But none of it would have ever happened if my Aunt Patty wasn’t already on Etsy with her own shop, Patches and Pockets. Her initial instruction gave me the courage to start a steep learning curve that would de-mystify much of what I did not know about the internet. I am so grateful for her willingness to show me the way!

double macrame, macrame bracelets, Trinity Jewelry by Design, toggle clasp, hemp, hemp bracelet, natural hemp, handmade jewelry — One of my first favorite designs as I transitioned to better materials.

And so there I was in the middle of the night when I felt the best and was most productive, making hemp jewelry. I tried selling the precious stone jewelry of an acquaintance but it turned out that my shop wasn’t right venue for either of us. My own skills got better; I learned to take better pictures which is critical to success online. It would be two years before I started experimenting with leather lacing then leather wrist bands. As time went on I sensed that I needed more of a niche product or at least one that would have more utility in daily life than jewelry. I wondered if I might expand into leather tooling or perhaps making leather holsters for women? Etsy had allowed commercial manufacturers into their marketplace and the competition from cheaper overseas companies diluted the quality of work in my media and vastly increased competition. Handmade items made in America seemed to be valued less just as I was developing my own style, my own branding. I joined “handmade” sales teams and implemented the strategies that they suggested but it didn’t seem to make much of an impact on my business. Then my sleeping patterns changed and I lost my creative groove. My personal health situation had become more complicated as well.

macrame bracelets, wrap bracelet, handmade bracelet, hemp, macrame, triple wrap bracelet, Trinity Jewelry by Design — Mixing all my favorite knotting techniques became my niche for a time.

chevron weave, macrame bracelet, charm bracelet, simple macrame, learning to simplify the design, Trinity Jewelry by Desing — Learning to simplify a design is harder than it looks!

I believe it was the Lord who inspired me to start Two Step Solutions. I was praying for direction with my jewelry business, consulting close friends, and checked in with my Aunt Patty over those few months too. My Aunt had already let her Etsy business expire as she pursued other volunteer opportunities with her local gardening group and hospital auxillary. Hmmm. Maybe it was time for me to pursue a venue that would look more like my former profession of occupational therapy yet incorporate all of the skills that I had learned over these past 3 years? Indeed. As it turns out, the vision that the Lord gave me for TSS will bank on most everything I have ever done including enduring a serious illness. Wow Lord!

Threads of Hope, ministry jewelry, jewelry fundraiser, Trinity Jewelry by Design, Phillippines — Threads of Hope Friendship Bracelets get a T J by D touch.

A couple of weeks ago I had an unusual conversation with a jewelry customer who claimed that the bracelet that she had purchased from me had broken in two places. By the time I received it in a plain business envelope in the mail, it was completely destroyed. I was so hurt that I almost gave up TJ by D that week. I had already launched the TSS website and begun working on my Business Plan, eBook, and Trademark. I knew in my heart that I would be leaving the jewelry business yet I wasn’t sure how to go about it. After several unusual “Conversations” as they call it on Etsy with my customer, I decided to act decisively and resolve the situation with confidence instead of acquiescence. I refunded her money in full. Then I saw a sign in front of a local venue called Salomon Farm Park for their Fiber Arts Fest. Very quickly an “exit strategy” came into view. I even had a few creative nights around this time simply enjoying my craft again. I would participate in one final event, network the heck out of it, and letter go. What a great way to wrap things up!

leather wrap bracelet, chevron amethyst, leather beading, leather lacing, purple leather lacing, purple leather bracelet, Trinity Jewelry by Design — My most popular bracelet on Etsy was sadly put to rest after it could not be repaired.

Some of the details of this transition are a bit vague yet so I’ll just put Trinity Jewelry by Design up for sale and see what happens. Lord willing I am hoping that about $225 will come in this weekend to pay for my filing fee at the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office for TSS. I found a Law School who is ready to file the application via their free clinic. Alright. I know what that means. Better get hustling Just Julie! It’s time to sell some jewelry and get my studio in order. Sometime soon I may be moving on with gratitude and perhaps a few colorful sparklies will linger to adorn my own wrist, my own neckline too.

beachy necklace, beach necklace, summer necklace, handmade necklace, Threads of Hope, adjustable necklace, Trinity Jewelry by Design — Another fav purchased by a friend that combined a Threads of Hope Friendship Bracelet with pink hemp cord.

Of course I’ll be keeping a few of my favorite creations just for me you know. I love this stuff! JJ

Get this book!

Published on May 11, 2015May 11, 2015 by Jesus is for the WoundedLeave a comment

Gentle Readers:

If you are dealing with chronic or unexplained illness, I encourage you to get this new book by Suzanne Sommers:

Tox-Sick

Mrs. Sommers uses her interviewing style to cover topics that are usually more difficult to understand when it comes to the complexities of serious illness. She includes a broad range of diseases, treatments, and types of practitioners, only occasionally mentioning her other best-selling books! I especially appreciate the index for locating topics of interest.

This book might have shortened my learning curve if it had been available 3 years ago. May it shorten yours!

Take care, JJ

It was the Lord’s decision

Published on May 11, 2015May 11, 2015 by Jesus is for the Wounded2 Comments

O.k. let’s loosen up a bit first for a funny story that my beloved told me today:

Steve was having his hair cut by an older stylist who shared with him a little something about back hair. Yes, Steve already “knows” about back hair and somehow his stylist found out about it too. I’ll call her Mabel to increase my comfort level with another woman musing about my husband’s body hair. (My apologies to anyone named Mabel out there!)

Mabel said she had a client one time that wanted her to trim his back hair. You see, the furrier gentlemen types can have hair that sticks out of their shirt collar horrifying the fair skinned, younger female crowd for sure. (I’m thinking of Steve’s daughter here who usually helps Steve out with this kind of thing when she is in town. It’s some kind of daddy-daughter thang. Yeah, no problemmo. Keeps me from having to do it!) So Mabel did her duty and trimmed up the guy only to have him ask her to do a little more please. Then he must have asked for the shave to go further down his shirt because the story goes that she had to profess, “If I go any lower sir, you are going to have to tell me your middle name and buy me a drink!” Tee hee.

Steve and I cracked up for a long time after he told me this little ditty! Then my intended beloved confessed that his chest hair was getting a little long. I reminded him that his daughter would be visiting in a couple of days. Nuff said. Besides, I already know his middle name! Lol.

There’s no clear segway from here to the topic on my heart tonight. Today was Mother’s Day and technically I am not a mother of anyone. Steve has four adult children whom I all met when they were becoming independent adults so the step——- term never seemed appropriate. I was left in an awkward ambiguous role of “my dad’s wife” as if I was an expendable associate to whom they would have to be polite until one of us went away again. They are all well-trained young adults in politeness, avoiding difficult topics, and loving their dad just the same even after their parent’s divorce. The silence was still deafening, the emotional distance between us palpable. In time I would discover that the fact that I never had children would be one of the reasons their respect for me would remain superficial for a long time.

Only the Lord knows why I did not become pregnant when every indication at one particular moment in time suggested that a child would be in my future. Conception never happened. Four months later I discovered that my husband at the time was having an affair. The affair had lasted almost a year before I found out about it! If we had conceived a child at that time, the precious new life would have been dragged through a painful divorce process and horrific life challenges that I ended up enduring in addition to the divorce. In my humble opinion, both that little life that was never born and I were spared a multitude of heartaches. Surely if I had gotten pregnant the Lord would have provided and guided our lives, taking care of important details like finances, medical care, and a place to stay. The stress would have been unbearable for me, however. At times I did not function very well at all for a couple of years just taking care of me. My spirit was so broken . . .

The Lord knew what He was doing when He placed me in another “broken” family with a Godly father with four children four years later.

⁵A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows,
Is God in His holy habitation.
⁶God sets the solitary in families;
He brings out those who are bound into prosperity; Psalm 68:6-7a

Over and over again I have witnessed the special role that the Lord intended by my presence in Steve’s family, my family. Those musings may rarely if ever be spoken to the children. I will not say more about that here lest they read this one day. I am honored and blessed to be here in this family. And when the grandchildren started coming, I was delighted to be welcomed as “Grandma!” So sweet. So worth navigating the older kid’s awkwardness that came in gatherings during of our first seven years of marriage. Grandkids are fun!

Tonight I decided to post a message on my Facebook a message that speaks to my heart this Mother’s Day. Many of us come from broken homes, broken marriages, childlessness, or the loss of children in our lives for some reason. Love is like that sometimes. Things don’t go right and it hurts terribly yet I hope we still choose to love again anyways. I can tell you this night that I am glad that I did not give up too soon. I hope that you do not give up too soon either Gentle Reader.

The Lord never blessed me with my own children then he blessed in other ways instead. I count it all joy to be related to Christina, Patrick and Kate (Jackson and Warren), Rebekah and Daniel, and Daniel and Elizabeth. Know that I pray for you often, whether it’s in the shadow of your amazing dad or trying to find my way when I do get to see you. I think I now understand a mother’s heart. She just loves. Me too. Hope your day was meaningful . . . :J

Bacon as a way of life

Published on May 3, 2015October 26, 2015 by Jesus is for the Wounded2 Comments

So my beloved says to me, “look at how far you have come,” related to my diet. Indeed. When we first met I was eating gluten-free, low sugar and fat, largely organic, and sweetener-free, and dairy-free foods. I cooked a lot and was very particular what I ate at restaurants, often bringing my own nuts or dressings. Supplements? Yeah, in due time with my new doctor at the helm my pill box burgeoned to over 60 doses of something per day! Then part of the story got crazier . . .

As severe illness set in, the supplements would change and almost disappear as time went on. I could not tolerate any supplements at all after a brief hiatus required during overnight testing at the Epilepsy Center, University of Indianapolis Methodist Hospital. By then I had added a low oxalate and Candida diet too. After A YEAR on all of this with daily bone broth too, my brain fog cleared and my gut started to heal. They say that 95% of your immune system is in your gut. Perhaps part of your brain health is there as well? (Now that last part could lend itself to some embarrassing teasing if I stay here too long. Let’s move on!)

When dental pain increased, my nutritional sustenance all went into the VitaMix for about 6 weeks. I became the master of the pureed diet and many soups, sauces, smoothies, etc. My gut health slowed yet the convulsive episodes triggered by chewing diminished. Gradually I got back to a chopped diet which is where I remain, 4 weeks post surgery for the extraction of two root-canaled teeth. Healing continues. It is wonderful to be able to chew better!

Then the convulsive episodes that had diminished some returned to their prior level: 2 to 5 hours per day. So sad. Over three years into this time of serious illness and still no one has figured out how to stop them. I fasted for 24-hours, drinking only water and praying when my brain cells fired in the right direction. The episodes stopped. As intense hunger pangs overtook my weakness I decided to break the fast with an apple: easy to digest and surely a boost to my low blood sugar. I did not expect what followed. One of the most violent types of convulsive episodes started my beloved hubby out of a sound sleep and sent me into an enlightened frenzy. Enlightened? Yes, this episode was triggered by glucose!

That night and the days thereafter I quickly ventured into a ketogenic diet. I found a couple of Facebook Groups on the subject and the App they recommended to get me started. A few days into the new direction a gal from one of the groups contacted me to clarify something: was I using the diet for weight loss or medical reasons? The grams of protein/carbohydrates/fats or “macros” are different with each type of ketogenic diet. For both programs a person consumes very little carb grams yet for weight loss you eat more protein than fat; for medical ketosis to occur you must focus on more fats than proteins. But it is in consuming very little carbs (I eventually got to 21 total grams) that the body is forced to utilize fats for energy instead of carbs. The body then produces ketones that can often be picked up in a simple urine stick test or special blood glucose meter that includes ketones. Ketones are hypothesized to stop or reduce seizures and may even help treat dementia in the elderly.

This week I reached ketosis. My breath got bad and another tell-tale symptom appeared that is too much for even the transparency of this blog post! It took me three weeks to get here and it could take a minimum of 2 months, usually 4-6 months, to see if the ketogenic diet will help me at all. I am willing to try. Heck, I already have a very restricted diet anyways. And who doesn’t like (uncured, unsmoked) bacon? The MyFitnessPal App is a gift from the Lord in managing this. I would recommend it and their Facebook to everyone on a diet where a person must track macros.

So how about the blessings in all of this? Surely there were some? Indeed Gentle Reader. You know me well! You see I researched the ketogenic diet two years ago and periodically thereafter but could not find a local neurologist or dietician to guide me. Close medical oversight including lab tests every three months are needed in addition to the periodic self-monitoring via urine or blood sticks. Help has arrived just at the right time. Briefly, check this out:

My first week venturing into the food plan, the gal who messaged me off Facebook just happened to be a retired nurse from the neurosurgery center at John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. She manages her own true epilepsy in part with this diet. Did you know that the only medical center in the USA with a dietary research and treatment center for adults with epilepsy is at John Hopkins? I knew that and was ecstatic to spend that first Saturday night receiving mentoring from my “guardian angel” named Vicki. Thank you Lord!

Around this same time I researched a foundation known to assist children with true epilepsy. Maybe they would have some new information? Oh yeah, a medical center close to our home in a smaller town had just hired a dietician to work with children and adults in all aspects of the ketogenic diet. She had recently attended a conference with the Charlie Foundation and was added to their list of practitioners the week before! She manages all of the referrals, orders for lab tests, and consultations. And Mary is very sweet to boot. Wow, Lord.

In many ways, in many long and exhaustingly arduous ways, this new treatment direction could be one more bunny trail in the quest to recover from this wretched illness. O.k. Poor me baby. Well then again, maybe not. Sometimes you have to do more than one task to completely recover from a serious illness. Remember the phrase, “recovery is a jagged line?” The Ann Landers column about life being about the journey and not the destination? The gratitude I feel in my heart for having met you Gentle Reader? All of the computer skills I have learned about everything from ecommerce to social media? The deepening of my relationship with Christ? The revelation of the Godly character of my beloved husband? And the fact that I did not die in all of those near-death experiences? On this day I must say that I have seen the faithfulness and blessing of the Lord at some level every single day of the past 3 1/2 years. His promises have seen me through and rung true every single day. I will leave you with my fav promise from another time in my life of refining fire (and a side of bacon too please, crispy as in nearly burnt. I like it that way!) Take care, JJ

Jeremiah 29 11, Jeremiah, hope and a future, hope, plans, trust in the Lord, Christian hope, encouragin scripture, faith, ketogenic diet, chronic ilness, Christain and disability, Hope Beyond, Julie Horney — Jeremiah 29:11

Waiting

Published on April 23, 2015 by Jesus is for the WoundedLeave a comment

Psalm 130 New King James Version (NKJV)

Waiting for the Redemption of the Lord

A Song of Ascents.

130 Out of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord;
²Lord, hear my voice!
Let Your ears be attentive
To the voice of my supplications.

³If You, Lord, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
⁴But there is forgiveness with You,
That You may be feared.

⁵I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
And in His word I do hope.
⁶My soul waits for the Lord
More than those who watch for the morning—
Yes, more than those who watch for the morning.

⁷O Israel, hope in the Lord;
For with the Lord there is mercy,
And with Him is abundant redemption.
⁸And He shall redeem Israel
From all his iniquities.