So I've started a new thing. As you may already know, I love all things flowers. And arranging them is meditative to me. It calms me down, centers me, and fills me with joy.

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to teach my first flower arranging demonstration at a local shop here in town, and I was so excited!

I put a ton of planning into the handout I wanted everyone to leave with. I mapped out exactly when I'd cut the flowers from my garden and how I'd condition them so they'd be perfect for class the next day. And then it occurred to me... I had to pick my outfit.

I've taught countless workshops around the country over the last fifteen years, and I know I get hot when I'm teaching. All my gears are turning, I warm up, and in the middle of summer, I knew I'd want to wear a sleeveless dress. Then a thought popped into my head, "But you can't show your arms."

Years ago, a family member whom I love very much told me that my arms were too big and that I should cover them during my Erin's Faces workshops. I know it was intended with love. I truly believe the intention was to protect me from being judged. Unfortunately, it had the opposite effect. Instead, it made me feel very judged by someone I loved, and for years that comment quietly followed me every time I thought about putting on a tank top or anything else that showed my arms.

But here's the good news (yay progress!) - almost as quickly as the thought came, it left.

I literally thought to myself, "The size of your arms has nothing to do with how well you can teach people to arrange flowers. Nothing."

So I picked out a dress that absolutely let you see my arms, and I didn't give it another thought.

I felt great. I felt prepared. And we had an incredible class.

My sweet husband came with me and spent the evening taking photos and videos while I taught. Later, as I was putting together social media posts, I looked through all the pictures. And you can absolutely see my arms. There were also photos taken from a seated position, and I wasn't thinking about stretching my neck to not have a double chin.  So you can guess how that went.

But you could also see beautiful flowers, women smiling, creativity, joy, and confidence growing around the room.

And once again, I had a choice. I could hide those photos because they weren't the most flattering OR I could remember that the goal was never to have perfect arms or the perfect camera angle. So I posted the pictures in a delightful reel.

The goal was to love the women in that room. To inspire them with beauty, to give them a simple structure so they'd go home feeling confident enough to arrange flowers themselves and bring joy into their homes. And I did that. And I don't think anyone went home and told their spouse or friends about what I looked like. I think they went home and dove into their gardens the next day or the grocery store, gathered some flowers and made something beautiful. THAT was the takeaway.  Which is everything I wanted 💛.

To learn more about my new flower business, Gathered from the Garden, click HERE.

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