It was a rocky start and not in the way you would think. The rocky part of it was the successful part. When my daughter, Isabelle, was around eight years old, she began painting rocks. She’d collect buckets of rocks from a secret beach source lugging a filled container to the car. The rocks were of similar size – a bit smaller than her slender hand. At home, scattered on a tabletop she had tubes and tubes of bright colors. She’d start by brushing on a wildly bright base coat on each rock – Cornflower Yellow, Ocean Breeze Teal, Winter Plum Purple, Robin’s Egg Blue, Spanish Olive Green and so many more yummy colors. Each coating would be followed by polka dots and other simple shapes. Lastly, on each rock an inspiring word was written – joy, comfort, hope. She had created a long list of words to choose from to paint on her rocks.

Her first market was the Suttons Bay Art Fair. The art fair supported young artists and always provided a tent for these young entrepreneurs to have a booth to sell their items. Before market day, Isabelle carefully wrapped each rock and placed them in a box. She got a cash box from her Grandma Goat (…there is also a Grandma Frog). Under the shade of the tent, she set up her booth of assorted painted rocks. It was her very first market. I stayed at the art fair with her, sitting quietly behind her watching her sell her rocks. Her booth was the busiest one in the tent. People would come by and remark, “Oh, you’re the talented girl with the painted rocks for sale.” Everyone who came to her booth left with a rock or two. I couldn’t tell if she felt overwhelmed because she looked cool as a cucumber as she conversed with customers, wrapped her sold rocks, and calculated the change from sales. It was a rocky start for sure and she was all smiles. 

(Fast forward seventeen years later.) 

Again, I had the opportunity to join Isa at her first market. It would be the Florence Fest at the Grow Benzie market. Over the course of many months, she had been diligently creating her products – herbal medicines and skin care, natural dyed silks, native and medicinal plants. Again, she methodically planned out her first market from product to set-up. Again, I was able to sit under the shade of her tent and quietly watch her. Again, she engaged with her clients and poetically told them about her products. She was flawless. She was confident. She was beautiful. As her mom, I was bursting but not with pride. Pride wasn’t mine to feel. This was HER achievement. I was bursting with pure joy. The joy of still being able to “ride along” during these times. To watch her create. It is something amazing to see your child do what they love. I am grateful for these times that seem so simple but in fact for me are so very BIG for this mama’s heart. Isa’s first market as an eight year old was a wonderfully rocky start and as an adult she is still rockin’ it.