Dear MelMarie Fam: Let’s Get Personal

Hey y’all! It’s Mel here.

If you don’t already know, I am usually the one who writes the blog posts on here. I know that most of you come to us for skin care advice, but today I wanted to get a little more personal. I wanted to give you an update on me and maybe some motivation for the day. 

In August I packed up all my clothes (and trust me, there was a lot), and moved to college.

I was  excited, nervous, happy, & confused all at the same time to begin this new adventure. The first few weeks were more than great, but as I settled into my newfound independence along came the doubt and worry. My mind was racing with questions like;

“What if I can’t make any friends?”,

and “How will I pass my classes if I can’t even pass this homework assignment?”

I was losing sleep, my emotions were all over the place, and I may have been a tiny bit irritable (sorry mom ?). The worst part of it all was I didn’t know how to fix any of it. I felt like I was in a rut and didn’t quite know how to get out of it.

After weeks of trying to deal with it on my own, I figured it was time to let someone try to help.

That’s when I opened up to my mom about the way I was feeling. She somehow seemed to fix a lot of it with a simple hug… I’m not really sure how moms do that. But I believe that acknowledging that something was actually wrong was the first step to making me feel better. It seemed for a while I was just trying to ignore it until it went away. But it never did go away because sadly our problems tend to be a little more persistent than that. They usually stick around until we face them. 

As I was walking to class today with some friends, I realized how happy I am and how far I’ve come in just the last couple of weeks. I’ve gained my motivation and my confidence back, and honestly I think it is because of all of you. Our Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Small Business Saturday gave me just what I needed; all the people that love and support me. Moving from the little town of Fort Jennings to a big city made me feel very insignificant, but coming home and getting to see my family, friends, and all of you reminded me what I am doing this all for. And I couldn’t be more thankful.

The message I’m trying to get across in this post is you’re going to have hard times. The hard times that seem never-ending and probably make you wanna cry; hold on. It does get better. It might be in a week, a month or even a few years, but it will. And you can do whatever you need to do to get through them; cry, scream, throw things, eat a pint of ice cream, go hang out with your friends for a whole weekend and forget about everything else you have to do.

Whatever it is that you think will make you feel even the slightest bit better, go do it. Baby steps turn into miles faster than you think.

I think I can speak for both myself and my mom, that you all are what makes us feel better. It is so easy to get lost in to-do lists and work that you forget why you’re here in the first place. And we’re here for you. Of course it is fun and rewarding creating a product we really like, or writing blog posts that do really well, but the truth is nothing is more fulfilling than connecting with you all on a personal level.

Celebrating your victories with you and being here during the hard times. That is what makes this business what it is. We are so lucky to have such caring customers, or as we like to call you all, friends. 

Whenever you’re reading this, I encourage you to take at least 20 minutes today to do something you love. Really take the time to enjoy the moment and stay present in it. This could be as simple as doing some yoga, calling your parents, or taking the time to pray. Whatever it is for you, go do it.

And remember, if you’re going through a tough time, keep looking up because that’s the direction you’re heading.

Much love always,

Mel