A Gift From the Ocean

One of the things I miss the most from living in New Jersey is being so close to the ocean. My favorite beach to collect sea glass for my jewelry was about an hour away (much different from the six-ish hour ride I have now to any beach!).

I look at it as an excuse to get back to New Jersey every once in a while and wander that beach.

Sea glass that is found washed up from the ocean or a large lake is a treasure like nothing else. Broken bits of glass are tumbled through sand and surf to round off the sharp edges and change the shiny surface to a unique frosted finish. And each piece is different. You may find some that are similar in size or shape or color, but you will never find two pieces exactly the same.

Kind of like people. 

Each person has experiences in life that have shaped them into the person they are today. Sometimes when we meet them they are in the process of having those rough edges rounded off. Or they are being polished into something wonderful, but it all takes time. 

Sea glass isn't ready to be made into jewelry the first time it washes up on the shore. It takes decades of rolling through the sand and being pounded by the waves, over and over again, until all the traces of what it used to be are gone.  

And the thought crosses my mind, as I pick up each piece of sea glass, "Where am I in this journey of my life? What rough edges are still being rounded out? Where am I needing thoughts or opinions to be changed?"

As a Christian, I have the confidence that I am not on this journey alone and that the things that happen have a purpose. I have to admit, some of the events in my life I am still struggling to figure out the whys, but I believe that it will make sense sooner or later. 

But like the sea glass, I am changing into something different and better than I was when I started. And that makes all the difference. 

  

Winter Dreams

Does a Mountain Whisper?

Thanks for dropping in to read my little blog!

We live in the Smokey Mountains of east Tennessee and think it is one of the most beautiful places here on God's great earth. And the people are mighty nice as well.

So where did the name Whispering Mountain come from? My husband and I were trying to come up with a name for our businesses. I make jewelry and paint Christmas ornaments... (at least right now. Who knows what will capture my interest this year?) And my husband makes THE BEST homemade BBQ sauce. Once we have the online shop up and running, you can be sure I'll be posting it all over the place! So you can see one of the issues we had was trying to find a name that we could both use even though our talents are very far apart.

But we spent days and days brainstorming ideas, with no names that we both liked. And, because my brain constantly jumps from one thought to another, somehow I went from brainstorming names with the word "mountain" in them to thinking about my favorite Christmas special, "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." I've always loved the song where Chris is teaching the Winter Warlock to walk and that made me think about where he lived. The Mountains of the Whispering Winds. 

And that, my friends, is how the name came to be. 

So I own Whispering Mountain Designs and my husband is in charge of Whispering Mountain Grill. 

And yes, the mountain you see on the blog is the mountain we see from our front porch, but no, it's not Whispering Mountain. It's Devil's Nose. And that's a story for another time...