Weaving the narrative thru Chapter 2 ...

I was in a terrible spot mentally and needed to focus on a goal. This goal turned out to be developing a yoga spray, one which allowed yogees to grip to their mat even when sweaty. I knew I was on to something, and met my soon-to-be business partner in a yoga class. She informed me that her daughter was dating my son. Who knew?! I certainly hadn't! I made the classic mistake of a mom who only has boys and went all in with the family. I was so excited to have a girl around. I explained my idea to my new friend (the girlfriend's mom) and she loved it. We worked hard and brought the product to life.

Eventually, the kids broke up. But we were on a path of our own by that point. I travelled to L.A. with the prototype (because, in my mind, everyone in California did yoga.) I hit every hot studio from Beverly Hills to Malibu. Everyone loved the product, so we went into production. I funded my half with remainder of my money from my IRA.

We launched the product in January of 2020 and were gaining customers and exposure quickly. I travelled to Marin County, to a studio that purchased our product, spending the weekend doing pop-ups to educate the yogis on our new product: "Stay and Get A Grip". I was so excited and passionate that one of the sweetest women in the class suggested I contact her family friend Jonah Kest. Wow! When I looked up who he was, and discovered his father and uncle coined the term "power yoga", I knew I had hit the jackpot.

I connected with Jonah and was floored by his kindness, disposition and willingness to help a stranger. I sent him the spray and he loved it! He posted about the spray, and our site blew up. We stayed connected, and I appreciated his friendship.

I continued to plan pop-ups all over Southern CT and NYC. Then, the pandemic hit. The world shut down. The momentum that we had died. Many people retreated into their own caves during Covid (we were no different.) When we finally tried to get back to the business, we had developed different ideas on how to market our product.

I knew we needed to change something and I suggested we go our separate ways. It was one of the hardest decisions I had to make, but I followed my heart. We dissolved the LLC. I lost a dear friend. The decision to break the business partnership was not personal, but things shook out that way.

I was working at a local market through the pandemic and was now, once again, floundering. How could I make a difference in the world? How could I accomplish something to be proud of?

It is funny how we view ourselves and our accomplishments. I have 3 amazing, kind, respectful boys. They survived a terrible marriage and an even more difficult divorce. My mother reminds me every time I say I feel like a "life loser" how wonderful my children are. I know that I should embrace that accomplishment, but I had a fabulous mother so the way that I raised my boys did not feel much like a choice or an accomplishment at all. I parented the only way I knew how.

I decided I wanted to help people. That has always made me feel good. It is sort of selfish if you think about it, but everyone wins in the end. I wanted to plan trips for anyone who felt like they needed to find their way and re-establish their goals (much like how I was feeling).

The first step was to be able to build on my life-coaching and become a trained yoga teacher. 200 hours, the mandatory amount, turned out to be a LOT of time for a working mom. The Yoga Shop where I practice has training on the weekend, and that didn't work for me with hockey games and family dinners.

So I reached out to my old friend Jonah Kest, who had supported my yoga spray venture years before. In a very impulsive moment in March, I decided to sign up for his 200 hour training in Costa Rica over a shortened span: 18 days. I realized that I needed to do something for myself. This was way out of my comfort zone, but I figured it was my 50th birthday gift to myself. I consider this moment the start to my Chapter 3, the moment I began drafting the most recent section of my trilogy.