I’ve been thinking about how much can change in a single year.
In many ways, this story began in June.
Last June, my mom passed away. In the days that followed, I had an unexpected encounter with a dragonfly—one that stopped me in my tracks and eventually inspired the name Dragonflies & Honey. If you’ve been here from the beginning, you may remember that story. Looking back now, I realize it marked the beginning of a season I couldn’t yet see. Around that same time, a dear friend lost her mother too.
Standing At New Doorways
This June looks very different. A niece and nephew are both graduating from sixth grade. Another niece from 8th grade and a nephew is graduating from college. One just got his drivers license. Four graduations and one on the road, it’s been one busy month. Five new chapters. In between those moments, something and someone else was changing.
What started as Dragonflies & Honey led to Stillwater Stitchery, which then became HoneySweet Needleworks. Looking back, I realize the business wasn’t the only thing finding its way. I was too.
Recently, I came across an image of an open doorway standing alone in a field. No walls. No house. Just an open door leading toward whatever lies beyond. I couldn’t stop looking at it. Maybe because it feels a lot like this season of life. June has reminded me that life is always moving. Sometimes that movement feels like joy. Often times it feels like grief. It’s like standing in the middle of a room full of boxes, wondering what comes next.
The Invitation To Keep Moving Forward
Everywhere I look, someone seems to be standing at a doorway. Children are becoming young adults. A college graduate is stepping into a new season. A creative dream has found its true name. And I am learning what life looks like one year after loss. The doorway doesn’t promise certainty. It simply invites us forward.
When I was younger, I thought life would eventually settle into something predictable. Instead, I’ve learned that life keeps moving. Chapters end. New ones begin. People grow. Dreams change shape. We become versions of ourselves we couldn’t have imagined years earlier. And maybe that’s where the beauty lives.
This June, I’m grateful for all of it—the memories, the milestones, the endings, and the beginnings. Because every one of them reminds me that life continues to unfold, whether we’re ready or not. The dragonfly showed up at the beginning of this journey. The open door feels like where it has led. And maybe that’s not such a bad thing.
dragonflies & honey
