“So please, please, please, tell me, it’s okay to be happy”

This is the last line of the song, Happy by DAY6. It’s a b-side from their comeback album after 4 years and it’s also holder records for topping South Korea’s music charts. I guess asking for permission to be happy is something that resonates with the public a lot.

I may have written this to comfort myself… because I’ve been feeling really stagnant lately. But I also think this is my way of checking my heart…

Something about the 30s that really changes your mindset. There’s even a study that states that the part of our brain crucial for decision-making, planning, and impulse control continue to mature during our early 30s!

My prayer is that God continues to mature not just my brain, but also these specific areas of my life…

10 years ago, I went on different adventures every month to experience God’s creation in new ways… climbing mountains was something I frequently did back then. While I miss it, my 30-year-old body will have to train and prepare well if I ever decide to climb one again. In lieu of conquering a mountain, here are mini letters for some of the memorable ones I’ve climbed.

Even my prayers have consistently been about wanting bigger adventures, more projects, financial increase, for God to use me in a greater way. A propensity to just want more.

We often forget that the more could be an accumulation of littles.

Art breaks is a beautiful habit that was borne out of stressful times at work (while I was still in advertising and marketing.) It’s basically carving out a few minutes of my day to make art, any art I feel like doing… to breathe, to pause, and to just release stuff I have no words for.

I don’t know when or why I stopped so I’m wrote this blog to figure it out.

This trip really went from wanting to hear Taylor sing the lines of her song, Enchanted… to me being truly delighted by the way God moved all throughout the trip. I praise Him for His provision, protection, and all the He opened me up to.

I can’t help but praise God how He turned something that can be seen as trivial by some (side-eyeing y’all, for real) into a meaningful journey filled with blessings, heartbreaks, dreaming anew, fan wars, warmth, and everything in between.

I can tell you all the details how God orchestrated everything for me to be on this entrepreneurial path, but that would take more than a thousand words. Instead, I’d love to share encouragements about growth that my Gardener has taught me thus far on this journey.

Has it really been 2 years?! Here’s a bit of a walk down memory lane as I reflect on God’s goodness and faithfulness the past 2 years of venturing out of a full-time job and into being an independent artist and a creative business owner.