In many spiritual traditions, we are reminded that there is a season for everything. The Book of Ecclesiastes tells us that “There is a time for everything… a time to plant and a time to harvest… a time to tear down and a time to build” (Ecc 3). What started in 2022 as an unforeseen journey has developed into walk-ins turning into customers, who then become loyal visitors, and some share a friendship. One thing is certain in each one of them, though, and that is that each person has poured their heart into our hands and their blessings into our store.
As we pack the last of our inventory at our initial location, I find myself overwhelmed with gratitude for the "harvest" of our humble and challenging beginnings. I think of the multitude of faces that became familiar in the past four years, of the stories shared over the counter, and of the customers who transitioned from patrons to prayer partners to dear acquaintances and friends. Closing a chapter can be bittersweet. It requires us to get rid of the comfortable and the familiar to make room for a new season of growth.
It takes courage to step across a new threshold and trust that the same guidance that sustained us then will be waiting for us now. For example, we anticipated our beloved priest and close friend, Fr. Perry D. Leiker, to be the one celebrating with us and blessing our new shop, just as he had done with the old shop on May 22, 2022. But God had other plans and, since we are only His servants, we must do as He wills... "a time to be born and a time to die... a time to weep..." (Ecc. 3). Nonetheless, his initial blessing remains with us; it has only transformed in the same way that we continue to change and welcome new customers.
Our new location is more than just a retail space in a plaza. It is a new altar, in a way. An altar because it is the sacred place and space dedicated to service, connection, communion with the children of God, and the blessings of everyday encounters… “… and a time to dance... and a time to laugh” (Ecc 3). Our prayer for this new storefront is simple:
- May every person who walks through these doors feel a sense of peace.
- May our shelves hold more than just statues and goods; may they hold the promise of quality and care for everyone.
- May this be a sanctuary where strangers become neighbors and neighbors become friends.
To those of you who followed us to this new location on South Street: your loyalty is a testament to the fact that community is not found in a building, but in the people who inhabit it and in the lives touched.
If you are currently facing any type of transition in your life, moving into a new home, changing careers, or navigating a personal shift or any type of loss, stress, and uncertainty just remember that time endures through difficult, and most of the time painful endings only to pave way to new and exciting beginnings. We serve a Creator who is constantly doing a "new thing," and always jumping at us from even the places we least expect it.
As we settle into our new surroundings, we are reminded of a beautiful truth: We are not just relocated; we are replanted. And when you are planted in the right soil, surrounded by a community as wonderful as ours, the only thing left to do is have “...a time to build… a time to embrace… and a time for peace.”
Blessings,
TSJ