Sending Good Vibes

MAR 4, 2020 – This past Sunday I turned 65 and, if there were no such thing as mirrors, I’d swear I was 25. When my 40ish friend Linda called that afternoon to wish me well, I noted how up and bubbly she was with her own birthday just a week away. “Yea, well,” she said, “I’m working on raising my vibration.” 😉

She was only kinda kidding. Like attracts like and what we put out comes right back at us … good vibes in, good vibes out! “When you are vibrating at a higher level, you feel lighter, happier, and more at ease,” a Chopra Center article explains, “whereas lower vibrations feel heavy, dark, and confused.” The very interesting piece asks, “How are you vibrating right now?” And then offers 12 Ways To Help Raise Your Vibration.

Now my dad was no Deepak Chopra but, back when I actually was 25 and he was still alive, Dad would see all the good, synchronistic things happening to me, shake his head in wonder and say, “Jo, you live a charmed life!” No, Dad, I’d say. I just choose to see the charm in life. It’s true: Good vibes in, good vibes out!

Take, for example, my great friend and Contributing Cardie Candy Clausell. For my birthday, she sent me this Pretty Words card with the necklace tucked inside. Candy is a lifelong thrifter that, being so the opposite, I very much admire, so the gift meant that much more when she proudly revealed, “I found that necklace at a garage sale! I noticed it but didn’t buy it. Only after I’d biked all the way home did I realize, ‘Hey, that necklace would be perfect to slip in the Good Vibes card I already have in mind for Jodee,’ so back I rode.” Candy’s reward: “Not only was it still there, it was marked down!”

As good as people like Candy can make us feel, I see birthdays as opportunities to be especially good to ourselves, too. So, the day before mine, I went shopping for a beautiful new bag. I wanted a small crossbody to hold my phone-keys-wallet at the gym (as if that’s going to get me there more often :) Looking around Hobo, I spotted a bag as extravagant as it was impractical for its intended purpose … in other words: Perfect! Then I read this review: “LOVE IT! I got this as a birthday gift for myself and I did a great job. I want to thank myself for getting this bag for myself. LOL”

I was still chuckling at that reviewer’s self-satisfied fun as I rushed off to a birthday dinner — without yet buying the bag. And good thing! The new friend seated down the table from me leaned over and graciously said, “My husband loves your cards. He always makes a point of stopping by your booth at the industry shows.” I thanked Mitchell for mentioning it and asked, “What business does your husband have at the shows?” Get this response: “He works for Hobo bags.” Ha! I laughed and shared that, not an hour before, I’d been eyeing a most unsuitable little gem for the gym. With a wink and sly grin, Mitch insisted, “Let me see if I can’t get you a nice discount.” See there, Dad: Good vibes in, good vibes out!

When the check came and someone asked to borrow a pen, I discovered that my keepsake from Tiffany must have fallen out of my (yes, Hobo) wallet along the way. It had been a gift of great sentimental value from my first boss and, to a writer celebrating her 65th, it felt like a bad omen to lose such a beloved talisman on one’s birthday. Next morning, I marched right over to Tiffany to replace that beautiful pen.

On the walk there I ran into my friend, Pamela, who asked where I was headed. When I shared with her what I just told you, the actress and fellow writer exclaimed, “Excellent!” Huh? And, in her crisp British accent that we all adore, Pam explained, “I had wanted to get you something special for this birthday and had no idea what it might be. Please let me pay for the replacement pen and maybe you’ll feel it’s special coming as it did today from me.” With tears springing to my eyes then and there, it felt special indeed. Good vibes in, good vibes out.

Later in the day, I happily opened a sweet stack of familiar envelopes in sage and cream (gotta love friends and family who celebrate you while supporting your small business, too). I thought, in this week’s newsletter, maybe I’ll answer the question I’m so often asked, “What cards do people send to someone who makes cards?” Just for fun, you’ll see a sampling below. Good vibes, Cardies, good vibes.

More Good Vibes