It has been a while

a long, long while.....
I have been holed up in my house dealing with a bunch of things that aren't blog worthy. I haven't been scrapping in a long time, and only recently pulled my stuff out again. In the last few months, I have learned a lot of life lessons. And although I am not happy that the lessons had to be learned or what was lost as a result of this learning, I am a much better person for realizing who belongs in my life, and who is not worth the time and effort. And that is exactly the right word. I have never believed that a friendship should be effort. It should be EFFORTLESS. You should never have to compromise who you are, what you value or believe, or make sacrifices that will never be reciprocated. A friendship isn't like a marriage; I don't think it should be hard sometimes, and easy the next. I think it should be organic; it should just work. And if it doesn't, that person is likely someone who came into your life for one reason or another, and it is time for that person to leave. Unfortunately, I have found a few too many people lately in my life who have been willing to take advantage of me, pretend to like me (because we are apparently in junior high), and aren't willing to wait and learn the whole story before jumping to conclusions, and make rash, life-changing decisions.
In the last year, I have lost a lot of things. I lost a job, money, friends, and my mind. But, in the last year I made new friends. Effortless friends. I have found an old friend to be my best ally, defender, and confidant. I have been so busy with my business that I have been able to make some very exciting purchases for my household (including my new MacBook Pro that this blog post is coming to you from!) I have learned that who I am is not my job. It is not who I associate with. It is not who I let ruin friendships, or careers. Who I am is who I am meant to be. And that is someone that I am proud to know.
So, sorry for the vent, rant, whatever. I am done. I needed to clear the air around me so I can move on in a less weighed down way. I have ditched the dead weight, and am ready for this next chapter of my life... And it will include scrapbooking. Lots and lots of scrapbooking.