Today, I didn't sell a single piece of jewelry.
I earned nothing.
I sat at my workbench feeling a little sad. Looking at the things I'd made, knowing I hadn't earned anything today, was hard.
Sometimes people say that facing life's difficulties alone makes you strong or brave.
But I don't always see it that way.
Sometimes, facing everything on your own isn't strength or courage. You simply don't have another choice.
And carrying everything alone isn't something great or heroic, either. Sometimes you feel like you can't carry any more, but you still have to keep going.
Because of my disability, finding work isn't easy for me.
So I try to become better at the things I can do.
I make things by hand, think about new designs, and spend time figuring out how to make each piece better. These are things I can work on myself.
Today, I looked at the different colored stones on my workbench.
There were purples, blues, whites, and all sorts of other shades.
I thought about how difficult life can feel sometimes, and how these little pieces of color might become a small rainbow in my own life.
So I put different colored stones together and made a little charm.
I used cord to bring them together, letting the small stones hang down in a colorful bunch.
It can hang from a bag, a set of keys, or wherever someone wants to keep it.
I like the thought of carrying a little bit of color with me, wherever I go.
Of course, making this little charm doesn't change the fact that I earned nothing today.
I don't know whether anyone will buy my jewelry tomorrow.
But today, I still sat at my workbench and finished making it with care.
There are things in life I really can't do much about.
But I'd like to keep this little rainbow close to me.