Opportunity Knocks!

At some point, for most of us, life is going to get chaotic however this can be the very moment where opportunity knocks.

Let me introduce myself…

Today marks the beginning of a new faze in the Art from the Heart journey. Today is my first day as Admin and general dogsbody for John, who just happens to be my husband too. My name is Katie and for years I’ve been an advisory whisper in John’s ear through many stages of AFTH. Today, however, I have a firmer hand on the tiller and aim to support John in a wide variety of tasks, mainly related to behind the scenes activities like blog writing and emails to name a few.

So why now?

I hear you ask. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you will have been aware of the situation that has undeniably set the globe in a spin. Covid-19. Unfortunately, I have become a victim of the economic challenges that have faced, and continue to face, many businesses and charities throughout our nations. I am currently going through the redundancy process for a Scottish Charity who is having to make staffing cuts in order to cope with their reduced income. Like many people, when faced with change, the automatic response is to feel that rise in stress, the brain starts to overdrive with a plethora of unanswerable questions and we feel helpless. I’ve felt like that twice this year. But only for a moment. In March, when the word ‘Lockdown’ became a reality for us all, I had that moment of crisis. What about my business? You see, I also teach piano. How was I to continue working and making a living if I couldn’t teach? But as ever, God reminded me that He was in control, and in a divine moment on a car journey home, I realised that I had the opportunity to evolve and take my lessons online. Whew! Disaster averted!

Furlough 

As the Covid crisis developed, I was put on furlough in my capacity as a part-time admin for the charity I work for. I have remained on furlough and, as mentioned, have taken the redundancy route. When the word ‘redundancy’ first became a possible reality, my first instinct was, ‘It’s come to this!’ But funnily enough, the panic didn’t affect me as much this time. Because almost immediately, God showed me a new path that was waiting for me, through my husband. John’s words were, “Come and work for me! I need your help!” And so the rest, they say, is history. The saying goes, “When one door closes, somewhere God opens a window.” This is my window. Of opportunity, change, challenge, growth…and hopefully, unending possibility.

So let’s see, shall we? Let’s see what’s in store on this new leg of our journey. Stay with us as we unveil new projects in the coming weeks and months, which we hope will inspire and challenge you in your own personal journey and encourage you along the way! Bon voyage!

The battles we all face.

You and I are not the same. We’re not supposed to be, right? And yet, even though we know we are all unique and special in our own individual ways, this attribute often makes us feel completely alone. We want to be like everyone else, to fit in, to be ‘one of the guys’. We do everything within our limited power to be like a sheep and follow the crowd, amending who we truly are, diluting our specialness into an insipid copy of someone else. But does it work? Do we really feel better? I’ll answer for you. No. We still feel alone, out of step, adrift. So when life throws curveballs your way, when the challenges strike and you’re flung out into uncharted waters, how are you going to keep your head above water? What do you cling to? Who do you cling to?

John’s new book, ‘The battles we all face, hope in times of uncertainty’, is a series of insights, stories, and memories, that are designed to show you that you are not alone in this world, regardless of how difficult your journey has been, and that your special individuality is wonderful. In fact, embracing who you are and realising that you matter, is crucial in learning to cope with life’s challenges. Order your copy now, learn more and join John on an adventure that promises to change your perspective on life as you explore teachings designed to challenge, educate, motivate, and inspire you from the life experience of someone who’s been there.

Let’s talk about that…

Off the back of John’s new book, “The battles we all face, hope in times of uncertainty”, we have cultivated a new branch to the Art from the Heart tree. The desire was always to go deeper and to reach people at the heart of their situation, to understand and inspire them with hope. With that in mind, we launched ‘Mind, Body and Soul’, designed to inspire, motivate, and educate people from around the world. Our brand new Podcast, ‘Mind, Body and Soul with John Morris’, will be an exciting part of this venture. The show will reinforce the over-riding lesson, that no matter who you are and where you’ve been, you are not alone. Someone else has gone through it too. We wanted to go further than the book and really delve into the real stories of people  The Podcast will be officially launched in November and features notable people from many walks of life who have gone through life’s challenges and come out the other side, stronger and more resolute. You can look forward to hearing from professional and ex-professional wrestlers, business owners, life coaches, cancer survivors, mental health sufferers, people living with debilitating disorders, and much much more. Learn how these incredible people strove to conquer the hand life dealt them, how they coped with the unique situations they faced, and how they meet each day. Hearing other people’s stories can encourage and inspire you to face whatever fight you are battling now or in the future. You will realise that you are strong, just like John’s guests, and can take on life, full throttle! Subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch the first two videos by clicking this link. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjRyWT5tkZxIZvsuVoZqoXw?

Opportunity Knocks!

When the whole world went into lockdown and fear and panic took hold, many of us questioned our future. As I’ve already detailed above regarding my own situation, John had similar doubts and fears over the future of AFTH and how we would cope with the uncertainty of a pandemic. However, much to our surprise, orders continued to fly in numbers we could never have anticipated. In the twelve weeks following the beginning of lockdown, we received in excess of 50 custom orders! John was hard-pressed to keep up and fulfill them on time, but succeed he did, and was so inspired and encouraged by people’s support during a time when it could so easily have gone the other way. Thank you! This served as a life lesson, not just for John, but for countless others around the world; the ones who are most responsive to change are the ones who survive. This doesn’t mean that John didn’t have his fair share of melt-down moments. Believe me, he did! But he overcame these momentary blips, which you can read more about here https://www.johnmorrisartfromtheheart.com/recovery/ 

A time of opportunity…

During this crazy time, many people took the opportunity to start a new hobby, learn a new skill, take on a task they’d been putting off or had no time for before, or even to get fit and healthy. They saw a chance that they might never get again to better themselves or their environment and took it. John was one such person. He began to work on new paintings, outwith his custom orders, that he’d envisioned doing, but hadn’t the chance to start before. Two such works are ‘Sacred Falls’, and ‘Lake Louise’.

‘Sacred Falls’ was born out of John’s love of the Native American culture. The beautiful sunset colours invoke a warmth and hospitality that is central to the Native American way of life. Through this work, John captures a traditional scene, typical of their ancient way of life, but that is sadly threatened, and in many cases lost to us today.

‘Lake Louise’ was inspired through an Instagram post by a friend who was vacationing with her family at Lake Louise in Canada. Upon seeing the majestic scene of deep teal waters, towering misty mountains, and lush green forests, John’s imagination was captured and he set about immortalising it on canvas. Click here for a sneak peek at this beautiful new work. https://www.johnmorrisartfromtheheart.com/product/lake-louise-original-painting/

A final word.

Thanks for reading this far and coming with me on my first blog! I hope it has inspired you and encouraged you to take hold of the opportunities that life can present to you, even out of strange and difficult circumstances. Life is full of such occurrences, and we can only grow and progress if we learn how to tackle them.

Until next time!

Katie