Category: YouTube

1/21/2025 0 Comments

426) Meeting Mrs. Breadsticks - Why Saying Yes Changed My Life

Embarking on a new endeavor.

~ And why saying yes can change your life too:

I’ve read a lot in the past about saying no, and when to say no, for self-care purposes. There are seemingly infinite self-help articles, blogs, books, and videos, all about teaching you to learn to say no.

Whether its saying no to helping an acquaintance move, driving someone to the airport that you really don’t have the time or desire to drive them to, saying no to a night out when you just want to curl up under a blanket and watch a movie, or saying no to taking on a new project that you can’t wrap your brain around at this point in time.

I think, and this is just my very generalized opinion, that humans for the most part no longer have a problem with learning how to say no, and saying so declaratively. I think all those self-care books have done the job they’ve set out to do… and then some. Today, there seems to be absolutely no problems with saying no. You can just say NO, and move on with your life. No big deal.

But what about saying yes? What about learning to say yes to something that you would normally just say no to in response?

Over two years ago now, I was asked to illustrate a children’s book - it was my first children’s book as an artist. And now, looking back on this decision over two years later, I know that saying yes to this project was truly one of the best decisions of my life.

I said yes to this project sight unseen. Simply meaning, I didn’t know the author (Mary S. Holden) at the time. Now, we’re dear friends - of course! But at the time, it began purely as a business transaction. A business transaction that meant the whole world to me. It was faith that told me to say yes. I desperately wanted the project, but didn’t know if the project wanted me.

By saying yes, I embarked on the adventure of a lifetime. I created thirty two pages of illustrations, and helped bring the author’s lovely characters to life. It was such a pleasure, and an honor, and I’m so glad that Mary said yes, to me, as well.

I never dreamed I could become so attached to fictional characters. I never imagined that there would come a day in my life where I would wake up in the morning, grab my cup of coffee, and want to immediately check on my new friends - all hanging out in my art studio. I would run into my studio and say hello to them, to greet the new day ahead. And I would wonder… what should Mrs. Breadsticks wear today? That anticipatory part of the routine… was the most exciting part of the entire process for me.

But there was another joyous part of this project that was the best of all. It was in the culmination, and ripple effect of decisions, that saying yes sparked in my life. It was how by saying yes to this project, my life was, once again, completely transformed.

Once I said yes to Mrs. Breadsticks, there were an abundance of yes’ that came into my life. I said yes to so many things after that initial yes. A simple change - my studio setup changed (over and over) until I found just the right feng shui arrangement for best work flow. My daily routine changed entirely. My exercise changed. My art changed. My YouTube channel changed immensely. All of this change, in so many ways - too many to mention here.

In fact, my art changed so much after the book - which was illustrated completely in acrylic - that I’m almost exclusively working in a new medium right now.

I’ve just spent over a full year working in watercolor - something I was too scared, and much too timid, shy and fearful, to try - before my experience of painting Mrs. Breadsticks.

And now, watercolor is my life. It’s a dream. And my paintings are so different. And I’m in love with the process of creating art, even more than I ever thought I could be. I even wrote my own children’s book during the course of last year, 2024, and illustrated the entire book (in watercolor) - which will be released this spring exclusively on Amazon.

Another fact, I've been so intensely busy living this post-Mrs. Breadsticks life, that I have been too preoccupied to even publish a blog post and post this story until today - many, many months after the book's formal publication date. It actually took me getting seriously ill with pneumonia and bronchitis during the end of 2024 and into practically the whole month of January 2025, to really slow me down, and ‘make’ the time in my schedule to publish a dedicated blog post on my own website on this matter.

I am also happy to report I’m on the mend, quickly now, and improving every day. So, naturally, I’m getting this story out into the world this day, before I become ‘too well’ and too busy, once again to tell you all about how Mrs. Breadsticks changed my life.

Years from now, I know that I will always remain grateful for Mrs. Breadsticks coming into my life, and for the author asking me to complete this project. Because Mary S. Holden is the singular reason this all happened. But just the same, I know that I will always be grateful - to myself - for having the courage to say yes to Mrs. Breadsticks. Because saying yes did change my life. And saying yes can change your life too.~

*If you are interested in purchasing a copy of The Adventures of Mrs. Breadsticks, you can do so right via the link below - as I did give myself enough time last year to make a dedicated landing page for my book publications. You’ll see some coloring books and notebooks for sale as well. But either way, I’d love for you to reach out to me via my YouTube Channel and let me know - what step are you taking today to pursue all your dreams?

YouTube:
www.youtube.com/@christinepieper
Books:
https://www.christinesfloridiandreams.com/books.html