Once in awhile, I close my eyes, sink my hand into a light green bowl of cards, count to three and then pull one out. Last week I smiled when I pulled out the following card, for I understood:

Not only are the cherry blossoms getting ready to show their flowers in full force, but so am I.

Last winter when I took time off, I feel like I took time to ground myself and over the four months I took root. Now, I'm ready just as the card said - to bloom.

To do this, I've been studying - a lot. Reading anything and everything about business such as how to set one up, how to finance it and how to manage money. I've opened up a business account, entered in all my business transactions in Microsoft's Money, written contacts and receipts and budgeting what I need against what I make. Also, I've come to understand what I'm worth and how I will receive it.

I've expanded my business beyond writing and into art by creating a new and separate web site to showcase my myriad of projects. I've been approached by several companies to create cards based on my little stickmen - characters I was once terribly embarrassed about because it wasn't "real art" now have come to love because others do.

There's been a new book project that I recently started. I partnered with a friend who is also doing a book project and each week we check with each other go over what we have, make suggestions and cheer each other on. We also keep each other aware of our deadline of May 01 for having a complete proposal. This is helping me tremendously as I no longer feel like I'm working alone and have infinite time; deadlines have a way of getting me to work as does someone saying, "YES!" to something I've written.

I've also discovered the "ten minute miracle" as I call it; doing something for just ten minutes. If I feel I can't write because I'm blocked, I turn on the timer for ten minutes and write anything. Ten minutes doesn't overwhelm me or take away from my day. In fact, it enhances it as the aforementioned book proposal was discovered during this ten minute write.

There are travel articles to write, an essay for a book to finish up and another for a magazine. There are possibilities everywhere; it's Spring inside and out.

However, there are still moments when I'm unsure, when things overwhelm me and my direction scares me. At times, I want to turn the clock back so that it's winter and I'm curled up and waiting out the rough weather. Some days are a battle to open myself up. But that, I realise, is life and if I have roots, I might sway a bit during storms but I won't fall over. In fact, I'll just take deeper root.

It's so much work and at times I still say it would be easier to be a rocket scientist, but overall, I'm content. I remember a quote from Leonardo da Vinci's that said we receive everything we need at the price of an effort and I agree. For last year's bare branches have this years most amazing flowers.