Hi friends,

As many of you know, our family has been moving through a creative renaissance. Years ago, I stepped into a 9–5 job that promised the steady income we needed after our seasons of homesteading and running a mushroom farm. What I thought would be a temporary shift stretched longer and longer, taking up more of my life than I ever imagined. Over time, I fell farther out of alignment with my soul’s purpose and the vision I held for our family. I felt stuck, unhappily staring at a screen all day, still barely covering our bills. My dreams of what our life could be like in West Virginia felt unreachable, while my body and spirit grew heavier with the weight of compromise. I longed to make a change but feared losing the fragile security we had. Eventually, the truth became impossible to ignore: straying so far from the path I was meant for was making me and those I love sick.

Six months ago, I left my day job and stepped back into the wild and wonderful world of freelancing. I’d love to say it’s been all ease and abundance, and in some ways, it has. I spend meaningful time with my family, honor a dedicated movement practice, write daily, take an active role in my daughter’s homeschool journey, and embrace my experience of the net of Being that had felt so lost to me. I’m sniffing the air, feeling the breeze in my fur, and seeing with clear eyes for the first time in years.

Where I still struggle, as I knew I would, is breaking free from survival mode financially. A return to tattooing has always been my deepest calling, but it requires a legal space and supplies I cannot yet afford. For now, I lean on my photography business, which provides steadier income. But as I’ve grown that work, I’ve run into a similar barrier. I’m limited by the gear I don’t own. I spend hundreds of dollars each month renting equipment - roughly 30% of each session’s income goes right back out the door.

To keep going, I need help now. After countless hours of mulling over options, weighing loans and financing, researching grants, and wishing on a star for a generous patron of the arts, I’ve made a shortlist of what I absolutely need to get right away to make a more sustainable income. It's not a silver bullet, but it helps me a great deal right now, as I'm not yet eligible for other options or can't afford to wait. The amount I'm trying to raise will help me:

I’ve been selling what I can online, vending the art I create, and taking on marketing side gigs. I’ve done everything possible to make this happen on my own, and I hesitated to ask for help, knowing how many friends are also struggling. I don’t believe my needs are more important than anyone else’s or more urgent than the larger humanitarian and ecological crises in the world, but I do believe in what I can offer when I’m not drowning. I dream of the day when I can finally offer community-focused art classes and creative meetups, but I'm not yet financially stable enough to make time and space for it.

If you’ve read this far, thank you. Your support, in any form, means more than I can put into words. Thank you for seeing me and helping me walk this path.

Love,

Anne

Through the darkness of future past, the magician longs to see, one chants out between two worlds, fire walk with me.