"Live life with full lungs."
Those four words have stayed with me since Croatia.
My husband and I just returned from a two-week trip to Croatia and Italy. We were driving north along Croatia's breathtaking coastline when our driver, Milo, shared a Croatian phrase with us - "Živjeti punim plućima" which means "Live life with full lungs."
I thought I was going to Europe to...
See cathedrals.
Taste unforgettable wine.
Eat unforgettable meals.
Wander ancient streets.
I did all of those things.
But I wasn't expecting to be reminded how to live.
Beauty changes you if you let it...
The limestone walls of Dubrovnik glowing against impossibly blue water.
The shimmering gold ceilings of St. Mark's Basilica.
The faded green doors in Venice that somehow looked even more beautiful because time had seasoned them.
The Tuscan countryside that didn't demand my attention. It quietly invited it.
Tuscany changed me...
Somewhere between the vineyard dinners, the quiet mornings, the sunsets that changed by the moment,
I realized how long it had been since I'd given myself permission to simply be.
As I reflect on the trip, I realize something. The reason I love handcrafted jewelry is the same reason I fell in love with these places.
Someone cared enough to slow down.
Someone shaped stone by hand.
Someone carved marble.
Someone laid mosaics one tiny piece at a time.
Someone planted vineyards knowing they might never see their fullest harvest.
Beauty has always required patience.
Maybe that's why handcrafted things still speak to us.
Maybe that's one of the reasons I make jewelry the way I do. Not simply to create something beautiful, but to craft pieces that remind us to slow down, notice, celebrate, and carry beauty into our ordinary days.
I hope you'll find more moments that take your breath away - and even more moments when you remember to breathe them in.
Živjeti punim plućima. Live life with full lungs.
