Why I love Martha Stewart and how she broke my toe.

If you know me you know that I LOVE Martha. And I have found that people either really, really love her or really, really hate her. My love for her started many years ago; literally the first year that she published her magazine. I own every issue of Martha Stewart Living (with the exception of about 3 issues that were not returned to me) and have moved my collection to every home in Toronto and Vancouver over and over again. I have been a subscriber to 3 Martha magazines, watched her shows, visited her website about 12 times a day, and purchased her products at Macy's, Michaels, Home Depot, Kmart- you name it.

So, why do I LOVE her? She works very hard. Every day. I admire that she started her catering business when she was 40 and that blossomed into publishing and then creating a brand and media corporation that shapes our culture. She made home-making cool again. She took her passion and turned it into her life's work.

A few weeks ago, while baking, I reached for one of my cookbooks on a high shelf, and dropped it on my foot. I fell to the ground in pain and discovered that I had, indeed, fractured my toe. It was my favorite Martha Stewart cookbook. I can't be angry with her. After all, I have learned so much from her. But most of all, I have learned that work is about life.

I used to make a list of "career goals" and "life goals". One day I realized that the list should all be one and that my goals in both work and personal life are the same. And if they are not, then something will suffer. This is the secret to work-life balance. A phrase we all know and perhaps try to achieve. But I think it is misleeding. The "balance" isn't so much equal time/effort to two parts of our life but rather all aspects of our life being forgiving and accomodating. This realization helped me to respect my time more (because if I don't respect it, who else will?) and discover how I can create work out of my passion. Food.

My toe is starting to feel better. Which is good because I have a lot of orders to do in the coming weeks. And if I am going to have a workplace injury, at least it was in my kitchen, with Martha Stewart.

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