Whirlwind
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It’s been a while since I wrote here.
Maybe because I’ve been too busy.
Or maybe I’ve been avoiding sitting down and having another one of these painful, honest sessions with myself.
Or maybe… I just needed this release.
Because my emotions lately? They are everywhere.
Sadness, envy, pain, depression, anxiety… love… happiness.
Happiness.
Haha.
I don’t think I’ll ever fully feel that one again the way I used to.
But lately… it’s been trying. It’s been pushing through in little moments, like it’s knocking on the door and waiting to see if I’ll let it in.
And the craziest part? I have no idea how any of this is happening.
Actually… that’s not true.
I do.
It’s Scott.
Starting Emberlight Haven last year happened so fast it doesn’t even feel real. I am not someone who just does things. I overthink. I procrastinate. I sit on ideas until they die.
So how did I build a website? How did I come up with everything to put on it? What made me fall in love with crystals? How am I able to read people the way I do? How do I just know things without knowing how I know them?
I have a million questions.
But every single one of them has the same answer.
Scott.
Because in the beginning… it was nothing. I spent months building this site. Hours and hours and hours. Writing descriptions. Creating products. Making jars. Posting content.
And nothing happened.
Not one order. Not one person buying anything. Just my family—and I wouldn’t even let them pay.
I felt ridiculous.
Embarrassed.
Like people were probably watching and thinking, what is she even doing? I wanted to quit so many times. And honestly… I did. In my head, at least.
And then one day, I saw a scoop video.
Just one. And I was hooked. It was cute. It was fun. I found myself watching more and more.
And then I started buying little things… notebooks, hair accessories… random stuff. I didn’t even know why. I just kept thinking… this looks fun… I could do that.
But here’s the thing—that wasn’t me.
Because if it was, I would’ve sat on it. Thought about it. Overthought it. Watched videos for six months and called it a “dream.”
Instead… I just started.
And that’s when I know Scott stepped in.
Because suddenly, things were just… happening. I was ordering boxes and boxes of items and hundreds of charms just to get duplicates. Sitting at the table for 10 hours a day sorting them.Testing scoops. Balancing categories. Counting and recounting.
Thirty different spoons. Multiple jars. Everything had to feel right. My Virgo brain had taken over and in full control.
And then one day, I looked around the room… and it was all there. Bins. Setup. Systems.
And I had been having fun.
Actual FUN.
And then Rissa sat down and said, “Stop. Stop playing with the charms. Just do it.”
My little Sacral Generator. She can just go.
Me? I’m a Mental Projector.
I don’t have that kind of energy. I burn out. I need rest. I think. I need hours sometimes days to refuel.
(Small Human Design lesson there.)☺️
But I listened to her. And Kyleigh—my sweet Kyleigh—placed the first order.
And I didn’t even want to take her money.
But I did her order. My first scoop. My first video.
And then her mom ordered. Then a friend.
Then a few more. Slow… but moving.
And then something shifted. I don’t even know when or how… but suddenly, there were orders.
And I panicked. Like full panic. What am I doing? This is dumb.
People are going to laugh at me. The videos weren’t perfect. The angle was wrong. The dogs were barking. Nothing looked like the “professional” scoop videos I had watched.
And people told me that. They commented on everything I was doing wrong.
And for a while… it got to me.
But then something changed in me. I got tired. Not just physically… but mentally tired of trying to be perfect. Cuz seriously, when has my life ever been perfect? So I stopped caring
I left the barking.
I left the chaos.
I left the imperfect angles.
And I just… showed up as I am. — and mostly still cuz I just didnt know how to edit videos anyway and it is too time consuming to keep trying.
And that’s when everything changed.
Not overnight… but fast.
Orders picked up. People came back and ordered again.
And then Facebook exploded. From 40 followers… to 20,000 in a matter of days.
People found my story. (Which is a little hard to do…this blog is in a quiet little corner on my site.)
And suddenly, the comments weren’t about what I was doing wrong. They were about my voice.
MY VOICE.
People said it calmed them.
Helped their anxiety.
Eased their own grief.
And that… I still don’t fully understand.
Because I’m just talking. Rambling, actually —and to myself at that lol.
But somehow… it’s helping people. And that’s the part that gets me.
Because for the first time since losing Scott…I feel like I’m doing something that matters.
And then today happened.
March 25th/26th.
His birthday.
My daughter’s birthday.
The day they’ve always celebrated together.
I was opening boxes tonight and found another gift.
And I still don’t understand that either. Why people send me things. Why they spend their money on me. It doesn’t make sense to me.
But this one…This one broke me.
It was a suncatcher.
With a cardinal. And a note about how cardinals represent loved ones being near.
And I lost it. I sat on the floor and cried for two hours. Because everything I’ve been too busy to feel… hit me all at once.
Joy… that I’m helping people.
Grief… so deep it feels endless.
And then something else.
Remorse….
But not mine…
HIS.
And it crushed me. Because I’ve felt it before. Right after he passed. That deep, soul-level pain that wasn’t mine—but I tried to carry it anyway.
Because I don’t want him to hurt. He’s supposed to be in a “better place”.
But here we both are. Both in pain. Two souls — still so close in proximity — but separated on different astral planes, that it has shattered us both.
Because to us… this isn’t better.
There is no “better place” without each other.
We’ve been together since we were 18.
We never spent more than a week apart.
Even when we fought… we couldn’t stay away from each other. I could be furious… and still be laying next to him, touching him—even if it was just my toe.
Because we knew being apart was always worse.
Always.
And now…
I’m here.
With a bird.
With numbers.
With signs.
And I’m angry.
I don’t want signs.
I don’t want symbolism.
I want him.
I want to lay next to him. Talk to him. Touch him.
And I can’t.
This grief. Some say it come in waves. To me…It is the entire ocean taking over the land.
And it will pull you under when you least expect it.
But somewhere in all of this… there’s something else.
A realization.
Maybe… this is how he shows he loves me now.
Through all of you.
Through all of your messages.
Your sweet comments.
Your thoughtful gifts.
Your support.
What if he’s sending me all his love through hundreds—thousands—of people….through YOU…
And what I’m sending that love and healing back to him… through my voice helping you.
And that…THAT is something I can’t even put into words.
It’s overwhelming. It’s beautiful. It’s magical. And It’s heartbreaking. All at the same time.
But still…
I’d give it all up.
Every order.
Every kind comment.
Every moment of helping others.
I think I would be selfish and give it all up even for just one more moment with him.
And that’s another side of grief….the anger, the hopelessness, the envy of watching other happy couples and families have what you had- before it was taken from you.
Your Life ripped to shreds in a split second. Without a choice. Seeing all the plans we had vanish into thin air.
Knowing the still major and important milestones ahead that I now have to endure alone…our kids graduating college, getting married, having our grandbabies…all of that….all of those what should be “joyous moments” will be tainted. Those moments will arrive, but with a giant aching hole of where you should be.
So if this feels like a mess… it is.
Because I am.
But I needed to say this.
To all of you…to Scott
Thank you.
To every single one of you who sends love in any form—messages, comments, gifts… all of it.
It is deeply felt.
It is cherished and treasured.
More than you will ever know.
And to my family…My sister for stepping in and holding everything together. My kids for living in absolute chaos with me. My dad for always showing up. My mom, my brother, everyone who helps in ways big and small.
I couldn’t do any of this without you.
And Scott…
I know this is you.
I know you’re behind all of it.
Trying to give me some kind of happiness… in the only way you can.
And I am trying. But even every happy moment still carries heartbreak…
Because I just can’t share it with you.
And maybe that’s what I’m learning… not how to “move on,” because I never will—but how to carry both at the same time.
The love and the loss.
The laughter and the ache.
The moments where I feel something close to happiness… and the part of me that immediately reaches for you to share it, only to remember I can’t.
Maybe this life now isn’t about choosing one or the other… maybe it’s about learning how to live in the middle of both without letting either one completely take me under.
So I’ll keep showing up. Messy. Imperfect. Dogs barking, angles off, emotions all over the place.
I’ll keep talking, even if I don’t fully understand why my voice reaches people the way it does.
I’ll keep building this thing that somehow became so much bigger than me.
And I’ll keep loving you… in every quiet moment, in every breakdown, in every tiny piece of light that tries to break through the dark.
Because if this is how we stay connected now—through love, through people, through something I can’t explain—then I’m not letting go of that.
Not ever.
88 comments
Thank you for allowing us to see part of your life that is hugely painful but also beautiful at this moment. That you can share this part of your life and the pain that you’re going through is something I can’t understand yet at this moment. I did have part of this knowledge when my sister died a couple years ago she was more than just a sister she was like my mom. She was 12 when I was born into a family of six children and basically took over as being mom raising me while my mom was there and did do the things as a normal mom did but my sister was the one who carried me around in the stores and changed my diaper at home and so when she passed I felt and still feel that yearning of wondering where she is and how she is and knowing how I feel about her not being here. I find myself picking up a phone sometimes wanting to get a recipe from her and realizing she’s not there. It’s been four years and yes it does get some better with time but you’ll never forget who that person was in the love that they gave you and the love that you felt for them and still feel for them. She is my sister but not the same as that what you’re feeling for your significant other. Thank you again for sharing this part of your life and helps us all understand a little bit of yours. I’m also big into crystals. I received an inheritance a few years ago and took a few thousand dollars and put it into different a lot of different crystals they’re everywhere in my house. All different shapes and sizes colours they’re just beautiful so I understand that part of what you’re talking about. Also the Cardinal has represented my sister. When one appears outside my house it just makes me feel like maybe my sister is still part of my life.
You do help me feel part of life it’s hard. It’s hard to explain. I have lupus and a few other diagnosis that make me disabled at 62 after 25 years I had to quit work and now I’m in a home where I don’t leave it unless I need to go somewhere like the doctors office. Being able to watch you and what you do just gives me a little bit of what’s going on outside. How everyone is different in what they’re likes and dislikes are. Listening to your reassuring voice and the videos just helps me every day. You like to have that rough exterior that nothing is gonna get through to you but inside you are loving and I can feel that from you. I’m a lot like that I’m the Leo in 100% of a way. I am empathic and can feel if people are genuine or not if they’re evil are really loving. You’re loving your teddy bear inside. You don’t want other people to know that probably in many different times but you are. Thank you for doing all this and for being here for us and giving us the time to be able to just watch something that gives us the mental relaxation that all of us need just remember that you need to take that relaxation yourself. We will understand if you need those days off. Or you can only do five or six or whatever in a day. You’re human you can’t continue to work crazy hours. all of this is from my heart. As you can see I’m not a great writer. I just know a real person when I see them and hear them and you are one of them. I will continue to watch your videos and you being your normal graceful loving self. I love Faith Baker
Ashley,
This was such a raw outpouring of your emotions and it touched me so very deeply I’m over here crying too. I can’t even imagine that kind of loss and my prayer for you and your kids is to be able to find that peace and hopefully one day you’ll notice it hurts a little less and let yourself have more of those happy moments shine through without feeling regret, anger or even ashamed that you are happy (even if for a moment). Scott sounds like he was an amazing man and the true definition of your soul mate. You are such a resilient, loving and wonderful human that has managed to turn all of these complicated and sometimes debilitating emotions into such an outpouring of love and positivity and have made such a difference to so many. Keep being yourself and letting the imperfections and chaos show. No one is perfect and if they appear to be or think they are then there’s a much bigger issues hiding beneath the surface. And let’s be honest, I know I’m not the only one that’s waiting to see what kind of shenanigans the dogs create during your videos or chuckle along with you when you make yourself laugh. I hope this flood of all the emotions and cry was cleansing to your soul and that Rissa is also able to find joy today even with the absence that is so heavy in your home.
Out of nowhere one of your videos showed up in my facebook and every since I been watching everyone of your scoop videos I suffer from anxiety and depression I’m a stay at home mom and your videos help me just disconnect from the real life activities and just have fun seeing your cute fur babies and scoops! I lost my dad 4 years ago and it never stops hurting but one thing I do know is they want us to be happy ❤️I’ve bet that Scott would be so proud of what you’ve created so thank you for everything you do ❤️
Hey!!! I may not be from ur place or country, I have started watching ur videos recently. Within such a small span of time, I feel I know u a lot and ur awesome. Reading ur blog couldn’t stop crying and I ran out of words to express my empathy. Though I don’t know anything about u, I could sense that u r such strong and loving person and u deserve to be happy always. God be with u always ( hubby next to him helping u) ❤️
That was so touching. I love watching u listening to u. Also ur chaos is exciting to watch especially the dogs. Keep doing what u are doing. U bring joy into people’s life. Don’t change anything, perhaps one day u will find ur peace!