Re-Opening & Summertime

After being closed for months, re-entering has felt so natural. We closed because of an oversight by me. Now, having all paperwork in good standing, we can welcome everyone back in. It was a range of thoughts and worries getting the news from the city. Worrying that I would lose the trust and affection of all of my clients that I had worked for years, to build. Worried the shop wouldn't open back up, worried that if it did it wouldn't feel the same as before, worried that all of mine and Gabby's hard work and money would have been for nothing. Worrying that my ex-boss' final words to me would be true.

Now that the re-opening days have come and passed, I can reflect properly. The shop, piercing, the clients; it all feels fresh and familiar. Piercing has carved out this massive chunk in my heart and soul, that I have realized truly, nothing else will ever fill in this lifetime for me. I go into each day of work, with a mind full of anxiety and pressure to succeed, and come out feeling like I have been welcomed into the hearts of every person who let me pierce them. (Consider the anxiety a pre-existing condition and piercing is my permanent exposure conditioning.) I know that over the years I have taken moments and time to pour parts of myself into all of you, sharing when I can or am able. In doing so, I feel that being surrounded by you all is when I feel most like myself. I can meagerly hope, that I continue to do so until my hands or my eyes give up on me. I hope to leave this industry, not by choice, but because my physical body has withered away and begs me not to continue. In all of these reflections I know I have so much more to give; I have so many skills to improve upon, I want to grow and learn and never be bored by doing a single piercing. If I believed in a god, I pray that boredom never finds me in this life. And that my work will create a million gateways to self-expression and self-discovery for as many people as possible while I am alive.

I know that I am surely, not the best in the field at what I do. There are masters and experts all around, and should be respected accordingly. I hope to make Sacred Needle a place where education, resources, and discovery can be made outside of the constructs of APP or non-APP. I fucking believe in a world of piercing where we don't have to have a pissing match about who is better or more well read; but we can gather our knowledge and support one another. Not some smoke and mirrors, social media pandering bullshit, but just real people wanting to be better in the community they can reach. When I figure out how to achieve that, I will be sure to fill you all in. For now, I am focusing on making a stable shop, a reliable shop, and taking care of everyone who depends on me. I am truly privileged and grateful to be a piercer for all of you. Thank you.

More blog posts coming in the future; I cannot promise they will be any less or more structured than this. Thank you for reading.

J.R.