The
other night, H says, “Dad, I like your attitude.” You see, my four
year old is no stranger to sarcasm so I looked at her suspiciously and
asked what made her say that. She says, “Well, I thought it was really
nice how you took that [extra] lollipop from K and said ‘and, that’s for
tomorrow lil’ buddy.’” Wow... thanks! What a pleasant and thoughtful
compliment. And, it made me think, “They see and hear EVERYTHING.” The
good and all the bad. Mind you, I’m notorious for yelling, “Stop
YELLING!” or “CALM DOWN!” Stupid, right? Model parenting at it’s
worst.
I
have had my share of Bad Parenting of the Year moments but I try not to
beat myself over it too much. Sometimes I forget they are just kids.
If it’s way out of line, I apologize swiftly and with all my heart. As
my kids are getting older and constantly testing the boundaries
(“habitual line steppers” as Charlie Murphy coined beautifully), I must
remind myself constantly, you are not a shepherd, prodding and
corralling. You are a model and they are looking to you to learn how to
behave. So I tell myself, stop yelling if you want them to stop
yelling. Be calm if you want them to chill out. But honestly, our
family might be a bunch of yellers. Oh well.
Hello
friends and fiends, this is my first blog entry... ever. I’m not sure
if I have anything interesting to share but I’m jumping in. I want to
say thanks to everyone that’s checked out my new site since it’s
official launch yesterday. I’m overwhelmed by the warm reception. I also want to give a
special thanks to all the folks who have gone out of their way to extend
a kind word of support and encouragement, and the multitude of people
who have shared their own stories and insights about running a small
business. And, last but not least, a big family hug to my wife and two
kids who have been my support system, research assistants, and
inspiration.
Why children's furniture?
Over
the years, I’ve puttered around with various creative
outlets, from graphic design to aerosol stenciling, but nothing really
came together for me. But it was when I was motivated to create for
someone else, specifically for my kids, that my self-sabotaging artistic
impulse was set aside where I could run with an idea and not look back.
My rapidly growing kids and their limitless imagination inspired me.
They brought me to a place where I felt like a kid again.
When
I was three years old, back when my parents and I lived in a small
apartment in Flushing, NY, I was always cobbling things together with
tape and paste, cutting paper and toilet paper rolls. My dad
who was an interior designer, kept a drafting table at home because he
was building up his own clientele while he worked for a firm. His
drafting table was awesome... monstrous (from my wee perspective) and it
had an arsenal of drafting tools and gadgets, and I coveted it.
Anyway, out of the blue my dad made me my own desk. It was a piece of
plywood wrapped in contact paper, sitting on two milk crates, and he
gave me a little spot lamp. I was so stoked; I had my own place to make
things, made for my size... my very own desk. I will never forget that
feeling. My parents, being the stoic Japanese parents, were very
matter of fact and didn’t make a big deal out of it. But the gesture
said to me, “Hey, what you’re doing is great. Here’s a space so that
you can do more of it.”
And,
that in a nutshell is why I make children’s furniture: I want to give
that feeling to my kids and other kids. I want to let them know that what
they do is just so wonderful. They deserve a space for their imagination
to flow. Find your flow, kids.
Do you have a childhood memory that's molded what you do today? Please leave a comment if you'd like to share.
