Feeling the energy after sipping an iced coffee with a new friend, we decided to walk down University Avenue in Palo Alto. I was new to the area, and felt the buzz of excitement exploring a part of town I’d never seen. We stopped by upscale boutique shops and laughed while trying on overpriced dresses and outlandish scarves and hats. There was a quaint stationery store we stepped into, and an overwhelming feeling washed over me. Out of nowhere a deep desire within me surfaced.

I want my cards to be sold here.

Two years later on August 9, 2021, I re-entered this adorable store. My smile was covered with a mask, and inside my handbag were a variety of my card designs. A makeshift ‘portfolio’ with a compilation of different styles, quotes, aesthetics, both snarky and encouraging, and all hand-painted and hand-lettered. To my delight, the owner Gwen said YES. I left the store and immediately broke down in the street because making art for me has been my way of “following my bliss” and now doors are opening.

As a wellness coach, I derive deep joy from empowering my clients to see their own talents and light- to free them from habits that block or obscure their true nature. All of these hand-painted and hand-lettered cards capture the essence of the same messages I teach, through the medium of cards.

Today I dropped them off and couldn’t stop thinking about that summer day in 2019. That seed of a dream stayed with me, and today was proof that what we imagine and dream for ourselves can, in fact, come true.

If you’re in the area, please stop by. Letter Perfect won the 2021 “Best Of” award for Best Stationery Store in Palo Alto, and now is home to my Kanzaki Cards.

And whatever you do, keep dreaming and making. May this be evidence that dreams can come true.