Christmas Story: when the home-made gingerbread house becomes your new path in life

Life is all about experiments. You never know where you will end before you try it. I have always been a kind of girl who loves challenging myself. I am constantly interested in experiencing the limits of my own abilities in different areas. It is if somewhere within me lives a passionate explorer who never stops wondering in search of new achievements. Sometimes I would let this part of me go free and set myself to a new challenge what would be something I have never done before but wanted badly. Never stop if you think it will be hard, just make one step at a time and see where you will end. For the step I was about to take that winter there will be a huge road open for me but of course, I did not know it before I started it all. The gingerbread house you see in the picture below was my challenge for that time. All I wanted was to make it well without any prior experience. The story where it would lead me you are about to read.

There is one fact about me you should know - I love making presents and I absolutely love to do them with my own hands wherever possible. For me, when you spent time doing it, it is like putting a part of yourself in your creation what is much more interesting (although sometimes more difficult) than just go to the store and buy a thing you liked. Therefore, I always plan what I will give as presents long before the actual celebration date. So it was around August few years ago I came up with the idea that I want to build a gingerbread house for my husbands little sister.

To make it clear, that time I would bake some cookies but for sure not something even close to what I was about to start. So my first stop was a proper research - I guess that what you do when you do not know where to start, right? So I found a really nice recipe for a cookies that in very popular in Russia called “kozuli”. The beauty of this kind of a dought is that it can be stored for a long time up to several month and it even get better. I also researched how to do a proper construction - I was not an expert so I learned pretty much just through various web-portals I could find.

Armed with all this knowledge, the question was only in execution. I drew my first drawing for a gingerbread house, made a dough and even baked a sample to understand how it will come up when it is ready. It came good that inspired me to continue. “If I managed this far, I sure can go further” - I though and moved on with it.

Next 2 days I just fully emerged with a painting of cookies - the process that became my meditation. I could barely notice the time I spent on it and I was so happy the way it came. Since at that time I had not yet learned how to make dyes from natural ingredients (which I mastered much later), the house's decoration was made using organic dark chocolate and white icing.

Looking back, I would not say that was the best creation I have ever done, yet for me, it was a masterpiece. It had its "slips"- the roof and the walls would not fit fully the way they were supposed to, the so-called “windows” made of sugar syrup crystallized and was not transparent.At the same time for me, the most important thing was that I made it, that I went down this road and achieved something I wanted without delaying, without promising myself that I would do it when I have time. I just did it and that was my new frontier. The explorer inside me jumped with joy if as I concurred a mountain.

Although this house has become a personal challenge for me, at the same time it became my teacher. I used to learn from anything I do in life but this little house perhaps become a little gem for my self-discovery practices.

First, it taught me not be afraid to do what I have never done before. Given some time you can learn whatever you want whether it is a new process in the business, a new language or the other thing you might consider as difficult in the beginning. All it takes is time and your efforts. So now if I face any difficulties in life I always remember the lesson my first gingerbread house creation taught me - if you put enough time and efforts you’ll make it.

The second lesson learned that I do not know much about life at all. I would never think that my creation would open new life path for me but it did. The gingerbread house was a hit and shortly after I made it I start getting orders from people and it turned out to be a small business venture I have never thought it would ever be. With time I mastered the craft very well and was able to do much bigger and interesting constructions. Yet most important for me was the fact that I could use my creativity to turn a gingerbread dough into colorful boxes, pine trees, decorations and castles of my choice. A nice bonus from the Universe, which sometimes makes surprises where you do not expect them at all.

Wishing you the very best for upcoming Christmas.

With love,
Sasha Genji

@ecotrain #ecotrain

I support @ecotrain project, which also use #ecotrain. I want to believe that more and more people will start to think about things that help to make the world a better place. (с)@ecotrain. I also hope that more and more writers on Steemit will support the movement started by @eco-alexand @icmultitudes . As I truly believe that we are one and helping others means you are helping yourself.

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