What is Door Left Open?

Sometimes things just come together, when you aren’t expecting it.   

Years ago, my eldest son found a love for sewing after being exposed to it in middle school. The flames of creativity were then sparked when our family's wonderful Aunt Maryann moved into town.  She's been a quilter for years and jumped at the chance to spread some imaginative joy.  So, when this math-minded child learned that he could make amazingly colorful patterns using various geometric shapes, he was hooked!

Fast forward to 2023, and turbulence struck the tech industry, of which I have been part for the last 20 years.  Stress was higher than usual due to the threat of layoffs, and everyone I knew was trying to find balance.  Just before Christmas, I was told I would be in limbo for a bit, as the company's direction was evolving.  I was still valuable, but it wasn’t clear what role I would take next.

On top of this, I lost a close colleague to cancer.  Jeannine was such a light in the best way.  She was a career coach for many - a dear friend to me - and was somehow dealt a horrible hand that left her with a Stage 4 lung cancer diagnosis after a routine eye appointment three years prior.  This was a woman who was in prime health, who traveled with her own granola, and swam regularly for exercise.  Then came this shock, and subsequent multi-year fight.

For Christmas that year, my son got his very own sewing machine to hone his craft.  During the holiday break, he and I had some deep conversations (and lots of chocolate) and we agreed that we would start to fill our lives with more of the fun things we love to do in order to balance the work/school chaos.  We wanted to start an Instagram page to share our happiness and hold us accountable to our craft, but we needed a name.

Happiness, I thought, was the key. But I also couldn’t get these phrases that Jeannine used to say, out of my head.  When I would switch roles within in my company, she would say things like “keep all the doors open” or “maybe that isn’t your door” or “bolt that door shut"!  Always a reference to a door.  I loved that visual and knew “door” would be in the name.  After searching the inter-webs, I found a quote:

“Happiness often sneaks in through a door you didn’t know you left open.” - John Barrymore.  

That was it!  Door Left Open was born.