When globalization brings friendship ...

Wonderland

This is what "globalization" is really all about - the lovely friends we meet all over the world through our online connections.

When I woke up this morning, I found a message from my friend - but wait! Let's turn the calendar back a day ...

When I woke up yesterday morning, it was to the heartbreaking news that Christchurch had been hit by yet another devastating earthquake. Because of friendships through Etsy and elsewhere, I wanted to send a message of love and concern to New Zealanders. Searching Etsy, I chose items from 16 of the many lovely sellers in that nation, and arranged them in a treasury "For New Zealand."

Fast forward to this morning, when I found a message from my friend Gwen of Dancing in the Rains, whom I met when we joined the same team, Etsy Project Embrace.

Gwen lives in HoChiMinhCity, which means that at 2:00 o'clock this morning, while I was soundly asnooze in Maine, she was wide awake in Vietnam and, being a good Etsy seller, online. And when she visited CraftCult, she spied "For New Zealand" on the front page of that site.

Wonderful friend that she is, Gwen immediately captured a photo (screen shot) of that front page and sent it to me via Etsy convo. And that is the message I woke up to this morning - a message filled with love and concern and the true meaning of friendship.

It probably goes without saying that Gwen and I have never met in person and probably never will. But she has touched my heart in many, many ways. Thank you, my friend!

Here are a just a few of Gwen's lovely handmade items ~

Kitty Ocean

Turtle Coasters

Doggy Purse

Look for these beauties and many more in Gwen's Etsy shop ~ dancingintherains.etsy.com.

Oh! And this is the screen shot that Gwen sent me this morning ~

For New Zealand

Let's all keep New Zealand in our thoughts and prayers!