A Meandering, Jagged, Beautiful Path
Welcome! My name is Nicole - I am the co-owner of Firefly Earth & Sky. With love and
imagination, I create unique bug earrings to add a bit of whimsy to your day. My designs are
interpretive rather than exact representations. I embrace the freedom to exaggerate shape and play with color in my fabrications. I hope to inspire curiosity and wonder in the wearer.
While I feel fortunate to run my own micro business – as they say – necessity is the mother of invention
. . . here is a bit of my story – you may want to grab a tea or coffee . . .
Dictated by Fear
I always longed for purpose. However, social anxiety paralyzed me from engaging in a full life. While at
a soul deadening office job in my late twenties, I spotted an ad for The Baltimore City Teaching
Residency, an incredible program designed to recruit career changers interested in teaching in
underserved classrooms, I felt compelled to apply and was encouraged by friends. Although terrified of
public speaking, my drive for change prevailed over debilitating doubts. Once I landed in
a classroom, the children kept me there. They and their education were precious.
Breaking Free
The following years teaching Elementary Language Arts and English to Speakers of Other Languages
changed me in myriad ways. My goal was to share an innate fondness for reading and writing and help
students foster their own. I strove to
create a loving learning culture so that my students felt safe to have their voices heard. I will not
sugarcoat. There were days I fell into despair, found myself unrecognizable and questioned my abilities –
particularly as I struggled to keep up due to poor physical health. But there were times I was having an
impact on the students I held so dearly. They have had an indelible impression upon me.
Understanding
When I was a child, a young student myself, I had pain and severe fatigue. Doctors could
not identify the cause. I was a great challenge to the specialists my mother took me to see. After spine surgery in my early thirties, a neurosurgeon suspected I had an inherited connective tissue
disorder, Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. The lifelong mystery quickly began to unravel. A geneticist then
officially diagnosed me. It’s funny – all those years spent seeking help to figure out what was wrong
with me answered in a moment.
Connection
Eventually, I had to resign from teaching. In a way, just as all our life experiences change our paths, EDS opened the door to
exploring bead design and creating this shop. I've found a different sense of purpose and
peace. My obsession with bead collecting and design experimentation began when my
sister gifted her collection to me after our mother died of a sudden illness. The ground had fallen
beneath me. But I have found connection to my mom through the creative process. She always
encouraged and embraced imagination. She was quirky like me and a bit of a quiet free spirit herself.
Gratitude
Thank you for taking the time to learn some of my story. I hope you enjoy browsing my funny, little,
creations. They are meant to add cheer and a bit of playfulness in what I find to be an otherwise
serious, complex, and often daunting world. I hope you find your own solitude through creative
pursuits. xoxo ~ nicole
