Civility is comforting during difficult times.

April was a difficult month.  My husband’s dad The Honorable Jesse M. Patton, Sr., passed away on the 16th just 10 days before the 16th anniversary of his mom’s passing.  I didn’t notice these ironic details when the day arrived, but they encourage me hold my husband a little closer each day.condolence notesI appreciate this journey we will all take some day, but death is still a difficult discussion for most.  Maybe that’s why I am so humbled by the outpouring of cards and notes we’ve received as an expression of support for our sorrows.

So yes, we have lots of thank you notes to write for so many forms of condolences from friends, family and my wonderful clients.  But it’s so comforting to know that civility still reigns and people turn to old-fashioned hugs, flowers, food, notes, phone calls and now email and text messages to show they care during difficult times.  Thank You Note JpJesse and I will miss Senior, as I affectionately called him.  But we’re blessed to have you all here to help ease the pain.  Thank you for your kindness; civility is comforting, especially during difficult times.

A few words create thousands of pictures

Are you still wondering what’s on the other side of this big camera? They say a picture is worth a thousand words.  Well, I think a few words can create thousands of pictures.  I worked with a pretty cool film director Randy Young of TAP Productions to pull together this short segment for TT Patton.  He started with only a few words…

RandyFilming

Have you made a difference
Spread some joy
Had a thought
Been personal
Have you cared enough for someone to say
thank you
or
I love you
Have you written lately?

TT Patton, Barrington

…and created a pretty good summary of TT Patton.  Enjoy the clip….

Sotheby’s made my day!

The other day I was stopped by a real estate professional, Dragana Rajic.  No, she wasn’t stalking me to put my house on the market.  I see her pretty much everyday as she works from an office on the second floor above TT Patton.  She’s always smartly dressed, rushing to show luxury homes listed by Sotheby’s. But this particular day she stopped half way up the stairwell, very excited to show me something. She was literally balancing on the rail going through her briefcase to get to something she said I would definitely ‘just love’.  I couldn’t wait.  She handed me a handwritten note her college daughter sent to her last week.  It basically said “I love you mom…see you during spring break”, or something like that.  It really didn’t matter what it said.  It was handwritten on personal stationery she received as a graduation gift last summer, purchased from TT Patton.  The words were special.  But taking the time to write her mom, just warms my heart.  And the orange ink, well, that just made it cute and hip.

photo

A simple box of stationery turned into a love note to a mom.

When clients come to shop for graduates, the first gift I recommend is personal stationery.  They can use it to send thank you notes for graduations gifts, for recommendations and even to prospective bosses.  Throw in a sheet of forever stamps and you’re good to go.

So Dragana, thanks for sharing.  Isn’t this so much better than a text message?  You made my day!!