This is Joy. I bought her at the Melbourne Markets. She may seem like an unusual purchase, but I love her. She is a permanent reminder for me that no matter how I am feeling, I can always make a positive impact on someone else.

The blog writing side of my photogrpah business is Essential Hope. If I am completely honest, I haven't been feeling it lately. It's hard to inspire hope when you are struggling.

This particular day we were wandering the Melbourne markets; I wasn't thinking about how I could make a difference in someone's day. I stopped at a stall that had some beautiful hand woven baskets, some handmade tulips, and one doll made out of socks. The stall holder was a young Vietnamese woman; she told me her parents make most of the baskets, and she makes the tulips. She was so excited that I was taking an interest in the things that they had made.

I picked up the doll with no intention of buying it, admired it, and as I was looking at it and telling the stallholder how much I loved the doll, her whole face lit up. She beamed as she shared about the doll and how she made it. She was so passionate and proud of her creation. I purchased the doll and told her again how much I loved it. and she said that it was the first doll she had ever made. She told me that when she finished it, she held it for a long time before she finally placed it on the stall.

Nikki came over and chatted to her as well, and she showed us the tulips, Nikki bought some of those and then showed us how she made the doll out of socks. She was so excited and proud of her work and genuinely loved what she had done.

I didn't need to buy a doll. I did need the reminder that just because I am going through a hard time, doesn't mean that I can't make a difference to someone else. I can still bring joy to another person's day. God can use the strangest things, even a sock doll.