14/01/2024
What an amazing chapter in my life this has been.
It started with the need to have healthy food choices for my "heart" dog Maya. She was a Cane Corso and although I have loved and still love all the dogs in my life, Maya was the most special of them all. I lost her to cancer in 2016 and that started me on the journey of learning about the importance of pet nutrition.
Maya is the reason Muttigans came into existence. If you ever visited the store in Emerald Isle you may have noticed her picture behind the counter. It was one of the first things that went up on the walls of the store and the last thing I have taken down.
The second picture is the motto I adopted very early on - Paws and Enjoy Life. I even had the phrase trademarked.
If I have had the privilege of talking with you for any length of time then you might know that I am truly a Carpe Diem kind of gal.
But just as the saying goes - the shoemaker's children has no shoes and the carpenter's house is never finished, I didn't always follow my own advice.
I am sitting here in a now empty store and as I look around I can 'see' and 'hear' what I call all the happy ghosts.
They are the memories of all the friends I made. All the captivating conversations, all the dog slobber I washed off my hands after feeding someone's fur baby a pup cup, all the smiles I saw when visitors realized they had found a place where they were truly welcome whether they had two legs or four ( and we can't forget the special tripods!)
All the FUNdraisers we hosted - the adoptathons, the photo shoots, the Christmas parades. All the things that brought me uncontainable joy.
It wasn't all fun times though.
Sitting 200 miles away and feeling helpless while a major hurricane devastated the area, not knowing if I'd have a business when I came back home.
Dealing with ongoing bridge closings was like a mosquito that was constantly buzzing your ear and you just couldn't swat it dead.
Having employees I considered friends betray me.
Navigating a worldwide pandemic and still trying to sanely conduct business when there were no clear answers.
But today, what I remember most is that when opened Muttigans I was a recent transplant here and didn't know very many people. ( Would you be surprised to learn I'm an introvert)
Now, there are so many of you I call my friends.
I have grown personally and as a business owner
But most of all, my heart has expanded as I learned to allow myself to love even as I served
Thank you so very much for being a part of the Muttigans legacy.
I love you.
🐾☕💕
