It was a boiling summer evening down South and I had the twenty four hours of a lifetime. I went from no one knowing who I was to being offered a potential editorial position from a company in NYC. I was on cloud nine. I giggled and squealed on the phone to my friends like I was in middle school.

The next morning, I woke up in a cold sweat, “Am I even able to do this?”

Every single movie that is a comfort film for me involves fashion and/or design. One of my earliest memories is sauntering over to the quilt shop that sat next to my Mimi’s doll shop. When Ms. Joy asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I stood up straight and announced, “I’m going to be a designer.”

Twenty years later, and that statement still rings true. I received my degree in interior design -with honors- during one of my worst bouts with my health. I was in and out of the hospital, I was pulling all nighters 11-14 nights out of the month, and I was fighting with everything I had. I graduated on time, in a degree I absolutely loved. Then I crashed and burned for awhile. Just kidding! I pushed my body even further by working in a furniture/design during a pandemic.

My body crashed and burned for me in July of last year. I just couldn’t do it anymore. I would have to figure out that my path would be different from the typical straight shot that others have. Because of my physical limitations, I would need to be more creative with how I approach my future career.

Thus, Manor on Main was born. I gave myself a year. In the last year, I have curated edits, created reels, and done all of the things I could to grow my account. September 14, 2023, I hit 900 followers on Instagram. That may not seem like a lot, but picture an auditorium of 900 people, and that perspective will change.

My heath is taking a turn, with the exception of today’s kidney infection, but I am still scared that my health will rip this opportunity away. It is just part of working through life with medical trauma. I had 12 days of great health. That is more than I’ve had in three years. It has felt absolutely magical. It’s like what I said at the beginning of the year, “I don’t know how to explain it, but I just know something great is coming.”

Which begs the question, “Am I ready for what’s coming?”

Tune in next week to find out.

Xoxo,

Lady Samantha