Danielle Rosellison
Co-owner
Trail Blazin’ Productions
Bellingham, WA
I’ve never thought about quitting as much as I have since Feb. 1.
And I don’t quit. Anything. It’s not in my DNA. I’m an “A” student. I work until I get what I want. When I set my sights on something, I will face any hurdle that gets in my way. In my world, every situation has a solution with a positive outcome … you just have to find it.
I tried out for The Wizard of Oz when I was 13. They picked the play so a local senior could be Dorothy. We battled it out for four hours and I was ultimately proclaimed the lead. I early-decisioned for the engineering program at Northwestern University when I was 17. I gave up a lot of “fun” throughout my four years of high school so that my application would stand out among thousands of other applicants. I’ll never forget the feeling when the “big envelope” came. At 24, I went to bat for a position in Seattle against 500 other eager applicants. They brought it down to 88 of us the first day and then told us to “clear our schedules. You’re going to work 10 hours a day for the next three weeks and we’re going to call three of you every morning and tell you not to come in until we have our team.” And when I didn’t get the best shifts, I showed up anyway, proved my worth and ended up with “the” premier schedule within 24 hours.
I always get what I want.
And yet, for the first time in my life, I have seriously considered walking away from something that I have given my best effort. It’s not that I’ve failed. We’re making it: bills are paid; the team is stoked; our growth is on a good trajectory. Heck, by this time last year, the power company had shown up at our doorstep to turn the power off twice! We’ve come leaps and bounds since then.
Trail Blazin’ Productions produces multiple strains of cannabis flower and extracts, including Cinex, a Washington state favorite.
Our progress is undeniable and yet I keep asking myself, “Is this the kind of life that I want?” Do I want to give my all, work my rear off and continue to be pummeled by outside forces? I’ve cried uncontrollably more times than I can count since Feb. 1. I keep trying to get myself to breathe and I end up hyperventilating. My eternal optimism, an attribute I have regularly considered my superpower, is a distant memory. My body hurts. This is not the way I live my life.
And yet it is.
So, what am I going to do about it? Well, I’ll tell you what I’m NOT going to do. I am NOT going to give up. I will dig deep. Again. I will create structure and systems in my life so that I can better deal with hurdles as they are placed in my path. Again. I will strategize with our team about all the possible paths and avenues to get there. Again. I will think out of the box. I will reignite the fire that I had when we started this adventure.
And I will take care of myself. I will work out. I will play with my kids. I will make their extracurricular events. I will eat right. I will drink water — and not just coffee-flavored water! I will get enough sleep. I will read. I will find time with my best friend, business partner and husband.
If I remember what’s truly important, that this crazy cannabis adventure is just a small piece of the greater adventure called life, there is no way that we cannot be successful.