Polly Simpkins’ mother (that's Polly in the photo above) was forever telling her daughter, “Someday I’ll. . . ." But then her life was cut short by emphysema.
Lying on her deathbed, she confessed to Polly another lifelong dream: to travel to India and visit the Taj Mahal. Polly promised her mother that someday she’d fulfill her wish.
A few years later, Polly was putting on make-up one morning when she found herself thinking, “Someday I’ll. . . ." Recognizing her mother's mantra, she stopped mid-sentence, grabbed an eyeliner pencil, and wrote on the mirror: “Someday is now.”
Not long after, this suburban wife and mother of two journeyed to India to work with the dying at a hospice in Calcutta and spread her mother’s ashes at the Taj Mahal. When she returned to Connecticut, she opened Soul of the World, a tiny teahouse in the Black Rock Section of Bridgeport, Connecticut.
The store has become a refuge for locals—an inviting place to have chats with good friends or quiet time with oneself. Last year it was named “Best Tea Room” by Fairfield Weekly Magazine.
As an outgrowth of the teahouse, Polly founded the Passion Project, a grassroots organization dedicated to inspiring others to pursue their deepest, most heartfelt desires. On the second Wednesday of each month, Polly invites the community, free of charge, to gather at a room in the Black Rock Arts Center to listen to the story of someone who is actively pursuing a passion.
I can't help but think that if Polly's mother had been given the opportunity to hear some of these wonderful stories--including her daughter's--a few of her somedays might have turned into todays.
Polly is really hot.
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