Have you ever been close to giving up on the ocarina business? I mean, what keeps you going?

Oh, I guess in the depths of temporary discouragement, I've threatened to give up a few times, but even in the middle of a major pity party I've never taken my whining too seriously. I mean, this is what I want to do when I grow up... make instruments, prototype better instruments, play music, come up with new products to help folks be more successful, music tutorials... I love the creative aspect of it all. I enjoy coming into contact with people and seeing them get excited about music. And I genuinely love playing our ocarinas. If you have to sell something, it helps if you personally love the product.

Besides all that, I have special needs children, and whatever else happens in life, I hope to provide a loving, supportive work environment for them in the future, if they ever need it. I mean, they might go on to do bigger and better things, but at least having our own business we can provide an environment in which they could exercise their gifts and not be tossed aside because of poor social skills or some other areas that they might struggle with. So I'm tremendously committed to providing a future for my children, and that helps me to persevere when I think "Oh, it might be easier to go back to teaching" or something like that.