My Journey

When I was young, the world felt impossibly large – so vast, so far away, and certainly out of reach. I grew up in a household of 12: my parents, grandparents, and us 8 siblings. My parents worked tirelessly to…

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, over 21 million adults in the United States, about 8.3% of all U.S. adults, experienced at least one major depressive episode in the past year. Globally, depression affects over 280 million people,…

For 26 years, I poured my life into my family – raising four beautiful children, building a home, staying married through thick and thin, and even paying off our mortgage. I’ve had many successes that I’m proud of. I’ve retired,…

For most of my life, I’ve been called “OCD” by family and friends. But I never saw it that way. I just liked things clean, calm, and organized. I didn’t have a name for it until later – minimalism. Not…

For as long as I can remember, faith has been a part of my life. My family has believed in Jesus Christ since the 1950s, beginning with my grandparents. My father was an elder in our church, and growing up,…

For most of my life, I made every excuse to stay indoors. Seasonal allergies, work, stress, and the general busyness of life kept me from the very thing I now cherish most, being outside. Unless it was a planned family hike…

One of my dreams, ever since my late twenties, was to retire early. I didn’t know exactly how it would happen, I just knew that I wanted it. I didn’t want to spend my entire life working, racing the clock,…

There are many things in my life that I could have done differently, paths not taken, mistakes made, dreams delayed. Like most people, I have my share of regrets. But one thing I will never regret is choosing to love,…

I started journaling before I even knew what it was. I must’ve been eight or nine when I received one of those little diaries with a flimsy lock for Christmas. It felt like treasure. Every day after school, I’d scribble…

For many years, I measured success by how well I could keep up. I thought that if I managed to stay on top of my busy schedule, do well at work, be a good mom, keep the house clean, and…

I came into adulthood right as the Information Age was beginning. I still remember sitting down to find information for my research paper, waiting patiently for the dial-up internet to connect, slow, noisy, and completely unreliable. Assignments were saved on…

As a child, I always believed I’d grow up to be a doctor. Not just any doctor, an obstetrician. I wanted to bring life into the world, to be there at the beginning of someone’s story. Life felt so sacred…