When you release the pressure, let the expectations go, change can be an enjoyable experience. When you strip your image of opinion and labels, you allow the energy of discovery to take up space in your life. Give your schedule and your mind room to breathe as you figure out what that means for you. Dig in. Take your time. In the meantime, may these affirmations inspire you to embrace the unknown and move closer to that which you love.

Living with intention is not about what you do, but how you do it. For me, living a meaningful life after loss has been a journey of self-understanding, self-advocacy, and spiritual maturity. I learned that I needed help, and that it's okay to ask for the help you need, especially when your quality of life is at stake. I also discovered this big truth: life is what you make it.

The newness of another year and another passion inspired me to write a letter to my future self. About all the things I hope for that person: healing, fulfillment, self-companionship. It's an enlightening practice because it sheds light on what matters most this year and right now. May this letter be what you needed to read today.

Together, it's easier to make space for grief and for the love and joy that it stems from, which is the same love it inevitably returns to, if we allow that spaciousness. May these quotes about grief comfort you, validate what you feel, and bring a little more light to the holidays. You belong in the light, too.

When we carry the people we've loved in our hearts, in our conversations, and into the work we do and the actions we take, we bring them forward and allow them to not only be an element in our lives still, but to make an impact. In that same way, they bring us forward, toward them. We do this thing, together. We rebuild, together.

These November affirmations are my tribute to a time of sacred intent and a token of my growing fondness for the journey that links all things. These affirmations are small decisions to carry on with the meaningful and often demanding work you feel called to do. To stay true to the process. To trust in what we love.

“The word blessing evokes a sense of warmth and protection; it suggests that no life is alone or unreachable.” As this Irish poet shows us, a blessing for transitions (of many kinds) can hold us, guide us, and show us that we don't have to go it alone. We are meant to help and be helped along the way.

Our wedding vows are an ode to the power of love, and friendship, and hope. Because that's how we make it through the difficult things. Our special day, like all I ever share here in writing, was a celebration of how far we’ve all come, and who we've chosen to become. I hope our wedding vows make you feel something.