Just last week, I was walking through a park in Ridgway, Colorado, looking for signs of spring. The calendar said spring had arrived, and I could smell it. There was a subtle warmth in the breeze, enhanced by the blue sky and bright sun. Some grasses on the path's edge dared to start creating chlorophyll again, changing from what looked like dead, dried-out brown to the familiar and welcomed green. The trees, ever so bare and drab, showed signs of regeneration if you slowed down and looked closely. The very tips of their branches started showing signs of budding. Small snow piles were still in shadowy areas, and the mountains were bright white with their heavy snow-filled peaks. Yet change was on the precipice.

We go through seasons, just like nature, and these are my musings on the season I am entering....spring. I reflect on what that actually means and how important it is to pay attention to the shifts within each season of nature and within ourselves.

I have had years (and I mean YEARS) of leadership development, development models, personality tests, and even astrology shoved down my throat throughout my life. I was forced to take some of these assessments to better understand my alignment/compatibility with the company/group I was working in. Other assessments I openly pursued in hopes of better "understanding" myself. And what did all of them tell me about myself – nothing I didn't already know, consciously and unconsciously.

Coaching has become a rock, a foundation for me. As I sit here reflecting on my personal journey over the past 8 years, I can see how my own journey started and evolved over time. The path was windy and rocky, almost obscure. However, looking back, it is impressive how hindsight can make things so much more apparent.

One of my best friends and I talk almost daily via audio messages instead of texting. She lives 10 hours away, so we don't get a lot of face-to-face interaction. We do text, but shortly after I moved away last year, we started recording little messages to each other. It felt more personable and intimate.

Grief is such a fantastic teacher. It is a complex thing, with ebbs and flows, deep caverns, and spacious open space. It is a prism of dark colors, yet it can offer bright radiance if you stay with it long enough. I never thought I would want to honor grief in such a manner, as it has been a torturous partner in my life. Yet, it has shown me how deep my heart can be and how much it can hold.

A few weeks back, I was sitting with a warm breeze blowing on my face, hinting that the warm breeze was quickly becoming a hot breeze. The forecast indicated it would hit 100 degrees soon. The light wind was rustling through the peach orchard I was surrounded by while I occasionally swatted at gnats landing on my shoulder. The air was hot but clean and fresh, with hints of fresh-cut grass.

Ironically, I have found myself in my own tough transition this past 12-18 months. It might have been one of my life's top 3 most challenging years. And in the spirit of sharing and vulnerability, I wanted to share with you all, especially since being a coach, therapist, or other mental health professional doesn't make you immune to these things.

In the US, it is Thanksgiving week. A week to express gratitude for the year that has passed. It’s a wonderful time to honor and appreciate our loved ones, those with us, and those no longer with us. It’s a time to recognize our friendships and all those that make up our circle of support.

And while I love the holidays – the lights, the decorations, the festive gift-giving, and the yummy food of the season (I am obsessed with cooking this time of year) – like so many others out there, the season comes with a shadow of grief.

Today is the fall equinox - the first day of fall. We are shifting from Summer to a new season. Technically, what is happening is at the equator today there will be an equal amount of daylight and darkness.

From my experience, going through my own coaching certification journey, observing new students coming into the school to begin their own journeys through the course, over and over, and my observations of my clients’ experiences with their coaching programs working with me, I have realized that embracing the body of a student, a learner, a beginner, as a life-long way of being rather than just for a moment in time, is transformational. It is a new way to walk through the world and allows for an open mind and open heart. It softens the presence of the ego and loosens the grip of our personalities just a bit.

I was introduced to the Enneagram model in June 2019. Little did I know at the time what a life-changing experience that introduction would be to me.

I kept hearing about our country being in a mental health crisis and it was getting worse. I was, then, personally touched by this crisis five years ago when my boyfriend passed away….

This is the time of year many of us feel the need (obligated?) to make a New Year’s Resolution, only to give up on the resolution weeks, days, even hours into the new year. Or we find ourselves, after a bunch of failed resolutions, setting the anti-New Year’s Resolution by declaring, “I will not be setting a dumb resolution. I am going to just be me and if you don’t like it, I don’t care.”

I don’t believe in the stages of grief! There, I said it!

A long walk down a beach…. sounds romantic, right? It sounds relaxing and rejuvenating. What you wouldn't give to do that right now, listening to the waves crash on the beach, breathing in the salty air, feeling the sea mist and salt on your skin! You can feel your body and soul relaxing just at the thought. Everyone says that's healthy and grounding, right? To be with yourself. Ok…you make the decision and go for it. What could wrong?