Hope Emerging from the Dust

Be vulnerable to the new day, and hold on to hope.

I was once a member of a professional reading group with several of my colleagues. Like any book club, each of us read the same new book every month. However, we each explored our own particular theme in that monthly book. My theme was hope. 

I nearly forgot about this illuminating time, until I pulled down one of the books from the collection we read. Their Eyes Were Watching God was full of dog-eared pages where I saw hope. One passage particularly catches my eye today: 

She knew that God tore down the old world every evening and built a new one by sun-up. It was wonderful to see it take form with the sun and emerge from the gray dust of its making.

What impresses me most now is how hope comes from a dark place. Even through the gray dust we are assured that something bright and new is on the horizon.

When it feels like everything around you is crumbling, keep telling yourself you will soon find:

Something new

Something needed

Something important

Something beautiful

Be vulnerable to the new day, and hold on to hope.  Be open to change along your personal path. If it still seems murky, coaching can help bring you through the gray dust toward your goals. 

Conspiring With You

To attain your goals, try shifting your mind to believe that, when you want something, all the universe conspires with you.

Every reader has that book. The one they always go to. One so well written that they find new insight each time they read it.

Paulo Coelho’s “The Alchemist” is that book for me. Every time I pick it up, it tells me something that I need to learn. 

I reached for it again recently during a moment of self-doubt. One of the dog-eared pages fell open. It was a passage that explained about Personal Legend, or those things people instinctually know they want to accomplish in life. 

When they are young, everything is clear and everything is possible. They are not afraid to dream. 

But, as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them that it will be impossible.

There are times in life when that force creeps in and makes it hard to see our path. We begin to be afraid of what is around us. We forget to dream. We don’t try to accomplish what is in our hearts. 

But, clarity isn’t far away.

When it is hard to see the road ahead of you: 

• Pause to look more closely at what is within your reach. 

• Remember you are still on the right path.

• Appreciate that this place - right now - holds purpose.

• Identify the things in life that are working, and the things that are not working. 

• Decide what you want. 

• Take what works; leave what doesn’t. 

• Begin to move forward.

• Be open to new insights along the way.

Coelho encouraged, “when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” Trust this. Trust yourself. Keep moving forward.

You are here for a purpose. If it is still hard to see, coaching can help get back to your path.

“Maybe” - A Way Out of Rumination

Maybe there’s a different way to think about things.

Rumination can be harmful. I saw this regularly working in girls’ schools. 

Once something gets stuck in our heads we go down a narrow path and can’t see beyond the story we create. The story quickly becomes a false truth. 

If you start to ruminate, remember to widen your scope in order to see more clearly. Work at rewiring your own brain.

There is a Rewiring Toolbox in Kay & Shipman’s The Confidence Code for Girls, and one particular tool I’ve found helpful in coaching is creating a new, “maybe story.” 

Start every sentence with “maybe.” Even if the “maybe” is not the best explanation, even if the story is kind of silly, it works.

Flipping the switch to a slightly different way of looking at what’s bugging you will get you off the negative path. Basically, you are getting perspective, and thinking flexibly. 

When I see clients get stuck in their narratives, I direct them to create a maybe story.

• Maybe there’s a different way forward.

• Maybe I can take that risk. 

• Maybe I’ve completed more than I realize.

• Maybe I will get all that I hoped for. 

• Maybe I already know how to do it. 

Coaching helps you search through your “maybes” and get to your goals. It helps you stop fixating and focuses on problem-solving. It sets you in the right direction. Reach out if you need help in exploring the “maybes.” 

What the Tinman Already Has

If you are trying to build self-trust, work through old patterns, or care for yourself with more intention, you do not have to do it alone

I pulled my old copy of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz off the shelf today. It has many bent corners. I was not sure which page to revisit until I landed on the one where the Tin Woodman finally receives his heart:

Oz opened the Tin Woodman’s chest, placed a silk heart inside, and patched the tin where he had cut it.

“I’m sorry I had to put a patch on your breast,” he said.

“Never mind the patch,” the Woodman replied. “I shall never forget your kindness.”

I dog-eared this page in my twenties. At the time, I thought I marked it because of heartbreak. Now I see something different.

The Woodman’s heart mattered to him only if it was a kind one.
He welcomed the patch.
He chose to believe the process would not hurt.
And he trusted help when he needed it.

Those choices take strength.
They also take support.

If you are trying to build self-trust, work through old patterns, or care for yourself with more intention, you do not have to do it alone. I am here when you are ready.

A Routine to Start with Wonder

When I worked as an educator, my days ran on structure. Classes gave shape to the hours. Routine kept my mind steady and helped me stay organized.

Now that my work looks different, I protect a small morning ritual to keep that steadiness. I start the day with a short Tai Chi sequence. It grounds me even when life feels busy.

That routine came to mind when I opened a dog-eared page in The Tao of Pooh and landed on this conversation between Pooh and Piglet:

“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “what’s the first thing you say to yourself?”

“What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?”

“I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?”

Pooh nodded thoughtfully.

“It’s the same thing,” he said.

There is something refreshing about starting the day with simple curiosity.

A small moment of openness.

A gentle way to set the tone before responsibilities take over.

If you are navigating change or rebuilding routines of your own, you can start with one repeatable action each morning. It does not have to be elaborate. It only needs to help you step into the day with a steadier mindset.

If you want help building that structure in a way that works for your life, I am here.

When You Know Something Needs to Change, But You’re Not Sure What to Do Next

There’s a moment many women reach—quietly, often privately—when the life they’ve been managing no longer feels like the life they want. Nothing dramatic has to happen. Sometimes it’s subtle. A shift. A tug. A question you can’t seem to quiet. You wake up in the morning, move through your familiar routines, and feel a small ache of knowing: This isn’t quite right anymore.

If this sounds close to home, you’re not alone. Many women in transition experience this early sense of change long before they feel ready to act on it. Let’s slow down and unpack what might be happening underneath.

1. You’ve been carrying more than people realize

Women often move through life with remarkable steadiness, even when things feel wobbly on the inside. You support your family, your workplace, your community. You anticipate needs before they appear. You adjust. You absorb. You cope.

But at some point, your internal bandwidth reaches its edge.

You might notice:

• a heaviness you can’t quite name

• irritation at small things that never bothered you

• a sense that you’re “going through the motions”

• a desire to withdraw, not because you want less, but because you need a moment to breathe

These early signs are not failures. They’re information.

2. You don’t feel as connected to yourself as you once were

This is one of the most common experiences women share during transitions. Life asks for a lot—caregiving, partnership, work, emotional labor—and it’s easy to lose track of the parts of yourself that once felt unmistakably you.

You may ask:

• When did I stop feeling excited about my own goals?

• Why do decisions feel harder than they used to?

• Why do I keep postponing the things that matter to me?

Reconnection happens gradually, and often begins with a small moment of honesty:
“I’m ready for something different.”

3. Your confidence dips—not because you lack ability, but because you’ve been overextended

When you’ve spent years prioritizing others, your own needs can feel unfamiliar.

• You second-guess what you want.

• You doubt your next step.

• You hesitate to trust your own judgment.

This doesn’t mean you’re lost.It means you’ve been giving from a place that needs replenishing. A transition is less about becoming someone new and more about returning to yourself with clarity and intention.

4. You sense that change is coming, but you don’t have a plan for it yet

This is the space many women find themselves in—the in-between. Not unhappy, but not fulfilled.
Not stuck, but not moving. Capable, but unsure where to start.

• You don’t need a five-year roadmap.

• You don’t need a fully formed plan.

• You don’t need to have everything figured out.

You just need a direction.

5. You know you want more ease, more meaning, and more steadiness in your days

Most transitions aren’t about dramatic reinventions. They’re about wanting:

• more alignment

• more clarity

• more choice

• more of yourself in your own life

And when you begin to name what you want, even quietly, you create space for your next chapter to take shape. If this resonates, you may be closer to change than you think. You don’t have to make a big leap. You don’t have to overhaul your life.

Sometimes the first step is simply acknowledging what you’re feeling and giving yourself permission to explore it.

To help you reflect gently and at your own pace, I created a guide that walks you through early signs of meaningful life change and gives you space to consider what you might want next.

Get the guide here: “5 Signs You’re Ready for a Major Life Change”

It might help you hear yourself more clearly.