July taught me how to be still, and August started teaching me how to move again, and apparently, I take physical therapy very seriously. My physical therapist and Fred agreed my photo should be next to “compliance” because when she gave me exercises to do at home, I did them.

June ended with me preparing for knee replacement surgery and admitting that I didn’t know exactly what July would look like. Well, let me tell you. On June 30th, 2026, I had my total right knee replacement. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. I knew there would be

May was loud: music, dancing, laughter, a 60th birthday celebration, a first book signing, an Amazon Bestseller, fundraising, family, community, and a retirement that officially closed a chapter of my life that had lasted decades. June has been quieter, not empty. Just different. I am learning that after a milestone

There are moments in life that feel larger than the event itself. Moments where you realize you are standing inside an answered prayer while it is still unfolding around you. That is how May 16, 2026, felt to me. Hope Grows Here was never meant to be simply a birthday

April From Pain to Purpose: Preparing for Hope Grows Here April feels different. There is still grief here that does not disappear simply because the month shifts, but there is also movement. A soft stirring. A sense that something long carried is beginning to take root in new ways. April

March The Power of Story: Why Grief Needs a Voice March arrives carrying memory. For me, it always does. Some dates live quietly in the body long before they reach the calendar. March 11 is one of them. Even after nine years, my body knows this day is coming before