Hope Springs Healing Arts Studio

10/11/2026

Sometimes I start planning for the holidays before I’ve even had a conversation with the people involved. I assume we’ll do what we did last year, and by the time we talk, I’ve already given some of my time and energy to a plan no one has agreed to.

In today’s Substack post, Before the Plans Become Promises, I’m looking at what we hope our holiday traditions will give us and how we might make room for those things when life has changed. I’ve included a short journal reflection to help you think through one expectation before it becomes a commitment.

The post is open to everyone, read it here:

Taking a fresh look at what we expect of the season

26/10/2026

As the days grow shorter and the holidays begin to appear on the calendar, it’s easy to feel the pressure to do more and finish more before the year ends. But what if we paused first to consider what has helped us feel more like ourselves this year—and what we want to protect in the weeks ahead?

In today’s Substack post, “What Will You Carry Into Winter?”, I’m reflecting on the practices, relationships and ordinary moments that support us, as well as the things we may be ready to make less important.

Next week, I’ll share an invitation to use your journal as we move through the final 60 days of the year, keeping one question in mind: How do you want to be living when you arrive at December 31?

Read the full post here:

Before the year gets louder, notice what you want to protect

23/10/2026

Have you ever awakened at three in the morning to find that something manageable in daylight suddenly seems to require a full investigation of your life?

In late October, with more darkness between waking and dawn, those hours can feel especially long. Today on Substack, I’m returning to the “3 a.m. mind” we explored in May, with a fresh look at what we need when worry takes over in a different season.

One thought to carry into tonight: “I don’t have to solve my life from bed.

“When the 3 A.M. Mind Takes Over” includes practical ways to respond when nighttime thinking gathers momentum. A free preview is available to everyone, with the full piece for paid subscribers.

Read here:

Returning to an old problem in a different season

20/10/2026

Has your sleep changed along with the season? Perhaps you’re sleepy earlier, awake at 3 a.m., or finding it harder to get going in the morning.

This week’s free Substack post explores how autumn can shift our sleep and offers a place to begin understanding what has changed in your own daily rhythm.

If sleep has become an ongoing struggle, I also offer individual telehealth services to help you understand your patterns and work toward more restful nights. DM me to learn more.

Read “When Sleep Changes With the Season," link in comments

13/10/2026

New Substack post - more ideas for the transition into fall. Link in comments.

28/09/2026

This week, I’m thinking about tending relationships: paying attention to what is growing, what needs care, and what may no longer fit quite as it once did.

Tending isn’t the same as fixing. Sometimes it means nurturing connection. Sometimes it means having a difficult conversation. And sometimes it means noticing that we are changing—and our relationships may need to change with us.

This series has prompted more conversation and direct messages than almost anything I’ve written this year. I think that’s because many of us are noticing the same thing:

Relationships are changing. And we are noticing.

Week 5 begins today at Hope Springs on Substack, link in comments.

11/06/2026

03/06/2026

A warm welcome to everyone who has joined our community recently, especially those who have chosen to become paid subscribers.

Over the past few weeks, we've been exploring sleep, creativity, identity, and the questions that often emerge when life begins to shift in unexpected ways. This week, we're continuing that journey with a reflection on the roles we've outgrown and the grief that can accompany even positive transitions.

One of the things I love most about this community is that we make space for honest conversations. Not just about what we're moving toward, but also about what we're leaving behind. Growth isn't always about adding something new. Sometimes it's about acknowledging what has shaped us, honoring it, and learning how to carry it differently.

If you're new here, Substack is where you'll find the heart of my work. It has become the home of Hope Springs Healing Arts Studio—a place where I share reflections, practical tools, guided activities, research, creativity, and conversations about hope, healing, caregiving, recovery, rest, and the second half of life.

Thank you for being here. Whether you've been reading for months or joined this week, I'm grateful for your presence in this community.

Link for all my work in comments.

28/05/2026

Morning pages today focused on all I learned yesterday while directing a retreat for a parish Dominican Retreat and Conference Center.

This beautiful team not only built very detailed churches symbolizing living parishes but also shared openly about their work, their support of each other, and their dreams for the future.

And they laughed and laughed and laughed. They left ready to work on their personal mission statements.

Love doing this work.

19/05/2026

The hour before bed is not neutral time.
What you do with it either prepares your nervous system for rest — or prolongs the same low-grade vigilance that kept you awake the night before.

Scrolling, watching, receiving information — all of these keep the brain's alerting system active. Each new notification, each headline, each image delivers a mild novelty signal. The nervous system stays on alert for whatever comes next.

Making something works differently. Drawing, writing, coloring, arranging, stitching — when the hands are engaged and the attention is gently held by something you're creating, the default mode network (the brain's rumination center) quietly settles. The cortisol that keeps you awake begins to fall.

Research from Duke University published in 2025 found that creative activity reduces anxiety not through the quality of what's produced — but through the act of making itself.

You don't have to be an artist. You don't have to make anything worth keeping.

You just have to make rather than consume.

Today's post — free for all subscribers — is about exactly this. What I do in the hour before bed, why it works, and how you can try it tonight. Link in comments.