Early 2025 I started a garden for my inner child. She always loved being barefoot and in the dirt, and my adult self doesn’t eat meat so it was perfect. I had never gardened before, so I made it my mission to learn everything that I could about it (recovering type-A personality here). We put in 8 beds and successfully grew over 60 varieties of flowers, vegetables, fruits, and herbs that first season - all from seeds. I then dabbled in sourdough and I was hooked. Little House on the Prairie mode was officially activated…

I was a laser-focused, career-driven entrepreneur my entire adult life and after moving back to my home state of Florida, my body (and mind) was finally telling me to take a step back, quiet the noise, and tune into what I used to love. The amount of peace I get from being outside with my hands in the dirt, the way nature intended, is incredible. Pair that with watching and listening to the birds (the granny hobby gateway drug), and I just feel… good. I still feel like a little kid every morning I go out to see what’s growing.

When I was little I loved writing letters. One of my first best friends was a cousin my age but we lived four hours apart, so for many years we wrote to each other. I still have every letter she wrote me, tucked away safely in a “mailbox” I made out of an old landline phone box covered in construction paper. I loved everything about the process - writing, drawing, putting on the stamp and sending it on its way. Once it went out in the post it meant I would get the next one! That of course was the best part, and it showed me there was joy even in the waiting. In a world of instant gratification, I want to get back to that. Won’t you join me?