Midlife Evolution

Happy St. Patrick’s Day ☘️

Since the world is collectively tipping its hat to Celtic culture today, it seems like the right moment to say a bit about the retreat I’m offering this spring.

Reclaiming Your Sovereign Self
A women’s retreat rooted in the Great Mothers of Celtic myth
You might be wondering why I’m suddenly talking about Celtic goddesses… and what that has to do with your life.

I’ve been asking myself the same question for the past year and a half.
What I can say right now is this:

This work is needed in the world we’re living in.

Not just personally.
But collectively.

Personally I’ve come to experience it as a kind of detox.

A slow unwinding of what it has meant to live as a woman in a world shaped for millennia by patriarchal structures.

So that something more whole can begin to take root.

But the “how”... it’s honestly hard to explain…

This weekend I was trying to find the words for what has shifted in me through this work.

The best I could come up with was:

magic.

Not in a sparkly way.

But in the sense that something reorganizes at a level the mind can’t quite track.

Something I experience as both energetic and cellular.

This work seems to call to women who are already doing the inner work.

Women who have insight, awareness, language…
and yet still sense that something essential hasn’t fully shifted.

Women who feel deeply, who care about the world, and are tired of carrying it in ways that leave them depleted.

Women who know, somewhere in themselves, that there is another way to inhabit their lives.

This is the work we’ll be stepping into together at a small retreat this spring.

It’s not for everyone.

But for the women who feel the pull of it, it can be profoundly transformative.

If you’re curious, you can learn more here: https://www.midlife-evolution.com/spring-womens-retreat

Hey folks. It’s been awhile.

The truth is I’ve been away from social media for quite a while.

Over the past year or two I’ve become increasingly ambivalent (at best) about social media. The pace and polarization of many online spaces often feel at odds with how I need to cultivate my headspace, and with the kind of thoughtful conversation I care about.

At the same time, I’ve also been moving through a deeper internal shift in my life and in my work — one that has been difficult to articulate while it was still unfolding. Sometimes the most honest thing to do is step back for a while and let something reorganize itself before trying to speak about it.

That period of reflection has slowly been giving rise to a new chapter in my work, and I’m just beginning to find the language for it.

And now I have to acknowledge that after the recent loss of my dad, the messages of care I received here reminded me that there is actually good that happens in these spaces too.

So maybe it’s not quite as black and white as I thought. And for those reasons I'm dipping my toe back in.

For about the last 20 years my work has lived at the intersection of psychology, creativity, and a fair bit of “woo.” I’ve often leaned on my background in developmental psychology as a way of helping women orient themselves during seasons of change.

But over the past couple of years I’ve been recognizing more clearly that the deeper arc of my work has always been about something larger: how we meet the initiatory passages of life — midlife, aging, loss, uncertainty — as opportunities to grow and evolve. To inhabit ourselves more fully.

To allow life’s thresholds to deepen us rather than simply harden us.

In other words, less about fixing ourselves or endlessly analyzing our stories… and more about becoming more whole, more present, and more deeply rooted in who we actually are.

Over the coming weeks I’ll be sharing more about what’s emerging, including a free online conversation later this month and a small retreat this spring that feel like the first expressions of this shift.

If you’re feeling the pull toward deeper reflection in the midst of these complicated times, I hope you’ll join us.

More soon...

Early Friday morning some of us had the delight and honor to be guided into the womb of Hope Springs Institute, deep in the Ravine, by founder Suzanne Stevens. It was magical, profound, and rich in metaphors that seem relevant to now. What I "heard":

1) The descent can be treacherous, especially when the path is unclear - or hidden.

2) You can't really know if there's solid ground, so test your footing before you commit.

3) The climb out is easier than the descent if you lean into the land.

4) You can't go wrong following a Crone

Grateful for the steadfast and healing land here at Hope Springs Institute as we get ready to begin our Sacred Pause retreat

Took this photo in my backyard one day, when I was struck by that spectacular yellow against the blue sky.

Then I caught myself going down a rabbit hole about the ugly poles and wires “ruining the view”, which spiraled into annoyance about all the downsides of living in the city.

Allowing the negativity of my mind to take over erased the beauty I was seeing and changed the felt sense in my body from one of gratitude to irritation.

Noticing this I shifted my perspective and focused on the tree and the sky, accepting the poles and the wires, allowing them to just be. With that they faded into the background of my attention, rather than the foreground.

Ahh. There was peace and gratitude again.

I think this is a metaphor for how to navigate the coming days. So much fear and anger over the election. Heartache and overwhelm of the ever-expanding humanitarian crises in the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan, Haiti—the list and the horror feels endless.

So it is crucial that those of us who can be are intentional about where we put our focus.

Can you shift your focus from the ugly parts and instead choose to contribute to the kind of feelings you want more of in the world?

Can you find things to celebrate?

Can you find hope?

Trust?

Even love?

Where can you put a little kindness or gratitude out into the field?

And if you can’t quite get there, can you at least inhabit a neutral space?

This is a way to make a difference no matter what else is going on, no matter what time, energy or resources you have to contribute. I yourself and in the world.

To be clear, I don’t mean that you ignore your emotions.

Feel them. Literally.

Where do they show up in your body? Breathe and stay with them a bit, allowing them to move through by focusing on the felt sense.

Notice when your mind wants to keep ramping them up and come back to the felt sense.

Maybe even find some way to move them out, like movement or some kind of creative process.

And then come back and choose to focus on something with a higher vibration.

We are evolving, the old systems and old paradigms falling away. But entrenched patterns and power don’t easily give up their place.

That’s what we’re in the midst of; that’s the bigger picture.

It’s up to each of us right now to be a “point of light” and provide a counterpoint to all the darkness and negativity, and I believe that as mature women we are especially adept at this. We have the wisdom, the life experience and the fortitude to wrangle our wonderful minds and put them to work for us, rather than being led around by our triggered emotions.

This is just another example of what it means to Age Fiercely.

Are you longing to get away and tend to your spirit?

Desperate for some time to just focus on you?

Do you know (or suspect) the value to be had from retreat?

This 4-day, 3-night retreat is an invitation to slow down, reflect and honor what life has brought us, releasing what no longer serves us, and making space for the new vision that is waiting to emerge.

It is an intentional time-out to honor our burdens, harvest the lessons and blessings, and let go of what we’re ready to release, so we can shape our path forward.

When we choose to approach life’s challenges and transitions with this kind of intention, they become a powerful crucible for growth and healing, and an incubator for who we are becoming and the dreams we are ready to embrace.
The art and practice of SoulCollage® and creative process will serve as the primary tools for your exploration, balanced with open time for relaxation and integration.

Our time together will help you reconnect to what’s important to you and rediscover your own internal rhythms and timing, all with the support of a community of like-minded women where your own process will be held, witnessed and honored.

If you want to experience the magic to be discovered when women gather for this kind of sacred soul-tending, I hope you will claim your seat around the fire 💖

Here's the link to learn more and register: https://midlife-evolution.com/winter-pause

My oldest daughter was heartbroken with the death of former One Direction member Liam Payne last week. She was a big fan in when she was in that 10-13 year-old age range, which got me wondering:

What was the first death of a childhood idol, or at least a 'relevant to you' celebrity that you remember, and how old were you?

I remember Jim Croce dying (1973 - I was 9), John Lennon (1980/16), Harry Chapin (1981/17) and Karen Carpenter (1983/19). But I don't think any of my childhood idols died until later (RIP David Cassidy😍)

What about you?

I’m often asked, “What kind of women come to your retreats?”

Usually, it’s asked with a little nervousness, as if the reason they hold inside might not be “good enough.”

My heart always goes out to them because I remember the first time I finally gave myself permission to pause. I was desperate—afraid it wasn’t OK to step away like that.

At first I thought it was desperation that brought women to these retreats, because that was my story.

And yes, sometimes that’s true.

There are women navigating major life transitions—loss, illness, career shifts, empty nests, or simply the weight of change.

But that’s only part of the story.

There are also:
- Seekers longing to connect more deeply with themselves as they prepare for their next step in life.
- Busy women craving a moment to pause and release, so they can step into the new year with renewed energy.
- Women who feel most alive when connected to nature or creative expression, especially when envisioning what’s next.
- Those for whom this retreat has become an annual ritual, a pause to reflect and clear the way for the year ahead.
- And sometimes, there are women who can’t quite put their reasons into words. They just know something inside said, “Now is the time.”

It’s not about age, race, or life stage.

Women come from all walks of life, but every year, as we gather around the fire, we realize we share something: a sense of constriction, fragmentation, and a longing to let go and exhale before stepping into the future.

So who comes to this retreat?

The ones who feel called.

Those who sense that by taking the time to reflect, release, and envision, they will clear a path to their next chapter.

If this is your year, if you feel that call, I invite you to claim your seat around the fire.

And while I know the whole “early bird discount” thing can feel like just another pressure tactic, I do want to gently remind you that the lower rate does end on Oct 5th (for real, no false urgency here).

If this retreat is calling to you, I’d love for you to join us while you can still grab the discount.

Learn more at my link in bio

I’m often asked, “What kind of women come to your retreats?”

Usually, it’s asked with a little nervousness, as though the reason they hold inside might not be “good enough.”

My heart always goes out to them because I remember the first time I finally gave myself permission to pause. I was desperate—and afraid it wasn’t "OK" to step away like that.

So at first I thought it was desperation that brought women to these retreats, because that was my story.

And yes, sometimes that’s true.

There are women navigating major life transitions—loss, illness, career shifts, empty nests, or simply the weight of change.

But that’s only part of the story.

There are also:
- Seekers, longing to connect more deeply with themselves as they prepare for their next step in life.
- Busy women, craving a moment to pause and release, so they can step into the new year with renewed energy.
- Women who feel most alive when connected to nature or creative expression, especially when envisioning what’s next.
- Those for whom this retreat has become an annual ritual, a sacred pause to reflect and clear the way for the year ahead.
- And sometimes, there are women who can’t quite put their reasons into words. They just know something inside them said, “Now is the time.”

It’s not about age, race, or life stage.

Women come from all walks of life, but every year, as we gather around the fire, we realize we share something: a sense of constriction, fragmentation, and a longing to let go and exhale before stepping into the future.

So who comes to this retreat?

The ones who feel called.

Those who sense that by taking the time to reflect, release, and envision, they will clear a path to their next chapter.

If this is your year, if you feel that call, I invite you to claim your seat around the fire.

And while I know the whole “early bird discount” thing can feel like just another post-capitalist pressure tactic, I do want to gently remind you that the lower rate does end on Oct 5th (for real, no false urgency here).

If this retreat is calling to you, I’d love for you to join us while you can still grab the discount.

Learn more here: https://midlife-evolution.com/winter-pause