Creating Space Let's talk about clutter. It's something I've wrestled with for most of my multi-path life. Or maybe more accurately, it's something I've continually put off. As my paths have branched and multiplied over the past few years, it has become even easier to convince myself there were more important things to do. Why would I spend an afternoon cleaning out a closet when there are children with congenital heart disease to send to camp or work to be done to strengthen our response to...
10 days ago • 1 min read
Waiting or Becoming? Last weekend, I spent six hours in two theatres in Stratford. One story was about waiting. The other was about change. By the drive home, I realized those might be the only two stories any of us ever really live. Some of us spend years waiting. We hope something will change. A relationship. A career. Our circumstances. Ourselves. We tell ourselves that maybe tomorrow will be different. Sometimes it is. More often, tomorrow looks a lot like today. And then there are the...
17 days ago • 1 min read
The Person Who Stretches Your Thinking This week, I spent three hours over dinner with a friend. We shared deeply and without filters. We asked each other thoughtful questions, challenged each other's thinking, and explored ideas from different angles. By the time I got home, I realized I wasn't carrying just the memory of a wonderful evening. I was carrying new perspectives that hadn't existed for me a few hours earlier. It reminded me how much the people we surround ourselves with shape who...
24 days ago • 1 min read
The Courage to Surrender Surrender. It's an easy word to write in the sand, but far more difficult to practice when you've always had a plan. Some words are easy to write in the sand. Learning to live them takes a little longer. Today I find myself in a place where this is my challenge. Not something I need to force myself to do, but something I need to learn. I've laid the groundwork. I've sown the right seeds. I've had the conversations that mattered and led with humility, honesty, and...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Looking Up This morning I stepped outside and looked up. For the first time in several days, the sky was a brilliant blue. It struck me just how grateful I felt for something I normally don't give a second thought. I don't think I've ever appreciated a blue sky quite this much. The 191 wildfires burning across northern Ontario have forced thousands of people from their homes and changed entire communities. My heart has been especially with our First Nations communities, including...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
The Foundation for Every Dream A little over a week ago, I got sick. Not the kind of sick where you can push through with some lemon ginger tea and an extra-strength Tylenol. The kind where your body quietly, but firmly, says, "Not today." My body gave me such a clear message that there was no choice but to stop. My mind couldn't think, and my body didn't want to move. I didn't even feel guilty for lying on the couch watching episode after episode of a series or for leaving my laptop closed....
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
The Luxury of Silence and Solitude Most people assume I'm an extremely social person. In fact, someone I had dinner with recently told me they thought I had more friends than anyone they'd ever met. While that isn't actually true, I did take it as a compliment. I know how to build meaningful relationships, stay connected, and nurture genuine connections. It's one of the gifts I've developed over the years. Yes, I know a lot of people. Through my career, volunteering, and the organizations...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Curiosity is my fuel It's why I feel like I’m picking up speed at 63 instead of slowing down. Showing up to learn, to honour, to celebrate. Pride. When I think I “know,” I close doors. When I stay curious, my world widens. Two years ago I knew almost nothing about human trafficking. Today I know much more, and it’s still only a fraction of what I want to learn. Curiosity keeps my mind fresh, stretches my perspective, and opens paths I couldn’t see before. Before a podcast recording this week,...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Walking Through Open Doors Right now, it's about walking through doors while they're opening wide in front of me. Not knowing exactly where they're leading, but knowing they're the right doors. Some doors are ready. Pull. It also means not trying to force open doors that aren't ready to open. That's a lesson I learned this week. The doors with my government advocacy work have been flying open, sometimes faster than I'm ready for. But running through them feels easy, right, joyful. The retreat...
2 months ago • 1 min read