HOW I LEARNED TO CHOOSE JOY AND FIND MY PURPOSE

There was a season in my life where everything felt heavy—body, spirit, and soul.  Loss, stress, and deep soul-weariness surrounded me like a fog.
But it was there, in that darkness, that a small light began to flicker.

Taking back my health became the first act of hope.  As I made small, daily choices, joy slowly returned. Confidence grew. I laughed more. I took risks again.  I was playing, creating, and reconnecting with the gifts God had planted in me.

And yet, even as I was rebuilding in one area, life was unraveling in others.

I was stuck in the proverbial “sandwich generation”, grieving losses, navigating illness, launching children into adulthood, and caring for aging parents.  My faith felt dry, my energy depleted.  I slowly began to retreat — from others, from purpose, even from prayer.

I didn’t want my story to end that way.

When I came to the end of my own strength, I reached for God’s.  I stepped into the unknown like a seed pressed deep into soil—hidden, still, and unsure.  But in that quiet darkness, I discovered the greatest gift – permission to rest.  To be still. To listen.  And, eventually… to grow.

Through prayer, scripture, and the gentle clarity of coaching,  I learned to accept where I was planted — and trust that God was still cultivating something beautiful in me.

That season of surrender changed everything.

Today, I still face moments of uprootedness and uncertainty.  But I’ve learned how to return to center.  To journey inward when life feels scattered, and seek that mountaintop encounter with God in the messy middle.

I’ve come to understand the sacred rhythm of seasons.  The breaking, the waiting, the blooming.  And I’ve answered a deeper calling – to walk with others as they discern God’s work in their lives.

As a Catholic Accompaniment Coach,  I help others recognize the invitations God is placing in their own seasons — and discover how even buried seeds hold the promise of new life.