Nourish: August Seasonal Water Infusion
August blackberries behave completely differently depending on what you do with them. Muddled with mint and lime, bright and immediate. Steeped overnight with sage, quiet and complex. Pressed with basil and sparkling water, floral and celebratory. Three drinks, one fruit, one month. Find your favorite — or work through all three while the season lasts. It won't last long.
Boundary Breath — Bloom Within
Resentment is almost never about the thing on the surface. It's about something you need that hasn't been named yet. This 8-minute practice is for finding it — before it comes out sideways, before the depletion compounds, before you've given so much away that you've forgotten what was yours to begin with.
On the “Ya, Maybe” — Mid-Month Check-In | Read Together August 2026
We're halfway through August and three different people said the same thing to me this month: "maybe one day we'll make it out to Belgium." A reflection on adult friendship, distance, the invisible string, and what Platonic taught me about being the one who gets on the plane anyway.
I’m Not Letting Go Yet
This trip everyone got a longer hug — held past the point where it would normally end, and then a little longer than that. A few people laughed in that way that means the happy feeling arrived faster than their composure could keep up with. I recognized it because I was doing it too.
Nourish: August Fruit of the Month — Blackberries
This bruschetta is what happens when you give fresh blackberries five extra minutes and a piece of grilled bread. Ten minutes of maceration with honey and balsamic turns them jammy and intensely flavored. Spoon them over whipped ricotta on charred bread and it's done. It tastes like a dinner party starter and takes about as long as setting the table.
Sealing the Run In — Bloom Within
We're good at recovering from hard runs. We're less good at receiving good ones. This 5-minute practice is for the moment after a run that felt right — before the to-do list, the notifications, and the noise pull you back out of your body and away from the version of yourself you just found out there.
Perfect Moments Don't Require Perfect Conditions
I almost didn't text because I could only offer two hours. She apologized for her house before I walked in. Neither of those things mattered at all. On waiting for perfect conditions that were never the point to begin with.
On Showing Up for Each Other — Read Together August 2026
August's Read Together is built around the question that comes after creativity: who do we make it with? Six books — one picture book, one for teens, three adult reads, and one for the fiction reader — woven around what it means to truly connect, show up for each other, and let yourself be known.
Nourish: August Vegetable of the Month — Zucchini
Peeling zucchini into thin ribbons changes the vegetable entirely. What's usually roasted or sautéed becomes something delicate and raw, dressed simply with lemon, olive oil, and a spoonful of ricotta. This Zucchini Ribbon Salad is fifteen minutes, no heat required, and genuinely one of the most elegant things you can do with a summer garden vegetable.
Softening toward another
You don't have to be fully resolved before you walk back in. You just have to be open enough to begin. This 12-minute practice is for releasing the armor — the rehearsed argument, the tightened jaw, the shoulders carrying the whole conflict — before you need to be present with another person.
On What We Made— Read Together July 2026
July is almost behind us — and before we turn the page I want to celebrate what this month actually held. A reflection on creativity, permission, and what five very different books gave us this month. Plus, a first look at what's coming in August.
Returning to Your Own Compass— Bloom Within
Creative work drifts. You start making something true and somewhere along the way you start making it for the imagined critic instead. This 10-minute practice is for finding your way back to your own creative instinct — the one that knew what the work was supposed to be before the audience got involved.
What the Logistics Are Really For
No gym this week. No structured workout, no logged miles. What there was: eleven hours in the air, a 30-pound toddler who did great, and a shot of G4 tequila chased with bread and butter pickles surrounded by the people I only get to do this with once a year. On letting the unfinished thing be enough.
Creativity Starts in the Body — Root & Rise July 2026
Four weeks of movement and reflection — built around what happens when you stop bracing and start opening. July's Root & Rise works through the side body and upper back with four poses and one question: where are you making room for what's next?
Is your life starting to feel like a circus?
The Tonie box was going, the dog was circling, and I was standing in the middle of it all with a plate of cold food I hadn't touched. If you've ever felt like the ringmaster of a show you never auditioned for — this one's for you.
The Body Breath — Finding Flow Mid-Run — Bloom Within
Flow doesn't arrive when you try harder. It arrives when you stop managing. This practice is for the mid-run moment when thinking about the run has replaced actually running — and all it asks is that you close the commentary tab and feel what's already there.
On Being Creative Without Being the Expert — Mid-Month Check-In | Read Together July 2026
We're halfway through July and something happened this week that I didn't expect to feel as significant as it did. A reflection on empathy, creative confidence, and what it means to offer a solution when you're not the obvious expert — plus this month's discussion prompts for every reader in your life.
Nourish: July Seasonal Water Infusion
Most people hydrate out of habit — the same water, the same glass, the same time of day. This pitcher is a small invitation to do something slightly different. Peach, ginger, and orange don't obviously belong together, but they work beautifully — sweet, a little sharp, with just enough warmth from the ginger to make it interesting. Ten minutes of prep, and hydration that actually feels like a treat.
Good Enough Breath — Bloom Within
Perfectionism is not high standards. It's fear wearing a very convincing costume. This 10-minute practice is for the moment when something real is waiting to leave your hands — and the grip of 'not good enough' is the only thing standing between you and done.
On Watching Women Play
I was sitting in the bleachers at a beach volleyball court when I wrote this in my head. My daughter was next to me, watching women compete. And I thought: I want her to keep watching. This is a letter about why — and about a Foo Fighters concert, a pizza box, and the thing that happens when someone does the thing first.