This is Natalie from Team Jess! I’m excited to step in as your guest writer for the newsletter this week, while Jess and Nick explore the beautiful and spiritual mysteries of Chartres in France. I can’t wait to hear how this journey inspires Jess and, in turn, how she inspires all of us.

There’s truly nothing quite like a journey to bring us back home to ourselves. Whether it takes us to faraway lands or a nearby sanctuary, every journey has the potential to ignite a spark within us. 

When we take a break from our routines and familiar surroundings, we open ourselves to fresh experiences that can shift our perspectives. Each journey, no matter how short, introduces us to new ideas and landscapes, helping us see the world (and ourselves!) in a vibrant new light. These experiences can awaken creativity and inspire us in unexpected ways.

Journeys offer us countless gifts: moments of reflection, spaces to dream, and opportunities to reconnect...

Something unexpected happened in this week's Monday Morning Yoga class, and it still has me thinking. Because we are an intimate group, we have time to share our name at the start of every class. I also usually ask a question, like favorite color or vacation place. Inevitably the answers weave themselves into the theme of our class, so it really is a custom made, one-of-a-kind experience. This week I suggested we share first names and whatever else you like! Our first yogini set us up for a great share and others quickly followed.

Her name is Rebecca, but her whole life, until age 38, everyone called her Becky. At 38 she decided she liked the name Rebecca much better, and made the switch. From there, we heard so many stories about names! Stephanie legally changed her middle name when she was 13. Sara still has problems traveling because a pesky "h" made it onto her birth certificate, but nowhere else. Agness as a middle name was the dismay of childhood but perfect in...

For the past couple of years I have spent two hours, one Friday per month, in a Spiritual Direction Group. There are four of us in this little band of contemplatives, led by Nancy, our Spiritual Director. Each month we have a short experience, followed by silence, reflection, response, prayer, and more silence. It is one of the most enriching aspects of my life, and it has brought me great joy and insights.  

On one of our first gatherings, Nancy gave us the instructions to head out into nature on her beautiful property, find a place that seems to be calling you to come sit, and do just that. Sit, look around, and see what is there for you.  Listen, without expectations. It’s called Wilderness Contemplation. 

I love an assignment like this because you can’t possibly do it wrong, and it leaves a lot open to interpretation.  I get to be as woo-woo and magical as I want, no judgment.  So on this day, naturally I had a conversation...

This week you are in for a treat!  My friend and Walking with Divine Feminine partner, Nancy Herlin, has written a beautiful personal piece about what the practice of labyrinth walking is and and what it means to her.  Please enjoy, and join us April 9.

When people find out that I have a labyrinth and walk it regularly as one of my spiritual practices, I find most don’t know what to say. Many confuse it with a maze, but unlike a maze, a labyrinth has only one path in and out, and isn’t designed to get you lost. Some excitedly recount their own stories of time spent in a labyrinth. Others are curious about how a walking meditation tool can help them access their own inner knowing and enhance their relationship with God.

What is a labyrinth? It is an ancient symbol and usually outdoor space used as a metaphor for our own spiritual journey. There are many uses for a labyrinth. Some use a labyrinth as a walking meditation tool to pause and slow...