Spiritual

It’s Just Change

/ still a dreamer / Leave a comment

That makes change sound so simple, so casual, right? Yet just the word ‘change’ can have some of us already feeling anxious, because we so often associate change with something negative.

Photo: towfiqu-barbhuiya / unsplash

But what if we could look at change from a different angle, and consider that all change is ultimately good for us in some way. What if we could take that a step further, and consider that everything is always working out in our favor?

That’s a concept that I would have likely disagreed with a couple years ago. I’ve since changed my mind. However, it does take an intentional shift in perspective. Every experience we have contains within it the opportunity to grow, and to find/be something better.

We can sit and stew and whine and complain about something that’s happening or … we can step back and look at it, and say, `what’s here for me to learn? How can this change benefit me?’ You might be surprised at what you find.

Photo: Ellis Garvey / unsplash, Instagram @ellisgarvey

This doesn’t discount the fact that change is sometimes painful. There is no growth without discomfort or pain. But if we can make that shift in perspective, and be willing to look at the bigger picture?

We can grow and find more happiness, more contentment, in our lives. In whatever time it takes, in the end? It’s just change, and you and I are strong enough to handle it.

The Right to Daydream

/ still a dreamer / 8 Comments

Is it okay to just stare out the window and do nothing for a while?

It’s Memorial Day weekend. Sadly, for all the barbecues, parades, and outdoor activities planned, it’s going to be a complete washout. It’s been raising all day and it will continue through till Tuesday. For myself, I have a couple smaller get-togethers planned, both indoors with friends, and which include coffee.

When I came back home from brunch earlier, I realized I had no desire to do anything. Truly, nothing. I brought my book, a sketchbook, and my phone over to the sofa by the front windows, invited Charlie to come and curl up, and looked out at the rain.

And despite a little scrolling and reading a few pages, that’s what I did — stared out at the rain. I watched the patterns it made in the big puddle at the edge of the sidewalk. I watched a squirrel pop up on my porch railing and eat a walnut he had unearthed from somewhere. I watched the trees swaying in the dark and cloudless sky. It felt good.

With all the things we always have to do or feel compelled to do, are we not entitled to spend some time “doing nothing”? Can we not just let go of all the `shoulds’ that so tightly bind us?

Do we not have the right to daydream?

Here’s hoping, whatever the weekend weather is bringing to you, that you take the time to curl up and look out your window and watch the world go by. Even if only for a little while.

The Symbol of the Butterfly

/ still a dreamer / 5 Comments

What is the meaning of a butterfly? Often, the butterfly symbolizes change, due to its dramatic transformation from a caterpillar to a magnificent winged creature. In Japanese, Burmese, and many other cultures the butterfly is seen as a symbol for the soul.

Was symbolism intended when I wrote my picture book, Where Do Butterflies Go at Night?

If you had asked me when I first wrote it in 2009, I would have said `no’, but I now question if I didn’t have more in mind than even I knew. I submitted “Butterflies” to agents and traditional publishers for many years. Although I often got positive feedback, it was ultimate;y rejected because it was in rhyme, and rhyme is hard to sell.

A small, independent publisher saw the beauty in my story of the magical imaginings of a child who wondered where the butterflies went at night. It was published with the lovely art of Stella Maris Mongodi, who brought the sweet simplicity of the cabbage white butterfly to life in a whole new and charming way.

When the original publisher closed its doors, I self-published this, my debut picture book, now identifying it as “2nd Edition.” In 2025, it won a first place award in the poetry category from a prestigious reviewer of children’s books. And in my most recent picture book school presentation, I decided to do something a little differently.

In emphasizing the concept of change from caterpillar to butterfly, I talked with 1st and 2nd graders about the importance of embracing change; being brave in the face of change; and understanding that all change is ultimately working in our favor. One might think little ones wouldn’t get that, but they did. Sometimes wiser than we adults, they did.

And so, the butterfly has become a symbol of transformation for me, as well. I’ve gone through many changes with these butterflies and their story. They continue to light my path, and I am still unfolding.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Where Do Butterflies Go at Night, 2nd Edition is available on Amazon and in also my Etsy shop, if you would like your copy signed.

Photo credits:
BW butterfly: pexels/6th Era Photography; @stories_by_sixthera
Blue butterfly: pexels/aarngiri; @aarn_giri
Cabbage white butterfly: pexels/mali maeder
Butterfly illustration: Stella Maris Mongodi

Recognition

/ still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Recognition is important. We all need a pat on the back here and there, or just an acknowledgment of our efforts, if not a final accomplishment. It’s what fuels our moving forward, or simply trying again.

When we work so hard at something, it’s nice to have someone say so. In this case, I recently received the awards package from Northern Lights Book Awards for my picture book, Where Do Butterflies Go at Night? 2nd Edition. It includes these beautiful gold seals to affix to books, and a certificate. They made the recognition tangible.

This acknowledgment may not mean much to you unless you know me personally, and how long I’ve been involved in children’s books. Years. Decades. Intense periods and fallow periods. It takes a long time to see your work in print, whether traditionally published, as this book initially was, or self-published, and all the work I put into that.

What seems like a lifetime ago, in 2011, I received an award from the Dog Writers Association of America in the Painting/Art Category for this Frenchie drawing. It was submitted by someone I knew who hadn’t told me they’d done so. The announcement was a complete surprise. A very lovely one. I consider myself lucky to have received both these awards.

But the reality is that we don’t always get external acknowledgments like these, no matter how long or often we’ve been trying.

And the reality also is that you have actually accomplished a lot that’s worthy of recognition. It could be any number of things – pushing through disappointments of all kinds and coming out on the other side; surviving a break-up; losing a loved one; finishing a project; accomplishing a goal; keeping quiet when you really wanted to blow-up; accepting change.

It really can be anything. Sometimes just getting out of bed in the morning can be an accomplishment.

Take a moment and give yourself a pat on the back. Stand a little taller. In some way that I, and most people, can’t see and may never know, you have still done good. Congratulations. Keep going. You’re doing better than you think.

Turning the Page to 2026

/ still a dreamer / 12 Comments

It’s not much more than that, really, is it? Turning a page? But there is some kind of magical idea that everything can change at the stroke of midnight on December 31st. Hmmm … I like magic.

I prefer not to make New Year’s resolutions, but I do like taking time to reflect on the year gone by, and thinking about what I’d like to see in my own life going forward.

Read along. Some of these might be for you, too.

In 2026, I would like to … (in no particular order)

  • spend less time on anything that doesn’t feed and enrich my heart, my soul, my life’s purpose
  • gain more clarity on exactly what my life purpose is at this point in time so I can make some meaningful contribution to life here on Earth
  • continue to accept that I am always exactly where I’m supposed to be, no matter what it sometimes feels like
  • release more self-limiting beliefs
  • better acknowledge my gifts and talents, and face my fears
  • find/spend more time with people who truly “get” me
  • let go of what no longer serves me, and be OK with it
  • Trust

Do any of these work for you? Have an addition or two? Your thoughts are always welcome.

I hope 2026 brings you beautiful and wondrous things. You deserve all the good. Happy New Year.