Shame takes me out of connection and makes it really challenging to show up for change-making. I imagine I’m not alone in that experience.

I’m sharing these action items in case you need them too, and as a reminder to my future self, who will definitely need them again. 

Changemaking is hard. Reaching out is vulnerable. Celebrating can feel frivolous. And each one is totally worth it.

Play, singing, time in the woods — these aren't extras or indulgences. They are key strategies for my sustainability as a changemaker. They help me access hope, imagine the future, and take action toward what I believe in. Resilience, in this way, is an essential part of organizing.

Some of the most meaningful facilitation work I do happens at the edges of what's planned — in the moments when a group surprises me, when a framework emerges from conversation, or when a team demonstrates a kind of collective capacity I hadn't anticipated.

This kind of resourcing — returning to the body, to the natural world, to something larger than the moment — is something I've been learning to treat as a serious practice rather than a last resort. 

Community events can build belonging. Belonging can create possibilities we can’t even imagine.