May 2026: Make process the focus of regular progress

Where are your favorite hiking places?

As I continue to experiment with creative sense-making methods for building community, the way that I work is starting to change. Thanks to my marine biology professor, Dr Jean Replicon, I am building a habit of going outdoors at least once a week, and bringing my nature journal with me. I believe I will continue doing this, although I won't have the privilege of being with her guidance and enthusiasm.

I'm excited about the idea of bringing sketchers to explore together, and some of these will be wild places that I have visited with my marine biology class. Others places will be completely new, and this means I have to continue scouting before each event is planned. I'm asking myself the questions that need to be asked, while making a mental map of the places: "Does this place have an accessible bathroom? Is there even enough terrain for an unsteady walker? How is the parking situation?" And so on...It could be fun as well to travel to other places and co-host in other cities in the future.

If you have a favorite place to sketch or hike in your city, let me know.

How to slow the flow of worry in busy or uncertain times

Dear friends,

Maycember is here in my household. All of the activities that used to stretch across May and June are now collapsed into a single, almost breathless month. End-of-year awards ceremonies, school parties and gatherings, while all wonderful, they happen all at once. We have fewer lazy weekends for our family to spend recharging.

To add to the squeeze, last Friday, there was a scary event that occurred in our neighborhood. I will spare you the specific details, but our elementary school chose to implement Shelter in Place. The children are safe, and the event happened outside of the school. But, events like these may seem all too familiar to us nowadays. Between work, school or financial pressures, heavy new cycles or irrational violence, it's no surprise that we want to seek out more softness and a temporary distraction from the outside world.

Too often, we wait for a crisis before showing kindness to our own spirit. What if instead we make this a regular practice, rather than waiting for the breaking point? This may seem easier said than done, especially in a month like this one! Nature is always waiting, as long as we go seek it out. Creativity may flow more easily if we go find it. What are your favorite ways to practice your creativity and self-care on the regular?

Here are a few things that seem to work well, especially in times of grief or difficulty. These strategies are more effective with regular practice.

Make a bouquet of flowers: We often give bouquets to others, but sometimes I find the act of making one for myself is a necessary self-care endeavor. If you are a gardener (or you know of a friendly one), you can gather flowers into a bouquet as part of the fun. I like to buy cut flowers that haven't budded yet. Over the next few days, the flowers will bloom and it always feels like a surprise.

This simple act of self-love never fails in nudging me back to my sketchbook. The goal here is allowing water to flow, and it doesn't always do what I want it to do. That's OK. It's progress.

Draw pancakes: This one comes from another nature journaling friend. At the start of each morning, she will commit to drawing something for the day. Some days if she is feeling uncreative, she will draw a lot of circles. She calls them flat pancakes, because the circles are very "un-circle-like." This is smart: she gets her hand moving, and the brain can warm up to start thinking and seeing. It's muscle memory that allows her the flow of creativity.

Practice a 10-minute walk: This sounds all too simple. Walking doesn't need a destination, and you can meander for as long as you like to. If you can, find your favorite walking spot. Bring a sketchbook and pen, if you can, so that you don't have to think about your tools. Ideally, it's a safe place where you can see flowers or tress growing. Or, it can simply be wandering on the patio of your backyard.

I know of an accomplished leader who starts his day with a short walk every morning. Along the way, he may find something in nature that he likes, with the iPhone camera as his tool of choice. He isn't looking to take perfect pictures. It's the fun of being on a walk and capturing something new. After many days, he will have an album of his 10-minute walks, and he can always look back on these photos with fondness and more ease. 📸