Standing at the Threshold: The Courage to Begin Before You Know the Way.

“How do you make something from nothing?”

- - - > You imagine. You envision. You speak it into existence.

“But what if something even greater wants to be born?

What if there’s a possibility beyond your wildest imagination waiting just ahead on your path?

Do you still sit down to write?

Do you still take the time to ponder, dream, and share?”

- - - > An emphatic “YES!” echoes through my mind, through space and time, and through the quiet void between all that was, is, and is yet to come.

We must keep creating…otherwise the current grows stagnant.

Only by writing the imperfect words and speaking the half-formed idea do we make room for the creative flow to pour in, fill the void, refine the message, and draw to us something greater than we could have ever imagined alone.

We are creation AND creator. Every act of creativity is already a co-creation with the Great Creator.

That’s how it began for me seven years ago, when a new life was stirring just beneath the surface. There was only an inkling—more time outdoors, more exploring with my kids while my body was still strong enough to wander the wild places my grandfather and father had only dreamed of seeing.

I didn’t know how it would happen, so I did what I could, where I was.

More walks down the tree-lined lane.

More stopping to admire the leaves instead of counting steps.

More following my bliss, like driving four hours to chase waterfalls on Mother’s Day because that’s what my heart wanted.

More saying yes to nudges, like attending a conference in the mountains simply because it felt right.

It was there, on a porch overlooking the painted Smoky Mountains, surrounded by women in a later season of life, that I voiced my “crazy idea” to sell everything, move into an RV, and explore this country with my kids while they still wanted to be with me.

Their encouragement breathed life into a dream I hadn’t yet dared to believe, and that weekend, at the conference I almost skipped, I made a decision that changed the course of our lives.

Back home, the weight of what had to be done settled on my shoulders: sell the things, toss the things, pack the things—so many things. Yet with every item we released, momentum grew.

And somewhere between the purging and the planning, I began to truly enjoy the life we already had. Why hadn’t I allowed myself that before?

A new resolve took root: less stuff, more experience. Less judgment, more presence. Less worry, more joy.

Meanwhile, at work, I found my voice. I started speaking up and naming what needed to change in public education, calling out the quick fixes that ignored what mattered most: the learners.

That’s where the next chapter of my story began, and now, I’m interested in hearing about yours…

Maybe you feel that same quiet stirring, a restlessness that tells you something new is asking to be born. You can sense it, but the path isn’t clear yet. That’s the moment when many of us try to force clarity, when really what’s being asked of us is to pause…to breathe…to listen.

If that’s where you are right now, between what was and what’s next, you’re standing at a threshold.

I’d love to meet you there. <3 ~ Steph

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You don’t have to have it all figured out; you just have to show up curious and willing to look.

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