Begin Again: 2026 Intention

Let me take a moment to look back.

2025 was, in many ways, a good year for me. I was making steady progress and felt mostly fulfilled in my work. I showed up consistently for Simple Crumb Bakery and even joined our very first market. I also had the opportunity to present a workshop at a teachers’ conference, which felt both affirming and challenging in the best way.

In these different spaces, 2025 witnessed me growing purposefully and gracefully. I moved at a pace that felt right for me. Because of that, much of what I pursued carried a sense of joy rather than urgency. I wasn’t rushing toward outcomes; I was learning to stay present in the process.

Still, the year did not end on a particularly good note. In its final days, we experienced grief and deep sadness. That season reminded me quite starkly of how fragile and precious life is. It made me profoundly grateful for family and friends.

As someone who is used to planning and holding things together, those last days of 2025 also taught me something uncomfortable but necessary: how to let go. Trying to maintain control was exhausting and when I finally loosened my grip, it was humbling. Letting go did not fix everything but it softened me. It reminded me that I don’t always have to carry the weight alone.

As I look ahead, I find myself longing for the same sense of ease that much of last year held. At the same time, I recognize that much of my growth in 2025 was centered on work. Somewhere along the way, my creativity, especially the kind that involves working with my hands, quietly took a backseat.

This year, I want to return to my creative roots. I want to make space for curiosity, for play, for making. I also want to continue learning how to trust - trust the timing, trust the process, and trust myself - with a looser grip on control.

So for 2026, I’m setting a simple intention:

Create joyfully. Let go humbly.

May this year be less about striving and more about becoming. Less about holding everything together and more about allowing things to unfold. And more than anything, may it be a year of creating joyfully, making with intention, curiosity, and delight, simply for the sake of it.