jondance76

How is it already October? September was full. Full of people, conversations, teaching, travel, recovery, and opportunities that I’m still taking in. Now I’m in California, getting ready to speak at the Trauma Resource Institute’s 20th Anniversary Conference, and trying to give myself a minute to appreciate how I got here. Time is flying. But lately, I’ve noticed that trying to be more present and grounded helps me slow it down just enough to enjoy it. Enough to feel grateful while something...

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about one of those sayings I heard around recovery that has stayed with me: Keep your side of the street clean before you start worrying about somebody else’s. It sounds simple. But the longer I am in recovery, and the more time I spend around recovery, wellness, public health, and community work, the more I realize how difficult it actually is to live that way. Because we are really good at looking across the street. We notice what somebody else is doing.

This space exists because people’s voices matter. Stories matter. Rural stories matter. Struggles matter. Progress, not perfection, matters. For a long time, I have watched people carry heavy things quietly. Not just related to drugs or alcohol, but related to life. Stress. Shame. Burnout. Grief. Loneliness. Confusion. The pressure to look like you have it all together even when you are barely holding things together inside. What I kept seeing, across classrooms, recovery spaces, community...