I’ll be honest—this feels humbling to share.
Earlier this week, I wrote to you about my journey from feeling like roadkill—flattened, exhausted, undone—to reclaiming my RADIANCE. Ta Da! I even included a bright, shiny photo to prove it.
And then… life brought me back down to earth. Hard. This past week, I got really sick. I’d been nursing a cold but never truly slowing down—still rushing through work, mothering, and projects with my usual multi-tasking pace.
Self-care? Minimal. Rest? Scarce.
So of course, my healing has been slow. This feels like the nastiest cold I’ve had in my whole life.
And then yesterday morning, in the middle of a coughing fit, tissues piling up, my husband Stephen looked at me and said with a smirk: “From Roadkill to Radiant, eh?” I had to laugh. He was right. In that moment I was anything but radiant. I told him my new headline should read: “From Roadkill to Radiant… and then Back to Roadkill Again!”
Because here’s the truth: none of us are radiant all the time. If you’re anything like me, you may sometimes glow, sometimes collapse, and often land somewhere in between.
That’s not failure—it’s being human. But when we do feel like roadkill, what helps us find our way back to radiance?
Here are a few reflections that I’ve been leaning into this week:
🌹 Extend Compassion to Yourself When you’re off your game, don’t heap shame or judgment on top of it. Instead, soften. Ask your tender self: How am I really feeling in body, mind, and spirit? What do I need to feel known, seen, and loved right now? What is the most compassionate thing I can do for myself?
🌹 Take a Sacred Pause When you’re not at your best, it’s not the time to hit cruise control. It’s the time to slow waaaay down. Rest deeply. Nine or ten hours of sleep if you can. Let your body and soul be nourished.
🌹 Fill Your Cup to Overflow Ask yourself: What brings me simple joy? Then give yourself permission to receive it. For me, that includes: Sitting by the Yuba River, one of my sacred sanctuaries here in Nevada City. Long baths with salts, candles, and music. Gentle, slow yoga (yin is my favorite). A delicious massage with a trusted healer. Spacious time with friends who make me laugh.
These practices don’t just heal—they remind us that radiance is not something we achieve. It’s something we allow. So if you’re feeling a bit “roadkill” right now, take heart. Radiance hasn’t abandoned you. It’s simply waiting for your tenderness, your pause, and your joy to welcome it home again.
