reflect Archives - Sip of Sunlight

welcome home

November 18, 2022 4 Comments

On a summery Saturday night, a month after moving to the east coast, it felt like someone, somewhere, flipped a switch and suddenly my life turned from black and white to technicolor. Sitting on a bar stool at Rosemary’s East just steps from my apartment, I was struck by a feeling I hadn’t felt so distinctly in months – a feeling that extends beyond joy and gratitude – a feeling that I had finally arrived home. Not just back to a physical place I had dearly missed in the years I lived away, but a feeling that the life I imagined and the life I was actually living had finally collided. Turning toward Colleen, I felt a […]

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how are you, really?

January 26, 2022 No Comments

Hey there – it has been a long time, hasn’t it? A long time of waiting for the world to really feel safe again. A long time of shifting and flexing plans. A long time of celebrating the small joys. For me, it’s also been a long time since I felt that familiar spark of creativity and urge to write. The desire to write was there, deep down, or rather the desire to be filled with so much joy and awe that I felt compelled to create and share my joy with anyone that wanted to join in. Processing the thoughts swirling around in my brain, and appreciating small joyful moments in my own life, proved to […]

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dearest 2019

January 15, 2020 No Comments

My cheeks ached from smiling. I pushed the hair out of my face and continued to dance, pausing for just a moment while we yelled in unison: “5, 4, 3, 2, 1, HAPPY NEW YEAR!” My heart swelled in my chest as I looked around me. We danced, we sang, and we celebrated. I could not have asked for a sweeter finale to 2019. Standing beside one of my best friends on her wedding day was a blessing and a privilege. Under twinkly lights in a tent in Austin, I felt like I was exactly where I was supposed to be. It’s a feeling I want to capture in a jar and save forever. 2019: my first […]

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dig deep

December 21, 2019 No Comments

Bright skies. The air buzzing with a palpable energy. Rock bands, church choirs, families lining the streets. A blur of color ahead of me and the deafening sound of footsteps and cheers surrounding me. New York, New York. November 3, 2019. The pinch started in my calves, radiating down my legs and into my feet. NO LEGS! SUCK IT UP! WE ARE NOT STOPPING RIGHT NOW. I could barely hear myself think over the cheers and the music. I told myself I was ready for this. In the nights leading up to the marathon I had purposely read through my run journal to remind myself of all the tough runs that I endured. Running a track workout […]

reflect, wander

that cascade mountain high

August 14, 2019 1 Comment

There is something magical about pitching a tent in the wilderness and spending a night outside, miles away from the comforts of home. The air is filled with the scent of pine needles, you are tuned in to every sound around you, and the sunlight streaming into your tent early in the morning will wake you much, much earlier than you had planned. There’s even a certain heaviness to the type of sleep that you experience when you are out in the backcountry – if you can fall asleep and stay asleep that is. I’ve had some of the deepest, restorative slumbers swaddled in a sleeping bag, but also some of my most restless nights. Flashback to July […]

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when life gives you mountains, put on your boots and hike

May 17, 2019 No Comments

We walked along, our footsteps falling into a rhythm, the only audible sounds being the crunch of an occasional pinecone and our shoes kicking up the soft dirt with each step. The sun was warm and strong for so early in the season, beating down on us as we meandered our way along the shore of Lake Chelan. With images of gooey cinnamon buns swirling around in our minds, we kept walking – right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot. As we walked along, I thought back to last fall, when I hiked up to Cascade Pass in the pouring rain with my dad. The weather that day could not have been more opposite than this […]

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the space between

April 25, 2019 No Comments

The sun was warm on my skin, the air smelled like honeysuckle, and Denali was pressed up against my leg chewing on a stick she found. Sitting on the damp grass in the backyard of my childhood home, I realized that I could not remember the last time I simply sat in stillness – without distraction, without worrying about where I had to be, and without thinking about something I should be doing instead. If I was back in New Jersey just a couple weeks earlier, I might have been peeking at my phone while scratching behind Denali’s ear – missing the chance to sit in peace and soak up the sunshine, the fresh air, and the […]

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I flow, but am I rooted?

February 13, 2019 4 Comments

I still tell people I just moved to Seattle even though it’s been close to seven months since I left Texas and nearly three years since I lived on the East Coast. Whether I’m in an airport, on a chairlift, or in a taxi, the question is usually the same so, where are you from? I usually stutter, not sure how best to answer. I know I should just say Seattle to keep things simple. I grew up in New Jersey, then I lived in Houston for a little while, now I live in Seattle. My friends tease me – just say Seattle! Does less than a year in a city warrant that type of a response? […]

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dearest 2018

January 31, 2019 No Comments

2018 was a year I know I’ll look back on with a smile. Not because it was without challenges, but because I entered 2019 happy, healthy, and whole. If I had a highlight reel to sum up 2018, it would be all over the place. It was the year I took routine and threw it out the window, also the year I decided to just take it all in stride and keep smiling even when I’m a little overtired (& jet lagged).

reflect, wander

the granola diaries

October 18, 2018 1 Comment

It had become an evening ritual – setting everything up the night before so that I could be efficient in the morning and not waste a moment of daylight. An alarm set to wake me before sunrise? Check. A full tank of gas? Check. Almond butter and jelly sandwich in the fridge? Check. Two liters of water in my Camelback? Check. Deciding on how many layers to wear and setting my hiking boots by the front door? Check. All my other gear neatly shoved into my pack? Check. A post-it note on my backpack to remind me to take that sandwich out of the fridge and pack it? Check. Over the past three months, I willingly lugged […]