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Lessons from within

 

The Call to Return: Beginning Your Hero’s Journey

Every year, as December arrives, I feel a familiar pull—an inner nudge to slow down, to look back, and to ask: What is calling me home?

In a culture that celebrates productivity and constant motion, this can feel countercultural. We’re trained to finish strong, check the boxes, push through. But nature has other wisdom to offer. Winter invites rest, reflection, and the sacred pause before renewal.

This is what I call The Call to Return—the moment in your own story when life asks you to come home to yourself. It’s not about starting over or reinventing everything. It’s about remembering what’s true beneath all the striving and realigning your energy with what matters most.

The Hero’s Journey, Reimagined

In myth and story, the hero leaves home, faces trials, gathers wisdom, and then returns—transformed and ready to share what they’ve learned. That final stage, the return, is often overlooked, yet it’s the most essential.

We each experience this cycle in our own way. Sometimes “the call” comes through burnout or restlessness; other times it shows up as a knowing that we’ve drifted from our center. The return asks us to stop running long enough to listen—to reclaim our energy, our rhythm, our sense of purpose.

Coming Home to Yourself

Coming home might look like:

  • Saying no to what drains you, even when it’s uncomfortable

  • Choosing stillness over speed

  • Letting go of the version of yourself that was built to please others

  • Making room for curiosity, creativity, and rest

When we answer this call, life softens. We stop forcing clarity and start living from connection.

Join Me for a Live December Gathering

On Tuesday, December 3rd, I’ll be hosting a free 60-minute online gathering called
The Call to Return: Beginning Your Hero’s Journey.

It’s part reflection, part conversation—a chance to pause before the year ends.
You’ll leave with:

  • A simple guided process to clarify what’s calling you home

  • A short embodiment practice to ground your intentions

  • Space to reflect on the year behind you and the one ahead

It’s also a preview of my 2026 Prioritize Your Self-Care workshop series, beginning in January with an in-person retreat at The ARC Retreat Center near Cambridge, Minnesota.

Come As You Are

You don’t need to prepare anything—just bring yourself, a notebook, and maybe a cup of tea.
If you’ve been longing to slow down and realign before the new year, this hour is for you.

[Reserve Your Spot for the Free Webinar – December 3rd]

May this season invite you back to what’s essential—your breath, your purpose, and the knowing that you can always return home to yourself.

Susan GainesComment