The Guild of Bookworkers Mid-Career Award
December 9, 2025I still remember the moment when my husband said to me, “Everything doesn’t have to be big.” We were driving somewhere. I had just announced that I wanted to ride my bike across the country, or walk the Camino, or some other kind of massive endurance event. And that’s when those words came out. At first I was discouraged by what felt like his lack of encouragement.
As I sat with the words, I recognized the power within them.
Walking the Camino begins by putting on my shoes and walking down the drive. Riding across the country starts with riding my bike. 5 minutes. 10 minutes. The little adds up to the big. Consistency more important than the grand.
It doesn’t mean that I don’t do the big things. I do. But sometimes my life doesn’t allow for the big things. That’s when the smaller daily, regular things add up and become a foundation that might just one day become something bigger.
In 2012, I started a daily December practice. I LOVE calendars, especially Advent Calendars. My mom made one for me and my siblings that was so 1970’s, felt on felt, Little cut out doors and windows that opened to a tiny picture of light. Nothing extravagant. No, this one was handmade, simple, building towards Christmas in an anticipatory way that wasn’t just about consumption.
This conspicuous consumption that surrounds us at this time of year led me to that first day in December 13 years ago. I wanted to do something that might just help me focus on what the holiday season means to me–seeking light, goodness, fellowship, often with found family and friends. I treasure this time and the solitude that I try to cultivate as I pray, meditate, reflect, and create.
Back to December 1, 2012. I began a Collage-A-Day Advent Calendar. I made a collage inspired by a daily reading and wrote a blog post (which you can still find on this website) that sometimes responded to the reading. Many of the blog posts became creative pep talks. A couple of years into this December practice, I added prompts for those who wanted to make along with me. Eventually the posts and collages became my book, Collage Your Life. Perfect example of the small, the daily, the consistent becoming something big.
What I've noticed over the years, is that the first few collages of the month are a little forced, me trying to "make something that's cohesive" instead of listening to the materials and make what wants to be made. That's what happened today when I made this one.
open
keep
elevating
the possible
join
a new frontier
When I let the collages become what I need them to become versus what I think they should be, I typically like them more. Maybe today's collage should be "stop trying so hard."
Fast-forward 13 years. I still make the collages. I still read something. Occasionally I'll post on Instagram or this blog. This post features the first 11 of 2025!
