Stories from the S.A.F.E. Space -“The Hummingbird in Me”

I think if I had to choose a spirit animal, I’d be a hummingbird.

Not because it’s cute or poetic (though it is both), but because it feels true to the way I’ve had to live — moving from space to space, dream to dream, season to season, carrying pieces of myself everywhere I go. Always searching for the next place where beauty and purpose meet.

Hummingbirds are small, but they are fierce. They move fast, but they’re intentional. They hover — suspended between moments — with wings that blur from the speed of their purpose. That’s me, or at least who I’m learning to be.

If you’ve followed THRIVE Artists’ Group, you know I talk a lot about art and mental health. But here, in this little corner called Stories from the S.A.F.E. Space, I want to let you in on the story behind the story — the real, unfiltered, sometimes messy middle of what it means to be an artist, a mental health professional, and a woman still figuring it all out.

I’ve known exhaustion.
I’ve known self-doubt.
I’ve known the quiet ache of giving your all to something and wondering if it’s enough.

But I’ve also known what it feels like to rise again — to return to the dance floor, to the page, to the studio, and remember that creativity is not about perfection. It’s about permission. It’s about making space to feel, to heal, to begin again.

That’s why I built THRIVE — not just as a program or organization, but as a movement. A reminder that artists are human first. That our stories, our bodies, our mental health, and our creative process are deeply connected.

This blog is my way of taking you with me — into the moments that shaped me, the lessons I’m still learning, and the ways I continue to fuse art with healing. It won’t always be polished, but it will always be real.

Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that transparency is freedom. When we tell the truth — even the trembling, unfinished parts — we give others permission to do the same.

So this space, my S.A.F.E. Space, will always be:
Secure. Accepting. Free/Friendly. Empathic.
It’s a space for reflection and connection — for anyone who’s ever tried to keep flying while carrying the weight of it all.

The hummingbird in me believes that beauty and resilience can coexist. That joy can be both delicate and strong. That no matter how heavy life gets, we can always find our way back to the sweetness.

And I want to help you find it, too.

✨ TAG, You’re It!
Take a moment to pause and reflect:

Where in your life do you feel yourself hovering — caught between holding on and moving forward?
What’s one small act of creativity or self-compassion that could help you take flight again?