Roots, Reunion, and the Alberta Sky

June carried me back to where I began.

I had the privilege of attending my 30-year class reunion — stepping back into the town that shaped me, seeing faces I grew up with, laughing at memories I hadn't thought about in years. There's something quietly sacred about that kind of gathering. The way a familiar voice can reach across decades and find you exactly where you are.

And yet, I felt like a stranger.

Not in a painful way — more like someone who has grown into a different shape than the space they once filled. Because somewhere along the way, Alberta became home. My children are here. My friendships are here. My mornings begin with skies so wide and luminous they feel like a gift — like the land itself is painting something new every single day.

Stony Plain has given me roots I didn't know I was searching for.

So June was a month of two worlds: the one I came from, and the one I've chosen. Both are part of me. Both live in my work — in the colours I reach for, in the stories I try to tell through every piece I create.

To my Alberta community: thank you for being my home. I don't take it lightly. 🙏✨