🌾 The Path Beyond the Pines

Essence Grove™ has always been a safe space, never for venting, but for growing. For hope.
Hope for me.
Hope for you.
Hope for all of us, trying to make sense of this messy, beautiful world. I’m trying to stay true to that, stay intentional.

We began as a Michigan-rooted dream. But something in me has always longed to go further: warmer places, softer air, new soil to grow in. Lately, Michigan’s chill has crept into my bones in a way I can’t shake. It’s time for sunlight on my skin. For change. And as much as I’ve resisted, I can’t ignore the signs any longer.

Some signs are quiet, like wind nudging petals. Others feel like thunder. I found a death record under my married name in Nebraska, not mine, but still a message. A symbol, maybe. I’ve crossed paths with strangers bearing names I once would’ve followed across the country. The universe has started picking the playlist. I’ve stopped resisting. I’ve started listening.

Maybe that’s why I’m still here, because I believe. In the same way you believe in the light returning after the longest night. In the same way I wrote Essence Grove™ without realizing I was writing about the part of me that still felt missing.

There’s someone I always seem to look for when life grows quiet. Not for a reply, just for knowing he’s okay. I cared in ways I couldn’t speak back then. I tried to be safe. I tried to be small.

Once, someone found my journal. Not just read it, but devoured every page. Words I had never said aloud. Feelings I never shared. I burned those pages that day.

I stopped writing for a while.

My mistake was allowing it to stop me.

I write now, because silence never saved me.

Essence Grove™ is about a girl who is reborn.
She walks into the woods as a child: lost, tired, small.
She later was reborn as a Vireya, still learning, still healing, still searching for the one she’s always sensed was waiting for her, just beyond the spiral.
Not a love story. A soul story. A truth story.

Some days I don’t know where the path is leading. I still trust it.
Even when I’m unsure.
Even when I ache.
Even when I’ve messed up so much.

I’m still learning how to save myself. And I know that might sound heavy, but hear this: I am not drowning. I am breathing. Slowly. Bravely.
You are not alone in the chaos of your big, beautiful emotions. We don’t have to be perfect to be worthy of peace.

Let’s end with a breath together. A gentle yoga sequence to center, to soften, to say thank you.

Stand like a mountain.
Feet grounded. Hands resting at your sides. Feel the earth hold you.

Raise your arms overhead.
Palms meet like a sun rising between your fingers.

Bring your hands to your heart.
And whisper, “Thank you… for all the good I have received.”

Exhale.
Let go of the doubts.
Let go of the heaviness.
Let go of what does not serve your peace.

You are here.
That is enough.
Always.

With love,
C’Anna 🌿