The Surprising Thing That Reignited My Spark ✨

VOL. 1 • ISSUE 1

The lake was still frozen when I arrived.

The half inch of snow from the day before had melted, but the kayaks at the neighbouring campsite sat sadly on the ground—unused. I laughed with the couple camping beside me as we acknowledged the realities of Northern Alberta in May.

Then I got to work.

Motorhome parked. Chair positioned. Lake view optimized.

Because I had come here for one reason:

To finally finish something that had quietly been draining my energy for years.

This was my fourth solo wilderness writing trip.

The last few were about escaping the busyness of life. Rest. Reflection. Recalibration.

But this one?

This one had a mission.

It actually started months earlier when I was on a road trip with my sister-in-law and she casually asked:

“Why don’t you ever promote your book?”

My outside answer was probably thoughtful.

My inside answer?

Because I hate it.

Not the story.

The story still mattered deeply to me.

But the cover? The format? The very self-help-y vibe of it? 🤢

The truth is, somewhere along the way, the book stopped feeling like me.

After writing a deeply personal story about my ten-day silent meditation experience, I started listening to everyone else about what the book “should” be.

Add steps for the reader.

Include quotes from famous authors.

Tone this down.

That story doesn’t support your authority.

(One person even suggested I sounded reckless 🙄...Umm Ya!)

So I adjusted.

And edited.

And polished.

And tried to make it more… publishable.

More credible.

More helpful.

More what I thought it was supposed to be.

Until one day I realized:

I had written a book I didn’t even want to talk about.

And if I’m being really honest?

I think it became an open loop I was quietly carrying.

You know the kind.

The thing sitting in the background taking up energy.

The thing you avoid because it no longer feels true.

The thing whispering, we’re not done here.

So I brought it to the lake.

And this time, I stopped trying to make it what everyone else thought it should be.

I trusted myself.

I stripped out what didn’t belong.

Kept the soul.

Brought back my voice.

Made it feel like mine again.

And when I finished the rewrite—at 12:12 on Saturday —something surprising happened.

Turns out, before I could help anyone else reignite their spark…I had to reignite my own.

And suddenly, I came back to life.

Not overnight in some (typical Carla) dramatic movie montage kind of way.

But noticeably.

Suddenly I had energy again.

👩🏼‍🎨 Creativity.

🎉 Excitement.

💡 Ideas.

✍🏻 I wanted to write.

Create.

Build.

Reconnect.

Not because I forced myself to.

Because I genuinely felt excited again.

And it made me wonder:

How many of us are carrying around something unfinished—or untrue—that is quietly draining the very energy we think we’ve lost?

Maybe the spark isn’t gone.

Maybe something is simply waiting to be completed, reclaimed…or finally made true again.

On this week's 🎶 Playlist: 

Light On — because sometimes reigniting your spark looks less like a breakthrough…and more like finding your way back to yourself.

True connection feels important right now.

More meaningful conversations.

Coming next issue: real-life conversations, behind-the-scenes thoughts (there are approximately a bajillion of these 😘), and the occasional life confession (okay…more than occasional).

Stay tuned…

Confession #5324 🤣

I have spent more time choosing fonts for this newsletter than I did deciding to become a firefighter.