Community has been a defining thread throughout my life.

From growing up in a rural community… to the people who showed up when my father died… to the colleagues who helped me survive my first years of teaching… I’ve seen again and again that we were never meant to carry life alone.

In this episode, I reflect on the power of community—both the people down the hall and the people across the country who become part of our professional village.

Teaching can leave the stress cycle open day after day. The expectations, the meetings, the pressure to cover curriculum… sometimes our bodies respond like we’ve just seen a lion in the wild. Drawing on insights from the book Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski, we talk about how community helps us close that stress cycle.

Because sometimes the most important thing we can do for each other is simple: laugh together, walk together, cry together, and remind each other we’re not alone.

If you’re feeling the weight of the work right now, this episode is an invitation to find—or become—someone’s village.