This year, grief can walk beside you —
But it does not get to carry you, and you do not have to carry it into the new year.

I Just Want My Life Back is my personal audio journal — small, quiet reflections from a life reshaped by loss. It’s separate from my professional work with the International Firebird Book Awards, yet deeply connected in spirit: both are about truth-telling, expression, and finding meaning through words. These are qualities I also value deeply in the books and authors we honor.