Life is One Big Transition - An Introduction to the Transitions in Flight Series

Why this matters

We talk a lot about goals and plans, but most of what actually shapes us are the transitions we never saw coming. Transitions in Flight —and the stories that follow—are about learning to treat those in‑between times not as interruptions, but as the real work of becoming who we are.

Transitions are inevitable; they’re how we awaken and resuscitate life. I’ve never had a ten‑year plan—just gusting winds that sweep down, lift me into a new reality, and carry me until the next landing. Transitions in Flight grew out of one of those moments, as I stepped into retirement from the corporate world and tried to make sense of four decades of motion and emotion.

Every color and swirl in this piece blends into the next—bright to dark, back to bright. Every knot and fiber locks a past version of me to the next one. The work looked completely different at first, but something kept insisting there was more to come, nudging me to change direction at key points. It mirrors the way real transitions feel: sometimes exhilarating, sometimes frightening, often unclear until you look back.

We all have moments that spark ideas, light a passion, or scare the hell out of us. Some arrive as quick, hard lessons; others coil quietly over time until they shift how we see the world. Layer by layer, those small sparks weave into strong convictions and fresh creativity. My own transitions have shaped my values, leadership style, motherhood, and creative life, teaching me to move with change, not against it.

The stories of transition in this series look back at the moments that formed who I am and how that shows up in my art—from my start as a management trainee, through years as a corporate director of brand standards, to my work as a consultant and hotel manager, and finally into motherhood and family. In a world that rewards speed and certainty, transitions ask something different of us: patience, curiosity, and the courage to stay present while things are still unfinished. My knot art is a practice in that kind of leadership—taking loose, tangled fibers and trusting they can become something strong, beautiful, and true.

My hope is that as you read these yarns, you’ll begin to see your own transitions not as detours, but as design. The question isn’t whether life will change; it’s how we choose to shape those changes into stories worth living and sharing. If this resonates, start with the story that tugs at you most and follow the yarn.

my transitions through the Decades

1981

1999

2007

2011

2016

2018

Next up: Flight into the Unexpected

A 22‑year‑old management trainee arrives in Atlanta with a plan—and loses it overnight. This story traces how one free‑fall moment became the start of a leadership life built on self‑trust, reflection, and learning to move with change instead of fighting it.

Explore More: Transition Karma

Three severances, one financial crash, and a handful of culture clashes later, this yarn traces how “transition karma” works in real life—and why the intent you carry through layoffs, politics, and hard moves quietly shapes the doors that open next.