The Accidental Bibliophile: How Saying Yes Led Me to 4 Book Clubs

If you looked at my Soul pillar goals, you would have a seen a lot of talk about finding my people. You would have seen my plans for cinema clubs, run clubs, and intentional apps like RealRoots. I thought that by finding these specific intersections, I would find my community.  What you wouldn't have seen - mostly because it wasn't in the plan - was a goal to join four different book clubs. And yet, here I am. A person who hasn't been a "reader" for years, currently juggling four different reading lists. But the thing about community is that it rarely stays within the lines you draw for it. 

The New Metric is Rest

Training for a half-marathon usually feels like a challenge to fit in as many miles as possible. We are taught to value the miles, the split times, and the total weekly volume above everything else. But as I move deeper into this training cycle, I am realizing that the most important number on my schedule isn't the distance of my long run—it’s the quality of my recovery. I have officially shifted my focus: the new metric is rest.

The realization that daily movement is not sustainable without intentional rest has been a slow but necessary evolution. When I started the Radiant 90, I was primarily focused on the streak of showing up for 30 to 60 minutes every single day. I wanted the proof of my consistency. But I’ve learned that "showing up" doesn’t always mean putting on my running shoes. Sometimes, showing up for my long-term goals means having the discipline to stay on the couch. It means recognizing that my body is a biological system that requires repair, not a machine that can be pushed indefinitely without consequence.

Winter was the Trial, Spring is the Alignment

We’ve been conditioned to believe that January 1st is the only day that counts. We’re taught to wake up in the coldest, darkest month of the year and suddenly have our entire life mapped out. But nature doesn't work that way. Nothing in nature blooms in the winter. Winter is for quiet, for resting, and for figuring out what is still alive under the frost.

I’m realizing that January and February were never the "start." They were the trials. They were the two months I needed to figure out what my actual goals for the year were.

Even if you set goals in January—which I did—the start of spring is the time to reset and retool. It’s the time to look at what you thought you needed in the winter and see if it actually aligns with where you are now.

The Quiet and the Crowd: Rebuilding Connection from the Inside Out

I have always been a person who is comfortable in my own company. Living in a city like Houston, it’s easy to navigate the world as a solo traveler. I don’t mind going to the theater alone, exploring a new coffee shop, or heading out for a run without a partner. I actually value my alone time; it’s where I recharge.

But lately, I’ve had to acknowledge that there is a difference between being independent and being isolated. 

My social life is anchored by my family, and I’m grateful for that. But as I’ve moved into my 30s, I’ve felt the absence of a peer circle. When I was in school, friends were just part of the landscape. As I got older, the ‘slow fade’ set in. Life got busy, distances grew, and because I didn’t put in the effort to maintain those connections, they eventually just vanished.