🌿 MID-YEAR CHECK-IN: Who & What is helping you flourish?

The Middle of the Year Check-In: What is helping you grow?

We are six, almost seven months into the year, and this is a good time to pause and do an emotional energy audit.

It has been enough time to see what is taking root, what is producing fruit, and what may need to be pruned. Pruning is not punishment. It is intentional removal that creates space for healthier growth.

What's working, what's not working? What's the quality of the soil you're planted in?

As I reflect on my 2026 so far, it's been fast-paced, meeting after meeting, event after event, and blessing after blessing.

My current challenge is keeping up with answered prayers.

I've spent so much time praying for doors to open that I sometimes forget to pray for the strength, wisdom, and courage needed to walk through them. In these times, I'm reminded not just to pray for things to happen, but to also pray that my capacity be expanded with the blessings.

And while I am deeply grateful, I have also learned that blessings come with weight. They require capacity, community, and people who don't just celebrate growth but also help sustain it.

Building these past six years has come with many proud moments and its fair share of disappointments, learning curves, and self-doubt. Like many people building something they care deeply about, I've wrestled with imposter syndrome. Some days it's louder than others. Therapy, meaningful relationships, and intentionally celebrating small wins have helped quiet that voice and acknowledge growth that has already taken place.

I am grateful for the people who have helped carry both the blessings and the responsibilities that come with collaboration and co-creation. Through my work in DeKalb, including efforts connected to Annie Glidden North, I have witnessed what becomes possible when individuals, organizations, and community members come together with a shared vision.

There is no real "clock out" time when your work is connected to purpose. It is continuous. It is evolving. It requires constant planning, coordinating, following up, refining, and reimagining.

Some parts are refueling, and other parts are draining. And the truth is, people are not always easy.

"Am I surrounded by people who multiply what's in me, or people who constantly require me to empty myself?"

Relationships require patience, communication, accountability, resilience, and grace. The same relationships that inspire us can also challenge us.

Part of my contribution has been to support the collaborative efforts of neighbors, organizations, and community partners. It's important to align with those that build and establish bridges to outlets that educate, inspire, and empower families and individuals.

Many of the relationships that have poured into me have been formed through this work; the people who believe that stronger communities are built through collaboration, not isolation.  

Oftentimes we find ourselves in silos in adulthood for various reasons. Community matters because when individuals are seen, they are empowered. With proper guidance and networks, possibilities are expanded.

Sometimes it's not just what you know; it's who you know.

The Breakroom and Friends exists to be that bridge.

Beyond the pace and responsibilities of this year, my heart is warmed most by the full circle moments that have presented themselves this year. Seeds planted years ago are beginning to sprout, relationships that have been nourished are beginning to produce fruit, goals have been accomplished.

I'm reminded again how important it is to foster community.

We could do this life alone, sure. However, we are designed to do this life together.

Fostering relationships in adult life has created room for me to be purposeful and contribute in meaningful ways that align with who I am. It's connected me with people that share similar passions, resources, and initiative. It's helped me gain new perspectives, exchange ideas, identify solutions, and discover people and things that have been right in front of me the whole time.

I'm constantly inspired by peers and partners.

Through building The Breakroom & Friends, I've learned something that is often overlooked:

Community isn't built through programs alone. It's built through people.

The ones who show up.

The ones who answer the phone.

The ones who continue to water the garden.

The ones who remind you why you started when you forget.

When I think about what truly pours into me, I think of:

• shared ideas

• unexpected conversations that inspire

• watching someone's eyes light up when inspiration hits

• solving hard problems together

• people who keep showing up

• strangers becoming friends

Those are some things that fuel me. There's a reignition that flows when we all connect, and I appreciate that feeling. It's what fulfills me and reminds me what really matters.

So I'm grateful for the relationships cultivated over the years. The network of Friends that were once strangers.

Maybe that's part of this mid-year check-in.

Not just asking, Who is draining me?

 But also asking, Who has helped me carry the weight of my answered prayers? 

Sometimes, too much time is spent noticing who didn't show up, who didn't support us, who didn't clap when we succeeded, that we overlook the people who quietly did. The ones who encouraged us. The ones who checked in. The ones who kept showing up. Gratitude has a way of shifting our perspective.

Pruning does not always mean walking away. Sometimes it means changing expectations, creating healthier boundaries, or allowing relationships to exist in a different season.

Growth requires us to become intentional gardeners of our lives. As you move through the rest of this year, take inventory of your garden. What needs watering? What needs sunlight? What needs pruning? What relationships are helping you grow, and what environments are preventing you from becoming who you are meant to be? Remember, every season of growth requires tending. The goal is not to have a perfect garden; it is to cultivate one that allows you to continue growing.

Something to think about.

Your Friend,

Malia