Judy Alderson

We grow up believing life should unfold in neat, linear chapters—graduate to the next grade, move through the levels, follow the plan, check the boxes. No one tells us that adulthood doesn’t work that way. No one prepares us for the reality that we might outgrow the very life we worked so hard to build. That we might wake up one day and feel the gentle nudge— or the loud collapse —that whispers, It’s time for your next evolution. Starting over doesn’t mean you failed. It means your soul is...

I was reading my Bible this morning when one small verse grabbed me by the shoulders and whispered, “This is it. This is your message.” “Therefore, since God in his mercy has given us this new way, we never give up.” — 2 Corinthians 4:1 NLT As soon as I read it, everything in me lit up. This is why I believe so deeply in the Encore Season. This is why the word “retirement” has never felt like the end of the story. And this is why I can confidently say that your encore years are not a...

Somewhere along the way, life teaches us to forget who we were before the world told us who to be. We trade pieces of ourselves for approval, responsibility, survival, and expectations. We grow up, we endure, we achieve — and yet, somewhere deep inside, the truest version of us waits patiently to be remembered. Rediscovering yourself isn’t an overnight awakening. It’s a slow, intentional journey of sifting, removing, allowing, mourning, and believing. It’s holy work. It’s soul work. And it is...