Keep Climbing
Finding Grace and Resilience Through Life's Unpredictable Journey
Hello, my name is Beth, and it is an honor to share my story in the hope that it reaches women everywhere.
When I say keep climbing, I don’t mean a corporate ladder.
I mean the climb of life—the space where growth happens, where lessons are learned, and where resilience is formed.
Resilience is the ability to recover after loss, hardship, and unexpected turns. It’s something I’ve carried with me since I was young. I became a teenage mother at sixteen, and from that moment on, I was determined not to let that single chapter define my entire story. I wanted to break the mold. I wanted to graduate high school. I wanted to build a life that reflected strength, creativity, and purpose.
After high school, I went straight to cosmetology school, drawn to a career that allowed creative expression and flexibility as a mother. In my twenties, life shifted again when I became pregnant and learned my daughter had Down syndrome. I transitioned into being a stay-at-home mom—years that taught me more than I ever imagined and, at times, completely knocked me off my feet.
I was married to my high school sweetheart, expecting our third child, and navigating the emotional highs and lows of family life when everything changed. Those years ultimately led to a painful divorce. I found myself divorced, in nursing school, without a bank account, without financial independence, and without stability. I slept on my mom’s couch, my dad’s couch, and sometimes in my car.
But I kept going.
I knew that choosing to live for myself—for the first time—would be one of the hardest things I’d ever do. I pushed through nursing school as a B and C student, fueled by determination and the support of people who believed in me when I struggled to believe in myself—my dear friend Heidi and my now-husband, Paul.
Slowly, the road steadied. I found opportunities in nursing and eventually landed the position I’m in today. But the climb doesn’t stop just because things feel stable. Life has a way of reminding us that even during calm seasons, challenges still arise.
The stress of my job eventually led to severe panic attacks and relentless negative thinking. That’s when grace entered my life in a new way. I began connecting the dots—understanding how people-pleasing and unhealed trauma had led me there. I started therapy, received an ADHD diagnosis, and finally allowed myself to draw and write the way I had always dreamed of doing.
I don’t have all the answers. But in my 33 years, I’ve learned two lessons I want every woman to hear:
Be resilient.
And be gentle with yourself.
Strength without grace leads to burnout. Grace without resilience stalls growth. But when you combine the two, something beautiful happens—you rise. Slowly. Naturally. Like sourdough bread (yes, I tried that too—there’s still a starter hiding in the back of my fridge).
Life is messy. It’s unpredictable. It’s filled with peaks and valleys.
Enjoy it.
Savor it.
Learn to love both the journey and yourself along the way.
Keep climbing—with resilience and grace.
With kindness and love,
Beth
