This week, we’re turning our hearts toward one of the most powerful healing practices: gratitude. Gratitude is more than just saying “thank you.” It’s a mindset, a way of noticing what is rather than what’s missing. It helps us shift from survival to presence, from scarcity to abundance, and from fear to trust. When practiced consistently, gratitude can rewire our brain, strengthen our relationships, reduce stress, and bring us closer to joy—even when life is hard. 💬 Discussion Focus - What are you grateful for that didn’t feel like a gift at the time? - How can gratitude become a daily habit instead of a seasonal thought? - What does gratitude look like when life feels overwhelming? 📝 This Week’s Journal Prompts - Today, I’m thankful for… - Someone who changed my life (and why): - A challenge I’ve grown from is: - My gratitude list (name 5 small or big things): ✨ Mindfulness Practice: Gratitude Grounding Take 3 deep breaths. Name one thing you can see, touch, hear, and feel that you’re grateful for in this moment. Let it anchor you in the now. 📚 Helpful Resources - 🎧 Podcast: The Science of Gratitude – NPR - 📖 Article: How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain – Greater Good Magazine - 📺 Video: The Power of Gratitude | Brene Brown 👯‍♀️ This Community Is Your Circle Drop your journal reflections or a gratitude note in the Community Chat. Tag a sister and let her know you appreciate her! 💬 Reminder: Walk-ins are welcome to join our in-person group on Tuesdays, 10 AM–12 PM at the O’Dell Women’s Center in Springfield. Free parking available on Tyler Street! 📢 Bonus: This is a Union Capital Club, so joining live sessions (virtual or in person) earns you points! Sign up for Union Capital here and list Lourdes B as your Network Coordinator.

As we welcome December, we also step into one of the most emotionally layered times of the year. The holidays can bring joy, togetherness, and tradition — but they can also stir up deep emotions, tension, grief, and overwhelm. The holiday season brings with it more than decorations and traditions — it brings emotions, memories, expectations, and for many of us, old wounds. This December in Let’s Talk: Healing, Growing, & Empowered, we're creating space for both the beauty and the heaviness that can show up this time of year. Holidays often bring us back into spaces where we feel pressure to be someone we’ve outgrown, or where unspoken tension, past hurts, or family roles reemerge. Together, we are learning that awareness is powerful. By naming what’s happening inside us, we can begin to break cycles, respond instead of react, and make more loving choices — for ourselves first. It’s not easy to face the ways our family dynamics may have shaped our self-worth, our emotional habits, or our sense of safety. But in this community, we are unlearning guilt and shame, and replacing them with compassion, boundaries, and healing. Whether you're reconnecting with family or choosing distance for your peace, you are doing something brave. For some, it’s silence. For others, laughter, creativity, prayer, or dancing in the kitchen. It doesn’t have to be big — it just has to be real. This month is not about perfection. It’s about choosing you. It's about learning to honor your limits, listen to your inner voice, and build joy not on circumstances, but on connection — to yourself, your peace, and your power. We’re so proud of every woman who is showing up — whether in person at the O’Dell Women’s Center or here in our virtual Skool community. You belong here. And whatever this season looks like for you, know this: you’re not alone. Let’s keep growing — not just through celebration, but through self-awareness, sisterhood, and small steps toward healing. ✨ Reflection Prompt: What family boundary are you ready to honor this year, even if it feels hard?

🍁 Happy Thanksgiving from Let’s Talk! 🧡 This week, while we paused our in-person session, we want to take a moment to reflect on the power of unity, friendship, and gratitude. Let this be a reminder: You are not alone. You are part of a growing sisterhood committed to healing, growing, and thriving — together. 🌟 Whether you've shared your story, held space for another, or just quietly shown up — you are appreciated. This holiday season, we honor the strength of women, the beauty of connection, and the simple, powerful act of saying thank you. 🫶 We are grateful for YOU. 📝 Journal Prompt: What are you most thankful for this season? How has being in community helped you grow? 💬 Feel free to share your reflections in the group or take a moment of quiet gratitude. Every voice matters here. We’ll be back next week with our final November session: The Power of Gratitude – Rewiring the Mind with Thankfulness. 🍂 Until then, have a warm, safe, and joy-filled holiday. With love 🥰, Lourdes & the Let’s Talk Team

Grief is not just about losing someone we love—it’s about the parts of us we’ve had to let go along the way: dreams deferred, identities shed, relationships that shifted, or the version of ourselves we no longer recognize. This week, we hold space for what we’ve lost… and what we’ve learned. 🕊️ You are allowed to grieve even if others don't understand your loss. 🌱 You are also allowed to grow from it when you're ready. This week’s journaling and conversation will focus on honoring our grief and permitting ourselves to move forward without guilt, shame, or pressure. Healing takes time—and we’re here for every step. ✍️ Journal Prompts (Share in Discussion Section) Post your reflection as a new topic using the prompt as your subject line. - What have I lost that still sits heavy in my heart? - What have I learned about myself through grief? - What part of me am I ready to reclaim? 💬 Let’s Talk Prompt (Optional) You can share anonymously or just sit with this: “Grief doesn’t ask us to forget—it asks us to remember with tenderness.”What’s something or someone you’re honoring this week? 🧠 Healing Resources Here are some gentle and powerful tools to explore grief and healing: - Therapy for Black Girls Podcast: Healing Through Grief - David Kessler: Grief.com – Understanding Grief - NPR’s Life Kit: How to Grieve - Free Meditation – “Healing Through Grief” on Insight Timer 💛 This week, be gentle with yourself. Growth and grief are not opposites—they walk hand in hand. Let’s continue healing, growing, and becoming — together. #GrievingAndGrowing #LetsTalkHealing #EmpoweredWomen #WeeklyReflection

Hello, Empowered Women! 💫 As we step into November, our theme is Gratitude & Growth — and we begin by slowing down to savor the present moment. 🕊️ This week’s topic, Practicing Presence: Finding Joy in the Now, invites us to pause, breathe, and remember that this moment is all we truly have. So often we’re pulled by our to-do lists, past regrets, or future worries. But healing begins when we learn to be here, fully — in our bodies, our breath, our joy, and our awareness. 💬 Discussion Prompts Feel free to respond to any of these in the community chat or your journal: - What brings you joy right now? - When was the last time you felt fully present? - What distractions keep you from being in the moment? - How does presence feel in your body? 📝 Journal Prompt Ideas - “What’s one small joy I overlooked this week?” - “Where in my life am I rushing, and what would it look like to slow down?” - “How does practicing presence support my healing?” 🎯 Mini Challenge: At least once this week, put your phone away and spend 10 minutes being with yourself, nature, a loved one, or in silence. 🧘🏽‍♀️ Affirmation: “I am grounded in the present. I am safe. I am here.” 💌 Don’t forget to check out the downloadable journal pages and respond in the discussion board. Your voice matters. Your story is sacred. We’re growing — together. With gratitude, Lourdes Founder of WMCS Education & Community Services Corp Facilitator of Let’s Talk Tuesdays 💕 Resources: Video: You Don't Find Happiness, You Create It | Katarina Blom | TEDxGöteborg Video: Mindfulness is for Everyone: How To Be More Present In Your Life | Eric López Maya | TEDxMSU Journal added (FREE)! Print it, write in it, and start your journey to growth!