Practically speaking blog by Jill Donovan

Hobby Your Way To Hope

There should be a warning label on most hobbies.May cause temporary obsession, brief confidence, and irrational excitement in the middle of an otherwise average Tuesday. If you’ve ever felt stuck, ...

Stop Trading Your Peace for Someone Else’s Pain

It only takes one call. One sentence.One tear in their voice.And in an instant, my peace is gone.My heart carries my kids disappointments like it all belongs to me.  Have you ever traded your peace...

When Your Worth Feels Tied To The Way You Look

  Some moments change your life.
Others just change how often you leave the house.Years ago, with longer hair, I caught a glimpse of myself one afternoon, and thought,
 Hmm. My hair is getting a li...

The Sacred Shift - Moving Into Your Next

Have you ever stayed somewhere longer than you should have, simply because you worked so hard to get there? At 29, I enrolled in law school.By 33, I had the degree, a license to argue, and a very o...

All Cats Are Gray In The Dark

I once dated a guy in the 10th grade who had a thing for overalls.It’s not that something is inherently wrong with men wearing overalls.He just wore them almost every day.And I wasn’t emotionally p...

Feeling Stuck? Shrink the Step.

Yesterday, I opened my junk drawer and closed it like I had just witnessed a crime. It was utter chaos. Maybe it’s the random keys that go to absolutely nothing we still own.Or the pair of sunglass...

Your Peace is Worth Protecting

  Last week I woke up to a super fun text from my credit card’s fraud department. Did you spend $572.05 at Walmart? Reply Y or N.Not even a Good morning, Jill. Just straight to the crime. And it’s ...

You Are Not Who the Algorithm Says You Are

Have you ever lingered a little too long on a video, and now the algorithm thinks it knows you? Last week I watched a guy power-washing strangers’ driveways for free.No fanfare, just a hose and a...

When You’re Praying for Flowers, but the Rain Comes First

We pray for flowers.We beg for beauty.We want the outcome.The full bloom, the color, the story that turns out exactly how we pictured it. But then the rain shows up.Not a soft, movie-scene drizzle....

Don’t Let Your Imagination Become Your Narration

When was the last time someone sent you a thumbs-up emoji?And you suddenly weren’t sure if everything was fine…or falling apart? There’s something about getting a thumbs-up instead of a heart that ...