![](\"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/f66feef4-174e-49d8-8b34-2a3eac5d684b_3024x4032-2.jpeg\"\/)
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\u201cCome on in,\u201d the gray-haired gentleman waved from the middle seat of aisle 10 on my flight headed home. I looked to the elderly woman seated next to him, hoping to get some clarity on the situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has bad legs and can\u2019t stand so good,\u201d she quickly explained. \u201cWould you be so kind to just slide by?\u201d<\/p>\n
I took a deep breath and awkwardly squeezed past to get to my window seat.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just saved me a whole lotta trouble,\u201d the man said, smiling warmly. \u201cHow\u2019s your day going?\u201d<\/p>\n
I knew right then and there my hopes of sticking my iPods in my ears and chilling out would have to wait. I\u2019d just led a multi-day workshop and desperately needed to restore my internal battery.<\/p>\n
Within a few minutes of conversation, we discovered the couple lived in the city where my family and I used to live. Amazingly, the man had even had a hand in building the homes in the neighborhood where my daughters spent their childhood. Now he was a grandpa of ten, a retired builder, with a hobby of painting on canvas with acrylics.<\/p>\n
I learned this as the plane filled with passengers.<\/p>\n
Just as the man\u2019s wife was about to show me his latest works of art captured on her phone, our chat was interrupted.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re in my seat,\u201d a man in a business suit curtly informed the woman. \u201cI am in 10D.\u201d<\/p>\n
She explained they\u2019d been moved to this row at the last minute because of her husband\u2019s leg condition. As she tried to pull up proof on her phone, the man grew increasingly agitated.<\/p>\n
And then something happened that I did not expect.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we have to move,\u201d said the white-haired gentleman beside me, \u201cwill you move with us?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n I froze.<\/p>\n One part of me stiffened and screamed,\u00a0BOUNDARIES, Rachel! Surely you\u2019re not going to do that??<\/em><\/p>\n Another part of me softened and whispered,\u00a0CONNECTION, Rachel. Thank you for listening to this man. Clearly, you\u2019ve made a difference.<\/em><\/p>\n What eventually came out of my mouth was a direct result of the Soul Shift<\/a><\/em> practices that have guided my inner work, along with somatic therapy. Over time, I\u2019ve learned to preserve the empath in me while setting healthy boundaries so I can live whole, protected, and fulfilled.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is my seat,\u201d I said to him gently. \u201cSo I\u2019ll need to stay here, but maybe it\u2019ll work out that we can stay together.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI sure hope so,\u201d the man said wistfully. \u201cYou just don\u2019t meet people like you every day.\u201d<\/p>\n It turned out the couple got to remain in their current seats. I did get my rest because the friendly gentleman fell asleep as soon as he was covered in a blanket and slept the entire flight.<\/p>\n As we began our descent, his wife gently roused him.<\/p>\n \u201cWake up, honey,\u201d she whispered. \u201cIt\u2019s time for your medication.\u201d<\/p>\n Once he was alert, I asked if they were going to make the late-night drive home, which I knew was about three hours from the airport.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are going to stay at a hotel tonight,\u201d the man explained. \u201cBut we gotta leave first thing. It\u2019s time for me to start cancer treatments. My doctor found three spots on my liver last month, but he let us take our anniversary cruise to Alaska.\u201d<\/p>\n I told him how sorry I was to hear this news.<\/p>\n \u201cNo matter what happens,\u201d he said cheerfully, \u201cI\u2019m just glad I met you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m glad I met you too,\u201d I said, feeling tears come to the surface.<\/p>\n Something in this man\u2019s tenderness cracked open a place in me I\u2019d been working hard to heal.<\/strong><\/p>\n See, the thing is, when you begin to notice past patterns through therapy and inner work\u2014and you see all the times you didn\u2019t protect yourself, there\u2019s a deep ache.<\/p>\n You look back and label those moments\u2014 When you release fawning behaviors, you suddenly remember all the times you said\u00a0yes<\/em>\u00a0when you wanted to say\u00a0no,\u00a0<\/em>sometimes at the cost of your own well-being. And it\u2019s easy to feel shame. But those were survival strategies, earnest attempts to feel safe and accepted, until you discovered that worthiness was never something you had to earn.<\/p>\n But in this exchange with the elderly man beside me, some of that old shame lifted. I saw my willingness to be open, trusting, and overly kind to people not as gullible or na\u00efve, but as a\u00a0soft strength worth safeguarding<\/em>.<\/p>\n And given we are living in a time when helping our neighbors has never mattered more, the timing of that release felt perfect.<\/p>\n Instantly, I felt grateful for my seat in 10F\u2026 I realized then that I never want my boundaries to be so tall or so hard that they keep me from reaching \u2013 or being reached.<\/p>\n The world is aching for human connection right now. And I\u2019m learning that I possess qualities that help people feel safe in my presence.<\/p>\n The stranger on the plane reminded me: So, I\u2019ll keep practicing this balance: Because now I know, My hand in yours, \ud83d\udcd7 If this story resonated with you\u2014the pull between protecting your peace and staying open to connection\u2014this is the very work that shaped\u00a0Soul Shift: The Weary Human\u2019s Guide to Getting Unstuck and Reclaiming Your Path to Joy<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019m grateful to share the book is being released to the world in paperback on Tuesday, something that only happens when a message has found its way into many hands and hearts.<\/p>\n So, if you\u2019ve been waiting for a time to bring\u00a0Soul Shift<\/em>\u00a0into your life\u2014or to share it with someone you love\u2014consider this a sign.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not a book of answers, but a companion for moments just like this. So that even in an uncertain world, you can protect your peace without closing your heart.<\/p>\n From readers who have walked alongside this work\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cAs I approach my 50th birthday and a new stage of life, I\u2019ve been trying to regain a sense of who I want to be. This book came at the perfect time and helped me do that in an uplifting, supportive way. I even sent a copy to my daughter in college, who is on her own journey of becoming.\u201d<\/em> \u2014Sarah<\/p>\n \u201cThis beautiful book is one I return to on the hard days when I feel like I\u2019m not enough. Rachel\u2019s words help me reconnect with my \u2018Dreamer Girl\u2019 and find my way back to joy. This is a book to be loved and shared.\u201d<\/em> \u2014Amy<\/p>\n \u201cListening to Rachel\u2019s words during moments of struggle feels like a true comfort. Living with a chronic illness, I need something that is both engaging and gentle, and this book is that rare gift. Rachel seems like she understands people who struggle and meets them exactly where they are, with no judgment and a compassionate, outstretched hand<\/em>.\u201d \u2014CM<\/p>\n Soul Shift is available wherever you like to buy your books, including Bookshop<\/a>, Amazon<\/a>, and Barnes & Noble<\/a>.<\/em> I am so grateful for your support.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc1e A final note\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s not too late to register for my\u00a0Only Love Today<\/em>\u00a0Retreat for Givers<\/a> happening on April 24-26 at the renowned Kripalu center in Western Massachusetts. I\u2019ve created this restorative experience especially for those who spend much of their lives caring for others and are ready to receive care themselves \u2014 to rest, reconnect, and rebuild a kinder relationship with their inner world and their body.\u00a0<\/p>\n Together, we practice slowing down, listening inward, and learning how to give ourselves the same compassion we so freely offer others. Through storytelling, guided reflection, gentle practices, and supportive community, you\u2019ll begin creating sustainable rituals of nourishment, rest, movement, and boundary-honoring that can travel home with you.\u00a0<\/p>\n There are currently 17 lovely souls registered\u2014perhaps you are meant to join us. This will be my only in-person retreat in 2026. If you feel a nudge to be there, please let me know, so we can make it happen. Learn more by clicking here.<\/a> <\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n
the times you didn\u2019t speak up for yourself<\/em>,
the times you let people take advantage of you,<\/em>
the times you ignored your body\u2019s warning signs\u2014<\/em>
as moments you abandoned yourself.<\/p>\n
where I was reminded that boundaries and compassion can sit side by side,
where my limits could be honored without my losing heart,
where I could rest and still care deeply,
where I could give yet also receive.<\/strong><\/p>\n
We were never meant to navigate life alone.
We were meant to keep reaching\u2014
even when it scares us,
even when we\u2019re weary,
even when it would be easier to close off.<\/p>\n
protecting my peace while staying open to connection,
making room for grace in the middle seat,
and trusting that what\u2019s meant to meet me will find a way through.<\/p>\n
my heart won\u2019t lead me astray.<\/p>\n
Rachel<\/p>\n\n
Moments when you\u2019re learning to trust yourself,
honor your boundaries,
and tend to what is true for you.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/494444178_10093621437315353_4890817485932013375_n-2.jpg)
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Just-because-transformation-seems-impossible-from-where-you-are-1.jpg){kind=spacer}