Holly Arnaud

🌿 Come In If you have ever been misunderstood, you know how deeply it hurts. Not because someone disagreed with your perspective, but because they believed they knew your heart when they had only seen one small part of the story. Maybe they misunderstood your intentions or judged a decision they

There are seasons when words come easily, and seasons when they become quieter. Over the past several months, I have spent much of my time doing the work I care deeply about—walking alongside students, families, and educators during the school year. It has been meaningful work, but it has

I love the mornings and the color yellow. I absolutely detest the texture of onions when I bite into them, but I like the taste. When I am feeling sad, trees and sunshine are my go-tos for a pick-me-up. I don’t love crowds, but I can

Many of us move through the world offering patience and understanding to others. When a friend struggles, we remind them they are human. When someone makes a mistake, we make room for explanation of context and compassion. We see the pressures they carry, the wounds they may be navigating, and

There is a quiet habit many of us carry: we are harder on ourselves than anyone else could be. We replay mistakes and question our worth. We hold ourselves to a standard of perfection we would never demand from another person, allowing that inner voice to pick apart what we

There are some roles we do not choose. In my own childhood, unpredictability meant my mother would sometimes leave without notice — days, sometimes longer — and I learned early how to hold things together. When unpredictability lives in the home, someone often quietly becomes the steady one. Meals still need to

Some endings come with conversation. Some endings arrive without warning. Sometimes relationships close without repair. Words are left unsaid. Clarifications never happen. You find yourself holding an ending you didn’t choose and didn’t fully understand. There is a particular discomfort in that kind of silence. The mind wants