oh, hey, hi...

I’m Ashley. I was born and raised in the Bible Belt — shaped by a very Southern Baptist childhood that both wounded me and left me with a lifetime supply of VBS craft skills I never asked for (iykyk). I spent the first half of my career in full-time ministry before pivoting into public service, which gave me an oddly specific skill set: calming chaos, reading the room, and looking composed while definitely sweating.

I’m a sister first, and for much of my life, a mother-figure and caregiver for my youngest sibling - a role that taught me how to advocate fiercely, listen deeply, and fight for people long before I ever had fancy job titles attached to it. This shaped my backbone and my voice.

These days, I’m a recovering overachiever trying to unlearn hustle culture, deconstruct old beliefs, and sew things that do not always turn out as planned. I’m also a devoted cat mom, a breakfast enthusiast, and iced coffee drinker, year-round. I gravitate toward long conversations with close friends, avoiding crowds, and will scream-sing any Taylor Swift bridge if you’re down.

This blog is where I make sense of who I am becoming, one honest story at a time. Pull up a chair at the well if you want to join me.

dig deep

I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. First in fuzzy journals with tiny locks, then in college workshops where I learned to shape my voice, and later in the margins of a life that kept getting louder and more complicated. After years in public service, advocacy, and community-facing work, I realized how much of myself I had poured into helping others be heard while slowly losing touch with my own words.

This space is part homecoming and part excavation. I’m someone who has rebuilt more than once, through faith shifts, identity discoveries, career changes, and the painful work of choosing myself after burnout. I’m learning to slow down, to make things with my hands, to find joy in small rituals, and to trust the voice I almost forgot I had.

Here, I write about becoming, belonging, and the stories we carry. About unlearning what no longer serves us. About knowing yourself in order to love yourself. About queerness, faith, and the unexpected ways life asks us to grow.

Mostly, I’m trying to meet myself with honesty and curiosity, and inviting you to sit at the well with me while I do.