Dear friend,
For the last few weeks, I’ve been counting down the “lasts.”
The last live class.
The last podcast interview.
The last private session.
I’ve been staying as present as I can with each one — not rushing through, not skipping ahead, just… being with the endings.
It’s made my senses more alive. Sharpened. Like I’m seeing in a slightly different light. Hearing the quiet moments more clearly. Letting the sweetness and the sorrow rise together, breath by breath.
And then — just as all these endings were unfolding — we arrived in Taos.
Taos, New Mexico: one of my heart’s true homes. As you can see in this photo, I felt so much joy and peace there. A soft exhale. A return.
Some of you know that we’ve been returning to Taos for years now. We even bought a piece of land there, though the time hasn’t come yet to build.
This trip, we stayed in our neighbor’s brand-new home, just a few acres over from ours. The house has 360° views and opens right into the desert sagebrush and quiet trails. It’s one version of heaven for me. Wild, expansive and deeply grounding.
While there, I held my final live Art of Money 3-month program class. From the desert, I called in to share appreciations and goodbyes. It was a beautiful and tender ending. This final cohort seemed to hold extra intention and presence, myself included, knowing it would be the last of its kind.
And now at this threshold…my year-long sabbatical is moments away.
Last week, I completed two final interviews with fellow financial therapists who are continuing this work. This week, I’ll finish my final private sessions and then my year-long teaching pause will commence.
During last week’s live class — with messy hair and a lingering virus — I shared an off-the-cuff reflection in response to a question about why I’m taking this sabbatical, and what I’m hoping it will bring. It wasn’t polished, but it was honest. Here’s a 5-minute clip from that moment.
Over the last 24 years, I’ve taught through so much — personal thresholds, global upheavals, seasons of joy and heartbreak. Through it all, I’ve shown up. In all those years, I can count on one hand the number of times I rescheduled a class. One was when we lost our beloved cat.
Teaching online — especially after becoming a mother nearly 17 years ago — gave me the freedom to show up in silk pajamas and a velvet shawl, cradling a cup of coffee, while still holding space for this work.
And yet now… it’s time for a long exhale.
Are you, too, waiting for permission to pause? To breathe? To listen to that quiet voice rising from deep within — the one that sounds a little like wind moving through desert sage?
If so, I hope something in my story nudges you to carve out a moment of stillness. To notice what’s stirring just beneath the surface. To listen — truly listen — to what’s calling you forward.
While I step back, the heart of my work — which has always been teaching — will continue in other forms.
I’ll still write to you about once a month during my sabbatical. And Ali, my right-hand woman, will be here behind the scenes, holding the threads and offering gentle support for community questions.
The Art of Money 3-phase journey — Money Healing, Money Practices, and Money Maps — will carry on through my books, the online course materials, and new legacy projects we’ll be dreaming into life over the coming year. So keep an eye out for those announcements.
I’m so deeply grateful for all of you. For the journey we’ve shared. For the ways you’ve shown up — for yourselves, for this work, and for each other. And for the sacred pause that’s now calling me forward.
This Friday, my son and I are heading off to New York City to walk, eat, thrift, and repeat (and visit a college, too). It feels like the perfect adventure to begin this next chapter.
With love and desert stillness,
P.S. As we begin dreaming into the next chapter, we’re gathering ideas for legacy projects you’d love to see us create. If there’s something your heart longs for — a resource, a self-paced course, a BariChatGPT— we’d love to hear it. Feel free to send your wishes our way. Feel free to send your wishes our way.
