On May 27, I traveled to Fort Wayne, Indiana to celebrate the marriage of my dear friend, colleague, and soul sister Maureen to her beloved John. Adding to the delight of this occasion is that I shared an adorably charming Air BnB with two of my other soul sisters, Jessica and Gracie, giving us ample time to lol around in our jammies, drink tea under blankets, have endless talks about life and work, and pull the occasional oracle card.

How do I know these beautiful people, you ask? I met them through work!

Though we had interacted online in our remote work jobs at Automattic, we bonded when we had the pleasure of spending a few days together in Boston in 2019 at a conference. During that event, along with our friend Sam, we formed The Circle of Trust and became a support group for each other. It started with work, and has expanded to include all the challenges and triumphs of life.

I feel incredibly blessed to have these women in my life. We had not had the pleasure of spending time together in person since that trip to Boston. As soon as we got our vaccines, we booked our travel to Fort Wayne to attend Maureen’s wedding and delight in our reunion.

We also delighted in Fort Wayne! The residential streets are lined with charming old houses, with front porches to envy. Strangers waved to us as they strolled by (I love friendly cities!). All the restaurants we tried at The Landing were delicious, especially Utopia Coffee + Kitchen. I highly recommend the toast and jam: buttered and grilled sourdough with homemade raspberry jam. Yes please!!

Clockwise from the top left: Jessica and Gracie on the front porch of our Air BnB, perfectly creepy doll room at Delainy’s antiques (I scored some great jewelry there), flower truck at the Saturday Farmer’s Market, charming Fort Wayne houses, picture perfect porch.

Travel Tip: Ubers are scarce and not much is open on Sunday. Arrange your travel to the airport in advance, and check restaurant hours before showing up for brunch to closed doors.

As I sit here at the tiny Fort Wayne airport, I’m reflecting on how Life continues to show me the preciousness of my chosen family – the one I get to curate and cultivate as I create my life and encounter those that nurture me most deeply.