Wide Open Heart Project

11/24/2025

Dear Beautiful Hearts 💚

As we approach the year’s close, we pause to honor this sacred moment — a time for reflection, rest, and gratitude. Our hearts are overflowing with appreciation for each of you who has been part of the Wide Open Heart Project — whether you attended a retreat, joined a workshop, or simply carried our shared intention for love and awakening into your daily life. Your presence, courage, and compassion make this community what it is: a living field of connection and light. ✨ Thank you for walking this path with us.

2025 brought a dream into reality with our first national park Wide Open Heart Project experience. In September, our team led a group of women through a world of wonder and awe at Yosemite National Park and the Eastern Sierra Nevada. Within our 5 days together, we explored, connected and found a deeper resonance with Mother Nature. Thank you to those who trusted me and committed to themselves to allow for greater heart expansion while honoring the sacred land where we gathered.

💗 With Deep Gratitude
Again, to everyone who has ever attended a Wide Open Heart Project retreat, workshop, or gathering — thank you. Your openness, laughter, tears, and truth have created ripples of healing that extend far beyond our circles. Together, we continue to return — again and again — to the light within.

Coming soon: links to register for our March retreat which will be held at Sharon Woods Metro Park’s Spring Hollow Lodge, Westerville, Ohio and our Fall retreat in California’s Central Coast and Big Sur 🌊⛰️

With love and gratitude,
Michele & The Wide Open Heart Project Team

11/20/2025

💕save the date~ Wide Open Heart Project’s “Hearts in the Parks” Spring Retreat💕

Our spring retreat will be held on Saturday, March 14, 2026 at Sharon Woods Metro Park’s Spring Hollow Lodge, in Westerville, Ohio.

Link to register and details coming soon 💕

11/13/2025

Unearthing old poetry, tracing my own journey towards love and its meaning 🩵
written May 8, 2021

Do you remember
Where love began?

Was it along the banks of the Scioto
Our hearts broken
Spirits shattered
No where to go
But towards a once in a lifetime experience

Was it when you saw the eyes of your first born
The way she looked at you with awe
Her tiny hand held tight to your finger
And you knew
The universe was always on time

Did you find love
Only after it was gone
Far away
Never to return

Did you find the love you needed
In a strange and wonderful place
The last place on earth
You were looking

Was it love
When you finally understood
The meaning of
Forgiveness

Your suffering proved
How strong you really were
Your disappointments
Enabling you to fly higher

Did love begin
When you discovered the sun
When the moon felt so close
You could touch her heart

Or was love in you
All along
Just waiting for your awakening to it
Feeling your own heart beating
The first time
Yours touched mine

Where did love begin
Do you know?
Or does it matter
Because it found you
In a mysterious and beautiful way

The universe spoke
And love arrived

Love and light, M

10/29/2025

Lately I have been connecting to “the pause”- this in-between space of my life. There is a slow coming together, a potency within these silent days. I am thinking about the wellness of my heart; not only my physical but my emotional and spiritual heart. I am releasing the need to know. The need for answers. The need for control over outcomes. The desire to shield others from pain and suffering.

During one of my journaling sessions at WOHP’s recent California retreat, I repeatedly wrote the words “I do not know. I do not need to know.” I see those words and then I circle back to myself and remember another set of words that have become my mantra: “all is well, all is well, and everything is well”- The phrase “all is well and all manner of things shall be well” is a famous quote by the 14th-century English mystic and theologian Julian of Norwich, who first recorded it in her book Revelations of Divine Love. The full quote is: “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well”. The saying comes from a place of faith and divine reassurance, asserting that despite suffering and chaos, all will be ultimately made right through God’s love.…. I am not sure how “I do not know” and “all is well” coexist beside each other. I know in my heart that there is a higher power guiding my head, hands and heart every day. I allow myself to trust in that truth. And I believe that there is only one truth- LOVE. As I live within these slow, silent and ever-changing days and hours, I can hold onto the universal truth that love is my anchor. Love is my truth.

A few questions to ask yourself to help assist you in your own divine pause and in-between space:

What expands my heart?
What exhausts my heart?
What can I release from my heart?

Or you could be in a similar place as I am right now. Releasing the need to know or do anything. Give yourself permission to just live and be. No need to “know” or “do”- just experience a state of love without attachment 🩵

With love and light,
M

10/13/2025

Celebrating the hearts that came before us 💚

Acknowledging the land, the people and the energies that teach us resilience and reverence- the essence of a wide open heart. Remembering the sacred connection we have to the First Peoples, our ancestors and the energy that flows through the land, the waters and the air.

May today be a reminder to walk gently, listen deeply and act with love 💚

10/09/2025

💚Celebrating 5 Years of the Wide Open Heart Project 💚

Five years ago, the Wide Open Heart Project began with a small women’s retreat in my home — a circle of love, reflection, and healing. What started as an intimate gathering has since blossomed into a community rooted in compassion, connection, and heart-centered living.

Last month, we celebrated this milestone within the awe-inspiring beauty of Yosemite National Park and the Sierra Nevada, surrounded by nature’s grandeur and the collective energy of open hearts. It was a beautiful reminder of how far we’ve come — and how powerful love can be when shared in community. 💗

As part of this anniversary celebration, I’m thrilled to announce our Yard Sign Promotion, with proceeds benefiting the Columbus Humane Society in honor of Buddy, Gracie, and Lilo — my three beloved companions, who inspired me to teach about the power of unconditional love and what it means to live with a wide open heart. Additional proceeds will go toward supporting future Wide Open Heart Project retreats, experiences, and events, helping us continue to grow and reach others.

At the heart of this project is a simple belief:

Love can change the world — starting with you, at home, with your friends and loved ones and in your community.

Through the years, we’ve explored healing through the heart chakra, created sacred spaces for transformation, and learned again and again that love and gratitude are the foundations for change.

To everyone who has joined, supported, or shared in this journey — thank you for five incredible years of connection, unity, and love. Here’s to continuing this work together — opening hearts, healing within community, and leading with love. 💚

To purchase a yard sign, go to my Etsy shop, https://wideopenheartproject.etsy.com (link in bio)- I currently have 48 signs in stock. You can order through Etsy or contact me directly through social media and I will take care of your order. We accept cash, credit cards or Venmo. Thank you for supporting Wide Open Heart Project and its mission!

10/01/2025

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09/23/2025

On my heart today 💚

How can encouragement and support from friends, family and community heal the heart?

When was the last time someone told you or reached out to you with these words online or in person:

🙌 I am proud of the work you are doing
🙌 I am proud of the person you are
🙌 Thanks for showing up for yourself and others
🙌 I know this is hard, but you are making things happen
🙌This has been a tough season for you, how can I help?
🙌Just checking in on you…. How are you feeling these days?
🙌Is there anything I can do for you as you heal from this experience?
🙌How can my presence assist you right now?
🙌How can I help you today? Is there anything you need?

And sometimes, it’s the ministry of presence that matters. Just the knowing that someone has your heart in mind is enough, walking side by side as a silent witness to your life.

Witnessing the pain, suffering and loss of others can bring us closer if we allow it. Allowing our hearts to touch within this heavy world.

This year brought me to my knees with the amount of loss I’ve experienced. There were days I was paralyzed in my grief. What made it more bearable was the support I had from loving family, friends and the Wide Open Heart Project’s community. It wasn’t always loud, demonstrative support either; it was at times the silent knowing that loving and divine energies were keeping me going. It was a subtle check in from a loved one that made all the difference.

I recognize I’m not always good at being a cheerleader for others. Today I’m making a new resolution to try harder. To try and make others feel seen, heard and cared for. I can start with one person. You can start with one person.

Who can you reach out to today and cheer on? Who can you show up for today who needs encouragement for their heart’s journey? Ask your higher power to guide your hands and your heart to lead, encourage and care for others.

Love and light, M

09/17/2025

💚 Gratitude from the Mountains 💚

Two weeks ago, a beautiful circle of women gathered for WOHP’s “Hearts in the Parks” Eastern Sierra /Yosemite National Park women’s retreat. I am overflowing with gratitude for each of the women who said yes to this journey — who trusted the call of the wilderness, packed their adventurous spirit, and traveled to California to spend five transformative days in nature.

Thank you for:
✨ Taking a chance on the unknown.
✨ Opening and expanding your hearts to empower yourselves and each other.
✨ Trusting in the universe to carry you along the path.
✨ Allowing the “you are here” X on your trail map to guide not just your footsteps, but your inner compasses.

Together, we witnessed the sacred shift between “the woman who arrived in the mountains” to “the woman who left the mountains” — a powerful reminder that the heart chakra and the wisdom it holds is our true north. 🌿💫

I am deeply grateful for the work I get to do as the leader and visionary of the Wide Open Heart Project. To hold space for this kind of courage, transformation, and connection is my greatest honor. A special thank you to Monica, too. Without her, I could not have created such a sacred and special experience for our guests.

May we carry the mountains and their teachings within us always, and may our hearts stay wide open. 💚

With love and gratitude,
Michele

08/27/2025

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08/21/2025

💚🤗

The beauty of a brand new day is that we get a chance to start over. Each morning, as the sun rises, we have an opportunity to become a better version of ourselves. We are given grace through our hearts to make different choices and to use signs from our guides and angels to lead us to loving awareness. God gives us second chances to create a better future for ourselves and our loved ones 💚

“ Make peace with all of the women you once were.

Lay flowers at their feet.

Offer them incense, honey and forgiveness.

Honor them and give them your silence.

Listen.

Bless them and let them be.

For they are the bones of the temple you sit in now.

For they are the rivers of wisdom leading you toward the sea.

I have been a thousand different women.”

—Emory Hall

07/18/2025

My words flow more easily on the trail. I’m grateful I can clear my mind long enough to allow myself to form clear and meaningful thoughts.

I’m increasingly aware that the work of the heart isn’t about grand gestures. It’s the work behind closed doors, in the silence of death, in the eye to eye vulnerable conversations that spark a light of Hope.

It’s in the small acts of love, kindness, charity and sacred sanctuary.

I recognize I’m not anything more than a mortal woman. I don’t have a higher education in any professional field. My college degree was in Sociology so maybe that counts or helps me understand society and humanity. I’m not a priest or a priestess. I wasn’t trained professionally to be a good listener, researcher or therapist.

But I am a seeker of truth.

I am a student of life.

Love.

Loss.

And now…

I am working to embody the pure energy of love. And I actively work to do that every day. If I’m going to be a leader for WOHP, I have to walk my talk.

I have become humbled by my vocation over the last several months. This year has seen much loss in my life and the lives of friends and family. I am starting over with a fresh perspective about life and how the small acts of love make the biggest impact.

I’ll be honest. Gracie’s death has broken me apart. I miss her terribly and think about her from the moment I wake up until I go to sleep. I’m not sure how I feel about this? A little obsessive? Yes. Too consuming? Absolutely. But I think it’s how I’m working through the grief process.

I’m focusing a lot of time on Lee, too. Trying to keep her light going and shining.

Today, I’m remembering the good times I had with my dogs on this trail. Buddy and Gracie are walking along side us as ghosts or energy or who knows? I’m questioning a lot right now.

What I do hold onto is that the love that was created in me by my dogs is my anchor. Their unconditional love for me taught me how to love. My goal is to reflect the love they gave to me back into the world 💚

Thank you Buddy, Gracie and Lilo 💚