Hi, I’m Ruth.
I’m a Chinese-American spiritual director, creative, and facilitator who is passionate about creating spaces where people can slow down, reconnect with what’s true, and explore what might be possible next.
My story of making room for aliveness.
In 2016, I struggled to find myself in the middle of a life that suddenly demanded so much of me. I had just transitioned out of a job I loved, became a mother of two, and the surround sound of crying babies was the new soundtrack of my life. These profound life changes (along with a few more) made life really noisy— and it felt impossible to hear my own voice.
Somewhere amidst the chaos, I started painting— not because I was really good at it, but because I needed a place of ease. I needed a space that felt low-stakes and free of responsibility: a space to simply be. Inadvertently, my little hobby became an invitation to creativity— not just as a practice but as a way of life.
Creativity is a posture toward life.
The more I painted, the more I learned— not just how to make choices on paper but on the canvas of my life. Painting was giving me greater permission to experiment, take risks, paint outside the lines, release perfection, and trust the process. As these habits on paper slowly grew into stronger aspects of myself, I couldn’t help but share my newfound joy with others. I turned my dining room into a BYOB watercolor studio and kept inviting everyone I knew. Being creative was helping me forge a new relationship with myself and the world: one full of greater curiosity and possibility— and I wanted to make room for others to experience that too.
…when life aches again.
Several years later, a new set of life transitions fell into my lap, and I found myself feeling a deep sense of disorientation again. Except this time, my life didn’t feel noisy. It echoed with a deep silence. Through a series of unfortunate events, I had lost some of the places, people, and systems that helped me feel like myself, and the absence I felt was profound.
I no longer felt certain of what I believed and how to orient to life and to God. I wondered if I was the problem and started asking questions, like: Is something wrong with me? Where do I belong now? Can spirituality feel life-giving again?
Spiritual Direction— a space to hold ALL of me.
In this season of deep disorientation, I pursued healing in a variety of ways, one of them being spiritual direction.
I knew I wanted to start seeing a spiritual director again because I needed a space I could bring the fullness of what I held— questions, doubts, griefs, and ALL. And being listened to and witnessed helped me to find my way back to a sense of faith— this time, not as a rigid set of beliefs but as a way of listening, finding my way through uncertainty, and trusting that life is still possible– even after loss.
Over time, the questions I focused on shifted too: What is inviting me into life? What makes me come alive? What is wanting to be birthed in me?
Making room for myself and others
As I slowly found my way back to life again, believing a way forward was possible, I also felt an increased capacity to dream again.
I became a spiritual director through Liberated Together’s School of Spiritual Direction, and I started meeting with my friend Shannon to dream up third spaces where people could feel restored— spaces that weren’t quite church or therapy but something in between. Both of us had been recovering from painful experiences of loss, and part of our healing was to wonder aloud: What would it look like to create the kind of life-giving spaces we ourselves wished we had?
Our dreams and desires eventually led us to host our very first workshop, and we learned quickly that the people engaging found the contemplative and creative spaces we were hosting “much needed” and at times, even revelatory.
What began as a dream has since grown into multiple workshops and retreats I've facilitated both with Shannon and on my own—each shaped by that same desire to make room for healing, creativity, delight, and possibility.
How are you making room for aliveness?
What is this season asking of you?
What is calling you forward?
What is waiting to emerge (or re-emerge)?
Whatever season you’re in— I’d love to offer you companionship as you listen for what is true and alive in your own life.