Some books you read. Some books you underline. And some books quietly change how you move through the world.
That was my experience reading Strong Ground by Brené Brown.
I found myself marking almost every page. At some point, I made a custom wax-seal bookmark to match the cover. I didn’t realize it then, but I wasn’t just making a bookmark. I was building a small ritual for myself.
How It Started
I didn’t set out to make bookmarks. I set out to feel steady.
Leadership asks a lot of us — to move quickly, to hold uncertainty for others, to make decisions without perfect information. And if I am honest, sometimes that pace lives in my nervous system long after the meetings end.
So I started working with my hands.
Slowly pouring wax. Pressing the seal. Threading the tassel. And then sewing small symbols into the tassels — little evil eyes, hearts, wings, butterflies — while quietly praying for kindness and inner peace as I worked.
There is something grounding about that pace. It connects me to another time — when letters mattered, when seals carried meaning, when communication required intention. When people trusted the process of making something slowly.
Without planning it, this became my way back to calm.
The Moment I Almost Didn’t Share
Recently, I shared a photo of one of these bookmarks alongside my reflections on Strong Ground. I almost didn’t post it. It felt too personal. Too small. Too quiet for a world that rewards the loud and the polished.
But I took the chance anyway.
Then Brené Brown herself responded with a simple message: “Bookmark! WOW! Love.”
That moment stayed with me — not because of what it did for the post, but because of what it reminded me: something honest, shared before you feel completely ready, can reach further than you expect.
Sometimes courage looks very quiet at the beginning.
What struck me most about the response wasn’t the numbers. It was the feeling behind it. How many people said they were searching for something to return to.
We are all carrying a lot right now. And I think we need practices that bring us back to ourselves — not just frameworks, not just strategies. Something slower. Something made with our hands.
What I Make, and Why I Share It
I’ve been using these seals for cards I send to people I care about, and for bookmarks I make by hand. Small things. But they carry intention.
A wax seal closes something. Protects something. Marks something as intentional. That is what drew me to them. And that is what I hope you feel when you hold one.
Each bookmark I make falls into one of five collections — each one reflecting something I return to:
Spiritual — for the moments that ask us to go deeper within ourselves.
Inspirational — for the days we need a quiet reminder of what we’re capable of.
Seasonal — for the rhythms of the year and the beauty of each turning.
Brené Brown — a collection born from the book that started it all.
Whimsical — for joy. For wonder. For no particular reason at all.
An Invitation
I don’t make these to sell a philosophy.
I make them because the act of making them has given me something I didn’t know I needed — and I want to share that with others.
If one of these finds its way into your hands, I hope it does the same for you. My way back is wax seals.
Maybe yours is too.
Made with intention. Shared with love. — Haleh