The Clearing with Katherine May Elissa Altman on the beauty of impermanence
Mar 14, 2026
Elissa Altman, author and speaker known for books on family, trauma, and creative permission. She talks about craving restorative retreats, the rituals of rereading and reading as solace, the sensory importance of a proper workspace, cooking and music as grounding practices, and how the sea’s impermanence helps her face change and grief.
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Rest Is Often Enforced By The Body
- Katherine reflects that rest is often forced by the body rather than chosen, revealing how modern life resists deliberate stopping.
- She notes being 'stopped' by illness shows how bodies impose necessary pauses despite societal expectations to keep working.
Everything Everywhere All At Once Personal Story
- Elissa describes being mid 'everything everywhere all at once' after her mother's death, medical issues, a snow cyclone and car trouble.
- She links this cascade of events to feeling overstretched while still making dinner and caring for family, showing resilience amid chaos.
Schedule Reading And Journal Time For Writing
- Do schedule dedicated reading and journaling time as essential parts of writing, not luxuries to be cut.
- Elissa plans waking early and carving out time to read, research and keep a journal during project phases.
