creating

Kindling is our hotbed of curiosity.

We aim to share ideas, inspirations, and questions that emerge from our laboratory full of learnings. Come along.

come along and create!

This month, valo teens gathered to craft valentine’s letters for elders. We were amazed by the creativity and care they put into each...

push pause

The shrinking snow banks and singing birds beckon us outside to join the annual spring cleaning ritual. Raking alongside our neighbors...

what do i mean?

A few weeks ago, a group of us decided to dive into a writing workshop. Charles, our guide, invited us to tap into thoughts and feelings...

create a stir

When we choose to cook with friends and family, we shift our mindset from the daily chore of cooking. We love how it feels to walk into a...

create now.

“Creativity is not a talent. It is a way of operating.” John Cleese what do you need to be creative? At a recent strategic meeting, a...

celebrate the smudge

“And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good.”- John Steinbeck As one boy peeled the silkscreen away from his new t-shirt,...

the flip of a switch

“Do you know what the best part of the big storm was?” one teen asked at a recent retreat following a multi-day power outage. “It was...

p.s. write more

Remember the last time you wrote a card—even a postcard—scrawling a brief message to a friend and imagining the surprise your note would...

soul food

When we cook, we dive in with all of our senses. The give of a ripe avocado, the sweet vanilla smell of cookies baking, the sizzle of...

forging a virtuous cycle

The boy plops down at the table with fresh paper and a handful of crayons, some dull and stubby, some new. Almost hungry for more colors,...

digging in

cultivate: [kuhl-tuh-veyt]; verb: 1. prepare and use (land) for crops or gardening; 2. try to acquire or develop (a quality, sentiment,...

finding flow

“If one prays in order to be holy, or exercises to develop strong pectoral muscles, or learns to be knowledgeable, then a great deal of...

from away.