This summer, the garden beds around our new home have become unexpected teachers.

Some days, I walk outside hoping to see dramatic change. A new blossom. A taller stem. A bed transformed overnight (let me tell you about the rabbits!) Instead, everything looks almost the same. Of course, it isn't.

Roots are stretching deeper. Plants are gathering strength. Tiny changes are happening that my eyes simply can't measure from one day to the next. Gardeners often say, “The first year they sleep. The second year, they creep. The third year they leap.”

Whether or not it's literally true for every plant, it beautifully illustrates a larger truth: healthy growth begins where we cannot see it.

The occasional visitor to the studio might see finished stoles hanging on the design wall. Just as in the garden, much of the important work has already happened out of sight. What they don't see are the sketches tucked into folders, the piles of fabric waiting to be tested, or the dozens of small decisions that happen before a design finally feels right.

Maybe that's encouraging if you're in a season where you don't feel like much is changing. Hidden work is still work. Quiet growth is still growth.