Alarice's Authentic Journeys

There should be a warning label attached to May.

Not because of one big thing, but because of all the things…at the same time.

One minute you’re sitting in a work meeting discussing AI transformation, operational uncertainty, and how entire industries are being reshaped in real time…and the next minute, you’re frantically searching Amazon for a green shirt that can come same day because everyone has to wear green tomorrow (and we just found out yesterday).

Somewhere in between there is standardized testing, field day, pajama day, dress like a pirate day, random half days, teacher appreciation week, and summer camp sign up (Because, no, you didn’t sign up in January. You weren’t even thinking about summer back then.), and a calendar that looks like abstract art with the variety of activities throughout the month (that also always happen to be on a Tuesday at 2pm—cue parent guilt because you can’t miss the kindergarten reading and music performance, but you also have to work because 2pm is literally the middle of the workday for most of us).

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Meanwhile, work somehow feels both frantic and strangely stalled at the same time.

People are mentally checking out for summer. Decision cycles are slowing down. Meetings are getting pushed. Priorities are shifting weekly or even daily. Entire organizations are trying to figure out what AI means for the future, while employees are eagerly learning every new AI tool that comes out each day, for fear of being left behind in the great AI adventure we are all on.

And underneath it all is the invisible spreadsheet or Trello board running in every parent’s mind:

Did we book a vacation yet?

Who needs new sneakers?

What are the kids doing for 8 weeks during the summer?

Can we just give up on spirit week, because how many spirit weeks do we need in a school year?

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It’s fascinating when you stop to think about it.

At the exact moment technology is accelerating faster than ever before, human life feels more operationally complex than ever before, too.

We are simultaneously optimizing workflows at work, automating processes with AI, streamlining operations… while trying to remember if our child needed a bagged lunch for their field trip, a birthday present for the party after school, or their saxophone for school tomorrow.

And maybe that’s the real story of this moment. Not that life is “busy.” It’s that modern life requires us to operate across emotional, professional, technological, and logistical realities all at once.

And somehow, most people are still showing up.

Still leading teams.

Still raising families.

Still trying to be thoughtful partners, parents, colleagues, and humans.

So, maybe May feels a little unhinged right now.

And maybe that’s okay.

In a world obsessed with optimization and the next big AI drop, May is your reminder that humans are still gloriously, chaotically human.