RETURN 2026

RETURN 2026 IS FULL - this information remains for folks who may want to join the wait list.

Please email me if you would like to join the wait list for Return 2027.

RETURN TO YOUR INHERENT WISDOM

Return is an annual coaching community, where we practice together to reflect on intention, wisdom, and action.

We operate under these foundations:

• Humans are basically good, intrinsically sane, and fundamentally wise.

• None of us need advice or someone to fix us, but we do community to mirror our wisdom and clarify our confusion.

• Creativity and contemplative practice help us heal.

What does Return include?

Return is an annual program, which in 2026 runs from January 10 - December 12.

Return combines: monthly live meetings, weekly live guided practice, forums, prompts, and community to help establish and follow through on our intentions.

1.     We begin the year by finding an intention or intentions – single words or simple phrases – to guide your year. We also explore desired feeling states and actions to shape our year.

2.     Through weekly prompts and weekly live practice sessions, as well as group forums, and monthly live meetings, we explore a major themes throughout the year, such as creative practices, elemental teachings, emotional states, psychological qualities, and justice issues.

3.     Throughout the year, I guide you through practices, including compassion, guided meditation, writing, collage, community reflection, movement and more. I offer supportive forms and forums to continue checking in.

4.     Frank discussions of our confusion and polishing the jewel of each others’ wisdom - on personal and societal levels - are the bedrock of Return.

5.     You can choose your level of involvement – see pricing below.

How do I know Return is for me?

• I want to discover or deepen my relationship to meditation, maitri/metta (loving kindness), compassion, and social justice

• Issues of social justice are important to me, but I need to approach them contemplatively

• I want to incorporate more creativity into my life

• I need structures to remind me what is vital and essential

• I do well with exploring bigger themes (versus immediate objective goals)

• I am willing to be vulnerable to myself and to others

• I crave introverted/quiet time, and also introspective group time

• I do well with honest, direct conversations in a safe-enough community

• I create better with prompts

• I am curious about my own wisdom and confusion

• I am not interested in giving or receiving advice

• I crave a daring but brave container

• I prefer to learn and explore in small groups

• I consider myself a contemplative (from any tradition)

• I am either Buddhist or appreciate Buddhist teachings

• I am more process than product-oriented

• I identify as highly sensitive, introverted, empathic, or intuitive

I already know Return is for me! How do I sign up?

Please email me in order to set up a discovery call to see if Return is right for you. Priority positions are held for People of the Global Majority.

RETURN 2026 IS FULL - this information remains for folks who may want to join the wait list. Please email me if you would like to join the wait list for Return 2027.

What have participants said about Return?

“At each and every Return meeting I've felt fully understood, like, really, I could show up in whatever state I was in, and I felt okay being there, not embarrassed, not "forced" to pretend anything. And that's exactly what I need. Writing freely always surprises me (although I know, rationally, that it does work) - every time I do it, following Miriam's prompts, I get some new insights, both from my own writing and from the others' gentle reflections. The Return gathering feel like coming home, resting, breathing out, relaxing, being held. Return is a wonderful community, even it is entirely online for me. Everyone is respectful and compassionate.”

- Stefanie

“I keep returning to this healing space Miriam has manifested because it feels essential for my core. The weekly practices that are offered are attuned to my life with such healing symphonic synchronicity. I love being held and heard in a community that feels safe to explore the depth of my being in a delicate non invasive manner.”

- Corrina Pariyar

“this has been a gathering, like a ritual of going to church, but this is not church. a ritual of gathering to value being a human and being in the world. this has been a practice of showing up to remind myself to be. i am learning show much about different dimensions of experience, this weekly gathering helps me not to get stuck in habitual or reactive actions and beliefs. it does have a lot of buddhist base, but at the same time, Miriam's ability to hold space with such open-ness calls to my core, my gut, and i just want to be alive, in all sense - the full spectrum.”

-anonymous

“Miriam's Return has been a transformational experience for me. I have been a participant from the beginning and return each year because I continue to find it inspirational and meaningful. Miriam is a wise and compassionate teacher who creates a welcoming, non judgmental, inclusive environment that allows personal exploration in a safe setting. The weekly Return is a wonderful start to the week. I leave the meetings feeling uplifted by the helpful and thought-provoking insights that Miriam provides in her brief talks and guided contemplations, as well as by the shared reflections from group members. The monthly Return serves to deepen my connection to myself, as well as to others in the group, because we have a longer time to reflect on our relationship with our intention words and to listen to each other. Miriam has the skill to manage all-zoom, hybrid, and in-person meetings with ease. She sees, hears, and acknowledges each participant, helping everyone feel like a part of the community. I constantly learn from - and amazed by! - her clarity of thinking and ability to synthesize complex topics, which she offers to us in understandable, relatable language. I am deeply grateful for all that Miriam gives and the rich community that she has created.”

-Janet S.

"Return has been a practice of feeling as much as learning, of getting to know myself among others, and that's been vital - being witnessed, witnessing others' journeys, simply being there with each other, navigating our way through the rollercoaster of living. The community that Miriam has created and held space for, has been a real balm for the mind, heart and spirit. On an individual level, the weekly practices have been an anchor for me, a reminder in my calendar to pause and contemplate. Even if I haven't made each session, and especially when I've wobbled in life and work, the commitment has been affirming."

- Aliya Mughal

“Miriam is an excellent facilitator who has created a space for heartfelt connection. I felt safe, seen, and challenged to dig deeper into aspects of my life I may otherwise have missed due to life's busyness. Most of all, I looked forward each month to being in a loving container where I got to listen deeply to both myself and to others - it always felt like a precious experience. I'll return to Return for as long as I can.”

- Elena

“Working with Miriam has been one of the most quietly transformative gifts of my life. As my Return Teacher, she has opened a doorway back to my own inherent wisdom—gently, patiently, and with a clarity that always feels both grounded and spacious. She invites me to see, listen, and create from a place that is already whole.

Her guidance is subtle but profound—never directing me toward her way of seeing, but helping me rediscover my own.

I deeply admire the integrity she brings to her work: the way she weaves meditation, dharma, contemplative arts, and social justice into a path that feels accessible, compassionate, and real. Her presence—whether online, in retreat, or in a simple conversation—creates a space where creativity becomes natural and where honesty with oneself feels not only possible, but welcomed.

Miriam has a rare gift for helping people return to themselves. She embodies the very heart of contemplative arts, and it is an honor to be her student.”

- Karyn K.

FAQ’s

-I don’t live in Madison, Wisconsin. Can I still participate?

Yes! The Return community includes folks from all over the world. However, as far as time zones go, the best way to be able to participate live is if you live in the Americas or Europe/Africa.

-When are the live meetings?

Specific dates and times will be shared when you sign up, but generally the weekly practice call is offered at 9 am Central US Time on Saturdays, and for the monthly meetings, you have a choice of joining Saturday 0r Sunday afternoons Central US time.

-What If I can’t make some of the live meetings?

They are recorded and made available to you within a day.

-What is Mighty Networks?

Mighty Networks is Herspiral’s safe online home! We have a private community for Return on Mighty Networks, where you can share as freely as you feel safe doing on the internet, without the psychic static of social media.

-What is the size of Return?

The number of people who can access the prompts and practice recordings via email is open, but the live participants won’t top 20.

-What is the commitment?

Return is a twelve-month commitment. This gives you a full year to explore your intentions, watch your words and desires change, and grow together as a community. 

-How late can I join?

Once Return is full it’s full. So email me as soon as you can! Usually a large percentage of people return to Return, and there are only a couple of openings for new folks each year.

-Why such a wide range of prices?

I believe in a mutual aid approach to pricing: you pay what you can, and someone else pays more so someone else can pay less. There is a very wide range of what people charge for this kind of thing, and I have followed my intuition as well as the market. If you need help meeting the price, please simply ask. If you can pay more, please do, as that helps those who need to pay less.

-What if my financial situation changes mid-year?

Payment options include month-to-month, but with the understanding that you are committed to the whole year.

If your financial situation changes during the year, please talk to me and we will figure it out.

-What if it turns out Return isn’t for me after I have signed up and paid?

Let’s talk enough ahead of time to make sure it is right for you. Read the information here and people’s reviews, and if you have questions after that, let’s schedule a call.

-What results can I expect?

Return is less about results than process and practice. However, participants repeatedly report feeling more grounded, spacious, and curious about their lives. They also experience a quieting of their inner critic and a strengthening of their compassion/meditation/contemplative practices.

-What is Return based on/in?

Miriam’s training comes from many different lineage sources: Karuna Training (a contemplative psychology program), Shambhala, Buddhism, Maitri/Metta (Loving Kindness) practice, and recovery teachings (Adult Children of Alcoholics in particular). Teachers referenced and quoted include people like bell hooks, Kristin Neff, Sebene Selassie, Lama Rod Owens, and Leesa Renee Hall. See below for Miriam’s qualifications.

- Sounds great! How can I sign up?

I have conversations with all new folks interested in joining Return. This is because I am working on building a year-long community, and I want to make sure group dynamics feel good, and finances are in balance. Please reach out to me via phone or email and we can have our discovery call, and I will let you know as soon as I know. Priority positions are held for People of the Global Majority.

RETURN 2026 IS FULL - these testimonials remain for folks who may want to join the wait list. Please email me if you would like to join the wait list for Return 2027.

“Joining Miriam in Return has been one of the most grounding & quietly transformative parts of my life these past few years. Miriam’s presence is steady, & compassionate, & I deeply admire how Miriam holds space in virtual & hybrid settings, which can be difficult for many when attempting to build psychological safety. It’s likely because Miriam is deeply attuned in a way that makes you feel understood, included, & empowered. Miriam always makes space for every voice. Without judgement. What is best is the offering of tools which create real change while reminding you that every moment contains unexpected possibility. I’m beyond grateful for Miriam’s support, the others in the beautiful community that has been cultivating, & recommend snagging a spot in Return 2026 to anyone who is seeking a deeper relationship with themselves.”

- Jamie Priti Gratrix

-What are Miriam’s qualifications?

o   Twenty + years of teaching Contemplative Writing as a weekly program, as well as residential retreats multiple times a year

o   Twenty years of teaching Miksang Contemplative Photography

o   Ten years of being a Meditation Instructor with Shambhala

o   Fourteen years of teaching Shambhala Art curriculum

o   Ten years of private Creative Coaching practice

o   Numerous years studying with Natalie Goldberg in New Mexico and France

o   Nine years of leading Return

o   Eight years teaching Karuna Training (graduate from the three-year program)

o   Six years of mentor/coaching Inner Field Trip with Leesa Renee Hall

Five years of intense study with Lama Rod Owens; one year of participation in Lama Rod Owens’ Advanced Practitioner Cohort; certified Seven Homecomings facilitator

o   Co-author of two books on Miksang: Looking and Seeing and Heart of Photography (Drala Publications)

o   Author of two chapbooks of poetry: At Home Here and Dreams of Movement (Finishing Line Press)

o   Naropa University certified Maitri Space Awareness teacher

o   Has taught in-person all over the United States and Canada, as well as in the UK and France

o   Has students online from many continents – North and South America, Africa, Europe, Australia, Asia

o   Miriam practices what she preaches – she meditates, writes, creates, moves, and studies every day

RETURN 2026 IS FULL - this information remains for folks who may want to join the wait list. Please email me if you would like to join the wait list for Return 2027.

Please email me in order to set up a discovery call to see if Return is right for you. Priority positions are held for People of the Global Majority.

Pricing is here.

All prices are in US dollars. Payment can be made up front, in parts, or monthly.

Once we establish your participation, we will set up the payment mode and plan best for you.

$50-150 a month for Basic Return, which includes static emails and recordings (no live gatherings) ($600-$1800/year)

$150-300 a month for Regular Return, which includes the above static emails and recordings, plus all live gatherings ($1800-3600/year)

$350-500 a month for Premium Return, which includes all of the above plus one solo meeting a month for one hour with Miriam ($4200-6000/year)

The pricing for Regular Return is what is a sustainable pricing range for Miriam and Herspiral Arts. If you are able to pay at the higher end of the scale, you can support those who need to pay at the lower end. If you need to pay at the lower end, that’s fine; you don’t need to explain why. If the prices are still out of range for you, please let me know and we can see if we can find a way to make it work.

For those with access, you can also make a donation to the Ourspiral Scholarship Fund to help participants who need to pay less.

Return 2026 meeting times/dates

The weekly live practice calls are 9-10 am CT every Saturday (some will have to be recorded because of Miriam teaching, and she will let the group know ahead of time).

Return monthly two and a half hour calls have two options. The calls are the same, just offered at different times/days: one Saturday OR Sunday a month, 1-3:30pm CT. About half are on the first Saturday and Sunday of the month (the other half are the second weekend of the month and are italicized).

January 10 or 11

February 7 or 8

March 7 or 8

April 11 or 12

May 2 or 3

June 6 or 7

July 11 or 12

August 8 or 9

September 5 or 6

October 3 or 4

November 7 or 8

December 12 or 13