Congratulations to Janet Eriksson for Winning the June 2025 Barefoot Writing Challenge! (Your $100 prize is on its way!)

The challenge was to write an essay that answered this prompt:

Write about a ritual, place, or activity that helps you reset and recharge, and share why it’s important to you.

Janet shared a touching account of a group book study that turned out to be unexpectedly life-giving.. Enjoy her winning submission:


The Promise of Book Club Night
by Janet Eriksson

Janet ErikssonI crawl up the walkway, desperate, my strength having given out hours ago. I’ve been stolen from, belittled, betrayed. My headache won’t quit. Even my dog spent the day growling at me. 

This isn’t a country song. It’s just my week.

The welcoming lights up ahead, the open door, and the enticing aroma tell me help is here. I stumble through the doorway, dazed from the bus that ran over me this week. I’m so thankful it’s book club night.

Two hours later, I leave with a smile, my emotions calm, mind renewed, stomach sore from laughing, spirit ready to thrive.

My weekly book club is my reset button. There’s something about meeting with like-minded folks for fellowship, food, encouragement, and inspiration to grow. 

We are a group of five old ladies and one brave 30-something daughter who likes to hang out with us. This group is my constant lifeline. We get together at other times, too, for lunch or an outing. We cheer each other through life.

But book club night is extra special. It’s a beacon of promise in my week. A promise that no matter what I’m feeling or dealing with, I’ll leave there a better person. I’ll have guidance for navigating the days ahead. The comfort of knowing that no matter what happens, book club will come around again in seven days.

We do more than read a book together. We live it. How have we seen that book in action in our lives this week? What questions have popped up that we need to work through? How is the book teaching us to cope with the big heartaches and the little annoyances? How can we support each other to be who we were created to be?

We move slowly through each book because we allow as much discussion as we need. But the book keeps us focused. Keeps us present. It’s not just a shared meal or fellowship. Those are great things, and necessary, but the book adds more. It’s sharing life, trying to live better, seeking accountability, wanting to grow.

Our book club started 18 months ago when a friend asked if several of us could meet once a week for six weeks. She was working through an impactful book and wanted help along the journey. All these months later, we’re still meeting every week. The books have changed, but our journey together continues.

I schedule my life and appointments around our book club. I don’t want to miss it. Even in weeks when our host is out of town, the rest of us meet at a restaurant and carry on. 

Without that weekly reset, I might survive — although some weeks, that’s debatable. But I wouldn’t thrive. Book club is more than a reset. It’s life-giving.

If you could benefit from weekly fellowship and encouragement, I highly recommend joining with others for a book club. Start small and grow. Live it. You’ll see what I mean.