What Happens When Women Gather
- Stephanie Rouch
- Jun 17
- 3 min read
A soggy field. A sunny sky. A reminder: we are in this together.
Last Saturday, I had the joy of participating in Babesburgh—a women-led festival in Pittsburgh that uplifts women-owned businesses, creators, and healers of all kinds.
This was so much more to me than a festival....it felt like community in motion.
From free local beer tastings to drum circles, Zumba on the grass to art, food, and fashion vendors, Babesburgh was a living example of what happens when inclusion is done with intention. The board, led by the amazing Cat Bruno, curates opportunities that reflect the full spectrum of humanity—centered around women of all races, sexual orientations, gender identities, and expressions.
This was my second year there as a wellness vendor. And this time, I got to zoom out more at the beauty of being myself in partnership with other women instead of being super focused on how my offerings were received.
From Curiosity to Connection
I offered guided meditations on the lawn—centered around textured visualizations for self-forgiveness and gratitude. Each session felt like a portal into possibility.
Each conversation with someone that stopped by our tent, a doorway into someone’s real life. I spoke with women of all ages, all experiences—sharing a collective desire for depth, healing, and meaning.
Even the weather played along: despite a downpour the night before, the sky opened just in time. The ground was soggy, but the energy? Fully engaged and playful.
Inspired by Merch Tables and Mindfulness
Over the last two years, I’ve helped run merch for my boyfriend Byron’s band—and I’ve learned a lot from watching what unfolds. Sometimes you make $5 in stickers. Sometimes the shirts sell out. Byron, though, never ties his worth or his mood to the numbers. He sees every show as a chance to plant a seed. To give a kid in the crowd something to dream about. His presence and attitude help me to show up fully and let go of outcomes.
It's a thing that is easy to know is the right thing to do, but difficult to actually do. With both Byron and my mom present in full support at Babesburgh, I got to enjoy another level of release of outcomes and expectations to enjoy what the day truly was.
A chance to explore, be seen, build relationships.
And also to share a framework that has brought me healing.
To show up with my sister’s chakra art that inspired many observers.
To offer my heart through meditation.
And to enjoy the offerings of others.
There’s a vulnerability in being seen this way—raw, creative, unfiltered. But there’s also exhilaration. Because when you lead a room (or a lawn) in meditation and you feel the shared stillness at the end, there’s this quiet recognition between strangers:
"You felt that too, right? There IS something more here."
Women Healing Together
My gratitude goes beyond words to Cat, Sabrina, Shelley, Amanda, and everyone else on the Babesburgh board. This is the kind of event that builds community. And the beauty of that kind of gathering goes beyond the surface.
My colleague Emily, a stroke researcher, shared this concept from social network theory that stuck with me:
If you have ten friends who don’t know each other, each relationship adds something. But if those ten friends all know each other and share their own bonds, the benefit is exponential.
That’s the kind of space Babesburgh creates. Where healing is amplified. Where women come home to themselves—together.
🌸 Your Own Inner Circle Experience 🌸
If you're craving community healing in your own life—deep, playful, and heart-led—I invite you to explore the Inner Circle Experience.
These are private meditation retreats designed to reconnect you to your truth, your intuition, and the kind of self-love that transforms everything. It's a time of coming together with others to feel into the vulnerability of your heart's desires - and start to change the inner dialogue that you ARE worthy of these desires and that they ARE possible.
With love,
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