ABOUT TEMBI LOCKE

I believe we can reclaim what has been lost. We can write a new story, one day at a time, one word at a time.

For years, I have explored the ways we heal, rebuild, and find meaning in the midst of change. As an actor, writer, and producer, my work has always centered on human stories, especially the ones that reveal what is possible within each of us.

In my own life, I’ve had to learn how to move through profound grief, to sit in the unknown looking for glimmers of hope, to scan for the helpers, the inspirers, the wisdom-givers, and fellow humans wanting to lift their lives.  

Along the way, through journaling, traveling, cooking and the act of storytelling, I rediscovered the parts of me that had never truly left. My grief and loss had only muted them, but those parts were still rooted within me. I did not need to let them go. The future, I found, could hold all of it. Owning our full timeline allows us to move forward.

Life after loss offers us that. Reclaiming and adding new possibilities is not about choosing between the past or the future. It is more than duality. It is a multipronged approach to time – looking back, while simultaneously being present in a now that holds grief, while letting slivers of light shine in to guide us forward. 

Rebuilding isn’t about starting over; it’s about reclaiming who we are while making space for who we can become.