The Issue N°5 | October 22, 2026

Welcome back to The Issue 🥂

Somewhere in your phone there’s a text you haven’t opened in a while. Maybe the last message is still sitting there, looking a little dusty.

If you’re like me, you’ve probably meant to answer that text a dozen times. Or if you’re a lot like me, you thought you did answer. Most likely, life got busy and the day got away from you. Now the silence feels awkward enough that you’re not sure where to begin.

No, you’re not a horrible person. The person on the other end of that text is almost certainly thinking about you, too.

This week: the people who make your days feel like yours, and one small text that keeps them close.

The people in your day shape your mood more than your to-do list ever will. They can lift you up or wear you down faster than a seagull stealing a PBJ from a 4-year-old. Most of us spend our days in three places. Think about who shows up for you in each.

At Home, the people who share your space set the tone for ordinary days.

At Work, kind customers and co-workers make the job worth the makeup you put on.

At Play, friendship lives in the mahjong group, the walking group, and the friend who makes you laugh until you count it as an abs workout.

Friendships have seasons.

Not every relationship is meant to last forever, and that isn’t a failure. You were close during the school years, the direct-sales era, or the move, and then life pulled you in different directions. My aunt Ann emailed me this quote many years ago and I couldn’t agree more…

A few of mine have gone complete Houdini. I never see them, not even on those quick errands where you hope to run into no one and run into everyone, including your high school crush. Zilch. Nada. Vaporized.

Some friends don’t need a schedule

Then there are the friendships that stay put. Months can pass, and when you finally talk, you pick up right where you left off. Confession: I’m best suited for this type of friendship.

Here’s an example straight out of Reginaland:

It was a rainy Saturday. One of my favorite people and I had made plans earlier in the week to see a popular local band that night. I was so happy we were finally getting together! Then the couch won.

At 3:27 p.m. I texted her that I was too cozy in my rainy-day snuggie to move from the couch, and she wrote back that she was feeling the same and even wearing a similar outfit. We swapped photos of our bed head and laughed until the tears started with how much we get each other. We never made it to the show, and I wouldn’t trade that brief moment of non-traditional connection for anything.

Who is your rainy Saturday person? Send her a photo of your bed head. She’ll get it.

Those friendships don’t need a daily or weekly check-in to stay alive. They rest on a shared history that holds. Trust that.

Missing her is not the same as texting her

If you’ve ever felt guilty for not reaching out, you’re not alone. The intention is real. The follow-through just gets lost in the everyday.

The guilt usually does more harm than the silence. Try letting it go and reaching out. Call if you can, or send a photo of something that made you laugh. “Saw this and thought of you” is a genuine way to reconnect.

Friendship doesn’t ask for perfect attendance. It asks for a pulse now and then.

Who’s sitting at your table?

When I was in my early twenties, my uncle Bob suggested that I think of my life as a table with a Board of Directors seated around it. They were the people I could count on for different parts of my life. I had someone for finance, business, kids, marriage, and life advice, plus a confidant.

Not a crowd, a table. A Board of Directors: the people you can count on, and the people you want to make sure know they matter.

Take a quick look at your own table. Which seat is waiting for someone new?

Some seats have emptied over the years. My uncle, my mentor since I was a teenager, is gone now, and his seat still holds a very special place for me. Other seats emptied quietly as life moved people along, and that’s okay. Just recently, I realized I hadn’t replenished some of those seats with people I can count on for where I am in my life now.

Life keeps rearranging who sits with us. A new job brings a new friend, and a move brings a neighbor who turns into family. Each time the seats change, you get to fill them again.

Relationships are a key ingredient in Happiness, and they’re one of the things FashionSHEsta is built on.

Relationships show up in all three parts of S.H.E. Your style, your happiness, and your everyday life all get better when the right people are in them. Here are three small ways to try it this week.

Style: Some friendships have a season, just like a wardrobe. You don’t throw away the wool coat in June, and a friend you saw every day may be a once-a-year favorite now. That doesn’t make the bond any less real. This week, wear the piece she always compliments and send her a photo.

Happiness: Nobody needs a grand gesture, thank goodness, because no one has time to organize a parade to celebrate your relationship. Keeping it simple still works, so forward the Reel with “this is so you.” Drop off their favorite fall coffee on your way to a hair appointment, no birthday required. The small stuff wins.

Everyday life: I’ll confess something. I’m quick to say “let’s get together” and genuinely mean it. I don’t usually give a time or place because I don’t want to pressure anyone, and the truth is I’m a little commitment shy. Yet I’ll book a dentist appointment six months out without blinking.

Maybe you’re similar. If you can plan on being at the mercy of someone standing over you with a drill, you can plan a lunch. Pick a date and send the invite before you remember the contractor is at Home Depot waiting for you to call them back.

Before you go

And that’s this week’s Issue. Thank you for staying with me to the last line.

Now scroll back through your texts to that thread that’s gone quiet. Or think of the friend you keep meaning to call. Make her this week’s hello. No plan, no perfect moment, just a text that makes you both smile.

Hit reply and tell me who you’re texting first. Then forward this Issue to her. It gives you the perfect reason to say hello.

Next week’s Issue…
Everyday, Work. I’ll share simple ways you can add a little Style and Happiness to “work.” If work looks different for you right now, think hobbies, volunteering, or time with family.

🥂
Regina

P.S. Missed last week? Find your fall trend here.