Jen Barker was born into a small home church called The Fellowship in Houston, Texas. She was raised in a rural neighborhood in the San Bernadino mountains in California until the age of twelve. This was when her parents moved the family back to Houston to be closer to the rest of the church group. This second move felt isolating, as she had come to consider the mountains her home. The culture shock of moving from a rural neighborhood to a massive city, from mountains to flatlands, from unbridled forest to manicured suburbia, and from friends known to those unknown, left Barker in a state of isolation. Upon growing up and finding her beliefs differed from those held by The Fellowship, she left the church. She was rebuked and ostracized. This formative, traumatic experience has informed her practice and life, as she rediscovers a sense of spirituality again—one that is apart from organized religion. Reconciling with family and finding new connections has also greatly informed her practice and life. She now resides in the area colonially known as Detroit with her spouse and three cats.