About the Founder
Rinyu began with a butterfly. Not a business plan. Not a product idea. A moment.
Years ago, while homeschooling my daughter, we raised Monarch butterflies from tiny eggs.
There were eight when the journey began.
We watched them hatch, grow, change, disappear into their chrysalises, and eventually emerge.
Only two made it all the way to flight.
Watching those two butterflies finally spread their wings stayed with me.
Because somewhere between the beginning and the becoming, I realized that transformation isn't always beautiful while you're living through it.
Sometimes it's messy. Sometimes it's quiet.
Sometimes you can't see what's happening at all.
And sometimes, you have to release one version of yourself before you can discover what's waiting on the other side.
A Life Shaped by Seasons
Perhaps that's why the idea of Rinyu feels so personal to me.
My own life has unfolded through seasons of transition and reinvention — and Japan has been a significant part of that journey.
My family and I have lived in Japan during three separate seasons of life, totaling 14 years.
Each return brought a different version of me. Different experiences.
Different responsibilities. Different dreams. Different questions about what came next.
But each time, Japan gave me something I carried forward:
an appreciation for beauty in simplicity, the changing seasons, the quiet details of nature, and the understanding that there can be profound meaning in the journey itself.
Japan isn't simply the backdrop for Rinyu. It's a second home to me. It's a huge part of the Rinyu story.
The landscapes, seasons, flowers, creatures, craftsmanship, and sense of quiet beauty continue to influence the world I'm creating.
And perhaps that's fitting, because Rinyu itself has emerged from many seasons of my life.
Why Rinyu?
I've spent much of my professional life helping people navigate change—
through education, counseling, leadership, strategic communications, coaching, and my own seasons of transition.
I've seen how often the biggest shifts in life happen at a crossroads:
Who am I now?
What's next?
What do I need to release?
What am I becoming?
Rinyu grew from my desire to offer something tangible for those moments.
Something beautiful. Something meaningful.
Something small enough to carry with you.
A little reminder for the road ahead.
The butterfly was only the beginning.
As Rinyu grows, so will its world —
bringing together nature, seasons, Japanese-inspired beauty, meaningful objects, and stories about renewal, transformation, courage, hope, and becoming.
Because I believe we are never quite finished becoming.
And neither is Rinyu.
Come Along for the Journey
Rinyu is one expression of a much larger love for Japan, travel, storytelling, nature, and the beauty found along the way.
If you'd like to see more of the places and experiences that continue to inspire me,
come travel with me on The EM Show, my YouTube channel exploring Japan and the world through my eyes.
And if you're like most of us — on a journey to discover how to steward your own God-given gifts and capabilities, come along on our path through The ShiftPoint.
The journey is part of the story.
— Esther May
Founder, Rinyu
Renew. Transform. Become.
Transformation doesn't always look like progress while you're living through it.
Sometimes you are growing.
Sometimes you are changing.
Sometimes you are releasing something.
Sometimes you are in a season where absolutely nothing seems to be happening.
And sometimes the work happening beneath the surface is preparing you for a life you cannot yet see.
Faith is being sure of what you hope for; certain of things to come. ~ Hebrews 11:1