I grew up in England but have lived in the USA for over 17 years. I am very happy to call Colorado home.
For nearly 15 years I built and fundraised for affordable housing, helped start-ups get off the ground, and generally looked for opportunities to help me understand my purpose. 2004 was a defining year in that search. I was in the eye of a Category-4 hurricane, as was my home and the affordable homes we'd built in our devastated town. However, those months of rebuilding taught me how much we are all capable of when we are tested, the true value of community, and the incredible goodness of people. Despite how grueling those weeks and months were, the hurricane actually enabled me to see myself and the world differently. It helped me engage with my world in a fuller, more authentic way.
This is not the most traumatic thing I have experienced, which I say only so you know life has thrown me some challenges, as it does all of us. I am grateful and fortunate, however, that it has also taught me to trust in myself and the universe to help me catch those curve balls and redirect their power. Whatever trauma or challenge you might be facing, please feel welcome to share it with me or anyone you think can help.
Things I think about
It's never personal but it's always personalities.
At some point every hero wonders whether they can make it.
It is always, always ok.
A lesson, even one hard-learned, is better than no lesson at all.
You only get what you give.
Change is inevitable. Embrace the journey through change, even with its challenges, for it may show you places better than you could have imagined.
Wherever you have been injured, once that part of you is healed, it is stronger than before.