A bit about me

 

Hi and welcome.  Thanks so much for checking out this page

Below you’ll find a bit about the driving forces behind this website & myself as well as a rough summary of the direction my journey has taken me so far.

 

I believe that at the Heart of us, at our ‘core’, is the desire, the need to find purpose, meaning and fulfilment in our lives

and I believe that, that purpose, meaning and fulfilment is unique to each one of us.

 

 

Image: from my journal

 

Be not afraid of absurdity; do not shrink from the fantastic.  Within a dilemma, choose the most unheard of, the most dangerous solution.  Be brave. Be brave

Isak Dinesen

 

I believe that not knowing where we’re heading when we set out on our own personal journey of exploration & discovery of our own unique potential, is a brave and courageous act that requires & deserves support and encouragement

 

I believe we are all on our own individual path of evolution that cannot adequately be identified or measured by goals, ‘achievements’ or ‘productivity’

 

We all have our own individual story to navigate, live, experience and to tell and that we should all get to be the author of our own story

 

Journaling is where we plant seeds, where we nurture and grown our understanding of who we are and how we are meant to show up in this lifetime

It’s where we harvest the wisdom of our experience and understanding and pursue our ideas, dreams and aspirations

 

 

 

“In order to become who we are meant to be we must first let go of who we think we are

Tasha Blank

 

 

Me

1960

Born

Middle of three children

Midlands UK

 

1971 – 1976

Attended comprehensive school

Lived with undiagnosed epilepsy

Left school during the heat wave of 1976 with few ‘qualifications’

However… achieved pretty awesome grades in all of my dance exams !

 

1976

Parents separated

I left home and moved to London

 

1977 – 1980

Mixture of ‘live-in’ work and office work

Held my breath for 3 years

 

1980 – 1984

Moved back to the Midlands

Formative period of debilitating depression & anxiety

 

1984 – 1089

A period of clawing my way back to life one step at a time

‘worked’ as a volunteer

Studied with the Open University

Various work for the Local Authority & Probation Service

 

1989 – 1991

Full time student

CCETSW Cert. of Qualification in Social Work

 

1991 – 2000

Child Protection Social Worker

Child & Family Therapist

 

1995

Married my soulmate Alex

 

 

2003

Moved to South Wales

Discovered Yoga

 

2008 – 2011

Studied Yoga  at Mandala Yoga Ashram

The British Wheel of Yoga Accredited Teaching Diploma
Mandala Yoga Ashram Yoga Teaching Training Certificate

Returned to Derbyshire

Taught Yoga until 2019

 

2016 – 2019

Discovered the work of Lisa Sonora and Creative Journaling

Studied her classes on line

Travelled to Mexico to attend workshop  ‘Creative Pathways to your Purpose & Power’ with Lisa Sonora, Aaron Zimmerman & Emily Trinkaus

Completed Lisa Sonora’s Facilitator Training Programme

 

 

June 2023

Amherst Writers and Artists Certified Affiliate & Workshop Facilitator 

 

Well that’s about it, or me, in summary…so far

(the journey continues….)

but you’re just about up to speed with the ‘big stuff’

 

I enjoy simple bookbinding projects, making notebooks, journals and sketchbooks CHECK OUT MY LATEST OFFERINGS IN THE SHOP

I am currently teaching Bachata dance classes, on the last Monday of each month in association with Lee Hunter & Absolute Salsa

I journal, read and love to discover inspiring teachers & like-minded creative souls

I am a (beginner level) but keen sewer

I play with paint, colour, paper and collage.  I am an avid collector of beautiful and unusual paper &  recycle as much as I can

I have run a free Journaling Project for the past three years (access these on the FREE STUFF PAGE)

 

I now offer weekly “Quotes” as prompts to inspire and offer jumping off places for journaling.  You can find these over on my Quotes Page
I also post them on my social media platforms …

 

Facebook
Instagram

 

 

Have you read my e-book yet ?  ‘Creative Journaling… A creative practice to harness your purpose and potential’