It’s an interesting path which unfolds when the father you never had leaves you…

Thankfully, I’m blessed with an ever inspiring, captivating & motivating Mother, who showed me what it meant to stand up for your values & beliefs from a young age. And at 75, she still blows me away with her ability and willingness to thrive, adapt, change and try something new, while the peers & siblings around her, continue the slog of conformity and age old societal habits and beliefs which bind them.

In the mid 70s we left the thriving town of Westport, in the west of Ireland, where we’d only recently moved into our own newly built, longed for home, because my Mother did not want the same for her children, which she’d endured in the 40s and 50s at school, being beaten, ridiculed & abused by supposed upstanding members of the church and local community.

In what was a whirlwind turnaround, my Mother packed up our home & aimed for Cornwall in the South West of England to finish raising her three children, after my brother came home from school saying he’d been hit by one of the Christian Brothers at his school that day. When asked by Mum why he’d been struck, he didn’t have an answer. So when our Mother enquired at school the next day, about why her son had been hit and they denied ever hitting any of the children (while at the same time, she could hear another child being struck down the corridor), she stood up to the Catholic church there & then, removing us from our respective schools and off we went. My first real adventure.

Being a rather small town, everyone knew soon enough that the Mother of these three children had spoken out against the clergy…those apparent pillars of society in Ireland at the time, who’d already ostracised my Mother for being a divorcee, because her husband (the father I never had) had an affair & left her.
Heresy and irony had never had such a party!

Cornwall was a blessing though. What a place to grow up!
Beach. Woodland. Beach. Beach. Woodland. Fruit farms. Daffodils. Beach. Cliffs. Beach. Rocks. Beach. Beach. Blackberries. Beach. With fields, mine shafts and pasties too.

We went to school of course. And had normal struggles like any other family, especially a single parent one. I mostly remember a good childhood though and one which certainly laid a solid foundation for a love of the outdoors, everything in it & all adventures which can be had out there too. So it was no surprise that I was outdoor adventure child, into everything from ocean swimming & rock pool exploring, to rock climbing, kayaking, sailing, cycling, camping, surfing and skating…pursuits which have led to many adventures, far and wide, since. I’d also learnt to respect this expansive environment at my feet and fingertips, which I still stand up for today.

What was also apparent in these formative years was my now rather obvious difference to not only my siblings, but my peers too. Thankfully again my Mother recognised it and though she still to this day describes me as her most difficult child, she’s been my biggest supporter along what has often been a road less travelled.

Physically, I stood out because I was the only child in my family (and peer group) who experienced eczema, hives, chickenpox and vitiligo, as well as some temporary allergies to things like dust (perfect during those adolescent years, when I could get out of cleaning & dusting).
Back then, doctors didn’t really know what to do with more chronic things like eczema, except prescribe steroid creams which only made it worse. Again, thanks to my Mother, who’d learnt that refined and acidic foods weren’t helping me, we ate a lot of plant based whole foods, which later I realised was almost vegan really. I just thought it was normal to have homemade muesli, bread & kefir though…that everyone knew what a lentil was and spoonfuls of cod liver oil down the hatch before school happened in every house. Little did I know what brain food I was being fed though and how it’s shaped who I am today.

And who am I today, I hear you ask…?
Well, with that lust for travel & outdoor adventures, I’ve been blessed with some heart expanding opportunities to explore foreign lands…from short trips along fjords in Norway & long winter weekends in Provence, to longer charitable expeditions in Vietnam, Tibet & countries on the African continent….some of which I hope to share with you.

I lived in France for a year as an au pair in my more youthful years & spent a semester submerged in the mountains & valleys of Colorado & Utah during University.
Scotland was home to me for many years too & I even did some time in London.
The last ten years I’ve been in love with & entwined within the Land of the Long White Cloud…stunning & mesmerising Aotearoa…also known as New Zealand. It’s been my home through multiple earthquakes, snow storms & floods and my heart will always be held in it’s gentle embrace.

I was drawn north last year though, to London again, to expand my intellectual horizons once more, immersing myself in practitioner training of META-Health - the art, science and practice of Body-Mind-Social health, the cornerstone of which explores how specific stress triggers, beliefs and emotions impact on specific organ symptoms.

Already a practitioner in the field of energy psychology & coaching, as well as a student of nutrition and ayurvedic health, META-Health has become a great addition to my tool kit, all of which I aim to share with you as time goes on.

Having the grounding I received from my Mother, in terms of going for what I believe in, standing by my values, listening to what my body is telling me & being guided by my intuition, have all led me to this place I now find myself in. It’s not always been easy…I’ve often felt like a square peg in a round whole world…especially because I am not following the path of a conventional Irish colleen, with being married, settling down, having a brood of children & staying home to support my husband. I have the upmost respect for my fellow country women who do this, for we need you too. I’ve had to follow my heart’s calling though…and at last, with a fire in my belly which wants to passionately shout & share from the top of the tallest mountain, I feel like I’ve come home with SteemIt…a community of free spirits, who appear to respect their peers on this platform, even when it may not be your opinion…who support you & let you know when you share something of value to the wider community…who cheer you on, when you tentatively step out from the wings & take your first flight of freedom.

I’m excited & delighted to be a part of this community…and I aim to share what I know and believe in, in service to you all, my global tribe, for our highest & greatest good…
…because one thing I know for sure is this…we are all connected…so if you’re feeling a vibe which isn’t making your heart sing, the butterfly effect means we too will all feel it eventually as well.
And I’d like to be a part of reverberating out a ripple effect which contributes to a chorus of hearts, so happy, their vibration lifts the roof off this temple called planet earth.

So to get this happy heart party started, on this day of my first SteemIt post, let’s Steem ahead to get that heart-shaped ball rolling, from the western shores of Ireland once more, where this journey all began 💖

NB: all photos author's own