ABOUT

I felt curious walking past the campus art building. I could recall an ecstatic feeling in a painting experience the year prior. I also found art-creating beaded jewelry on my dorm room floor. (I still remember selling my first necklace for over $100!) I did not pursue the course of study change. I graduated with a degree in Architectural Engineering with an emphasis in Construction Management. I’ve been an Estimator and Project Engineer for a large general contractor, a Project Manager and Development Manager for a suburban design-build developer, and an Integrated Program Manager and Associate Director for one of the largest corporate real estate companies. 

When my second son arrived, I chose to stay home. Shortly after completing a certification in Hatha and Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training and teaching, I took my first creative career leap and created a children’s clothing brand. Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance’s twins appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show wearing hoodies and pants from my line. I sold the company after five years and returned to the secure path.

Then in 2016, at 43, my inner light became very dim. It was a period of intense suffering physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. I was experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder from abuse from two health care practitioners, coupled with confusion regarding a Kundalini awakening. I was in an unhealthy marriage. I felt highly stressed and depleted by my career, and I had financial worries. Physical health concerns at this time included a lumpectomy and IBS. At my lowest moment, I said a powerful, heartfelt prayer. I received the sign that I asked for to confirm my existence, help make sense of my experiences, endure my pain, and know how powerful we all are. From here, overwhelmed with emotion, I vowed to reconstruct my life from the inside to feel whole. 

I turned my pain around by finding a daily connection to joy and living intentionally. On this new path, I became a healer and created a wellness company. My wellness certification expanded to include Healing Touch Practitioner and Reiki Master Practitioner. I also began to make intentional mala (prayer bead) jewelry. 

During the Pandemic, I began playing the cello (weekly Zoom lessons) and writing. I found a deep purpose in telling my whole healing story. I wanted to share the life-changing formula of holistic self-care perspectives, tools, and practices that I had acquired. Flourish, A 365-Day Guided Path Towards Love: How to Experience More Joy, Live with More Intention, and Be True to Yourself was self-published in 2022 and is a Gold Nautilus Award winner. 

One of my earlier building projects!

I participated in my first Author event that fall. East on Central, an association “to encourage artistic expression of the creative spirit, through its journal and activities, nurturing the arts in the tradition of Highland Park, Illinois,” hosted an event at the local library. There, I purchased their Journal of Arts and Letters. Then, I signed up for my first painting technique class. It was taught by the artist whose work is on the front cover. The journal inspired me to submit for the subsequent volume with a focus on Illumination. East on Central selected my Eiffel Tower photograph for the 2023-2024 journal. The primary reason the tower perspective is interesting, and therefore most likely chosen, is because I was working around a barricade—an obstruction. 

I became a columnist, too. Energy Magazine, “dedicated to delivering the forefront of Energy Medicine and Holistic Wellness knowledge,” asked me to curate a regular ‘What to Read’ article. Soulful Reads began in 2022. It expanded to include published author Q&As a year later. 

In the summer of 2023, I took Flourish on tour and collected books for my ‘What to Read’ magazine column. I traveled 9000 miles across the USA to 22 charming bookstores in 21 days (with Long COVID). When I returned home from the eye-opening journey, I knew I needed to change my life to thrive, but I didn’t know how. A firm believer in intention, I put my hands in faith. I trusted I would discover the answer by tapping the keyboard. I read the 22 collected books (and others), applied the principles to my life, and wrote to find the solution. 

Charming begins at the tour inspiration and ends after the final chapter. The course of time covers two rainbows, two years, and the Mayo Clinic; the course of study includes matters of the heart. Richard Rohr writes in Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life about "the task within the task.” He calls it “what we are really doing when we are doing what we are doing.” I wrote to discover how to live our most authentic life to the fullest. To support this intention, I ask thought-provoking questions of authors, creatives, and you - the reader. I intend that when you are done reading, you have gained three insights. The first is a method to witness the ups and downs for what they are - only part of life. I hope you can weather the storms better. Second, you have a more clear vision of what the life of your dreams includes. Third, you understand how books are built, distributed, and promoted. May Charming become one you return to, find insight, and use to actualize your most extraordinary dream.