For as long as I can remember I have wondered why things are the way they are.

I am super curious about the ways in which we can live with greater integrity especially when it comes to the dreaded ‘shoulds’. 

I believe that social justice work is a way of being and that our values are the tether that keeps us whole.

I am not interested in upholding paradigms or playing into paradoxes. 

If that creates a warm feeling in your body then we should probably have coffee and talk.

But first, let me introduce myself.

I am a fifth-generation settler of Slavic descent and second-generation immigrant of Celtic descent. My people hail from the foot of the Carpathian (Карпати) Mountains in what was Ukraine and the rocky shores of western Ireland and county Cork.

I acknowledge and honour that I work and live on the unceded, stolen and traditional Indigenous territory of the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and shíshálh (shíshálh) in this place now known as the Sunshine Coast, BC. I pay my respects to their Elders past, present, and emerging. My home is nestled between the waves of the Salish Sea and the banks of a creek near the old shíshálh village of ts’uk̲w’um. Eagles, herons, and ravens often fly overhead between their nesting and hunting grounds.

I grew up on the unceded, stolen, and traditional territory of the As'in'i'wa'chi Ni'yaw (Rocky Mountain Cree) in the northwest of what is now called Alberta where the land is so flat you can see mountains 200kms the way the crow flies.

The landscape of the Prairies has deeply influenced who I am and the lens through which I relate to the earth.

You can also skip right to the part where I share more about what shaped me.

Or read about my professional training and experience.

When I was in my early 20s my biggest fear didn’t include failing at school or being dumped, it was that I would end up living in a 500km (that’s 300 miles for y’all in the US) radius of where I grew up waking up beside a spouse and in a life I didn’t remember choosing. 

In an effort to ensure this didn’t occur I chose a university on the other side of the country. But I went to university in the first place because that’s what was expected of me.

I got a good-paying high-status job in the city. I had a sweet apartment in a desirable neighbourhood. I owned beautiful clothing and went out for dinner - a lot.

I worked 60 hours a week on average trying to prove my value to my colleagues, my boss, my clients, my family, and myself.

I dated the wrong people over and over again thinking that if they looked good on paper maybe that was enough. I hustled for their love and their approval.

For over 15 years I spent all of my energy building a life that I convinced myself I wanted.

I was also deeply unhappy, confused, ungrounded, emotional, anxious, dramatic, and completely disconnected from the woman I so desperately wanted to be.

I worked with coaches, councilors, therapists, hypnotherapists, intuitive channelers, massage therapists, witches, and energy workers. I read self-help books and obsessed over astrology readings.

I partied. A lot.

I took baths with crystals and invested in essential oils. I took yoga classes and had hours of acupuncture.

All in an effort to fix something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

I tried desperately to emulate the life of people I admired, who, from where I was watching, were living their lives with deep integrity and even greater clarity.

During this time I told a close friend that it felt like I was walking towards a cliff.

If only I could see what was at the bottom, everything would be okay.

But I simply wasn’t brave enough to look over the edge let alone jump.

It turned out that the real problem wasn’t my job or how I was showing up or who I was.

It turned out that the real problem was that I didn’t feel like I could be myself. 

That I had grown up in a culture and society that said it valued my originality, but ultimately wanted me to fit in, to uphold the status quo, to get married, have babies and live the white picket fence life.

(I should be clear here that this isn’t at all what my family wanted for me. They wanted me to be happy, which I wasn’t).

So while I was clear about what I didn’t want, I had yet to claim what it was that I did want.

Life had simply become untenable and I just couldn’t function that way anymore.

And you know what happened? 

I started to become open and curious about every aspect of my life.

The more open and curious I became the more I questioned everything.

And the more I questioned everything the more aware I became that I had been playing into systems I thought I had been revolting against.

So I stopped, and I listened. 

What came about from this constant curiosity and questioning was that I eventually recognized that I needed, craved, yearned for something to keep me grounded, present, and connected. 

I took note of what felt good and what didn’t. 

I told myself the truth about what I really wanted. 

I noticed where I was present in my life and where I was distracted. 

I knew that what I really needed was some form of devotion.

I needed to tether myself to myself.

So, I gave myself permission to claim what I wanted from my life, how I wanted it to feel, and who I wanted to love.

I got clear on my values and what was important to me. 

I started focusing on ways to create the life I wanted instead of just waiting for something to happen.

I became intentional about who, how, and what I was in relationship with.

I stopped attaching myself to other people’s ideals and idols and started tending to the woman I wanted to be.

I learned that no one jumps off a cliff so they can land on the earth, they jump because the joy is in the falling.

The joy was in becoming who I was all along.

The place where I landed?

A woman who honours herself, her integrity, and shows up in the ways she has always wanted to.

The woman I am today is passionate about dismantling the systems that kept me from myself for so long and that I was expected to uphold - oftentimes unconsciously.

Thanks to some amazing teachers I am being guided in how to decolonize and unpack my unconscious biases.

That includes a process of questioning everything from social media to spirituality.

What I know now is that it is possible to impact the people around me, my greater community, and my family dynamics by making small changes in how I show up in my business, my devotional practice, my community, and my daily life.

That’s the story of how I got here.

You can also read the story of what shaped me.

Here’s the story of what’s shaped me

Above all else, I value connection, community, beauty, integrity, and awe. They are the unseen cords that keep me tethered to my authenticity and truth. They bind me to my ancestral lineage, my family, my motley crew of friends, my partner, and my sweet pup Cyrus.

My values of community and connection manifest in a deep desire for equity. It's something I learned from my Ukrainian Grandmother. She taught me the value of a stern well-written letter while my Dad taught me the importance of having an opinion. I've seen both work time and time again.

I don't tolerate comments or people or businesses that don't align with my heart. We don't have time, and frankly, I no longer give a shit what those people think of me.⁠

I know that as a white woman I am inherently racist. I know that I can choose every day to be anti-racist. I acknowledge that as an able-bodied, neurotypical, cis-woman of middle-class means I am afforded way more opportunities than a lot of other folks.

I know that love is love is love and this knowing has opened my heart in ways I didn't know possible.

I love to sing in my car, walk in the woods and listen to the ocean. It’s my long-held belief that a bath, a nap, and fresh flowers are the cure for heartache.

According to a couple of small humans, I’m pretty good at making pancakes on Saturday mornings, and being the MC for post-dinner dance parties. They find my alliterations especially amusing.

I have dozens of notebooks holding ideas, feelings, stories, and insights. Only a handful of those books are full.

There are always, always dishes in my sink and clean laundry waiting to be folded.

I believe that art tells us just about everything we need to know about ourselves and others. What we consider beautiful is a marker of how we feel about ourselves and our environment.

While I have a ‘formal education’ it’s actually the people, places, teachers, and experiences that have taught me what I need to know. You can read about the teachers I’ve learned from and worked with here.

I’m no longer interested in acquiring education, I’m much more interested in the exploration of knowledge.

My hope is that one day I am welcome as an elder and wisdom keeper in my community. I just really want to be a good ancestor and honour those who have come before me and use the priviledges I hold to make some kind of impact.

I am most at ease in places where I can feel the infinite experience of the sky and look to the mountains in the distance.

I love the ocean but will never truly be at ease in her presence. I need to feel my feet on the earth in order to have a sense of safety and security.

I believe that the cycles of the moon and the transition of the stars are my compass.

I believe that dance, song, silence, and tears are the greatest healing modalities available to me.

I believe there is power in water, a good night's rest, chocolate cake, and a conversation with a friend.⁠

But most of all, I believe that we are Better Together. 

We are not meant to do any of this alone. 

We are not meant to flail frantically in our businesses or in our lives. 

We need containers that hold us and allow us to expand. 

We need each other.⁠

And at the end of the day, it's those connections that create our life.