APRIL 2024: Spring Showers

The rain this week brought lots of new flowers! Look around at gardens nearby. Those bulbs popping through the autumn leaves look especially beautiful. Ta-da! ‘Here I am’, they announce. They will give way to other blooms soon – don’t miss the show.

Do you feel like cleaning? Deep cleaning? I sure do! The brighter light highlights the dust and I have the urge to go on a hunt for dust bunnies. Move stuff around and suck them up with the vacuum and scrub under things. It’s a drive I can’t deny. Need to plan time for it…

Speaking of the light: the solar eclipse is tomorrow! Great excitement!

I consider the eclipse a metaphor. If our light dims or even goes out due to illness, heartbreak, or the death of a loved one, that is a time of darkness. When some light returns, we can choose what we want to do. Who do we want to become? We can give ourselves permission to shift. Others may object, but we can change direction after our darkness lifts. Maybe that’s the only way our darkness will lighten.

I have a friend who’s really stepping into her power to say ‘no’ and pushing back when people want to take advantage of her good nature. It looks great on her! I’m very excited about what life is available to her now. She has changed direction, and anything is possible. It’s inspiring to witness.

The stories you hear at Spoken Lives are often about what can happen after a time of darkness. The stories vary, but when there’s a new light, an improved life is possible. Anytime. Maybe even after an eclipse?

Our April event shines a light on Val Braithwaite who told me that after an extended stay in hospital, the doctors had given up on her. Her daughter had another idea. She will share what she did once her light returned. It’s a lovely story.

Val will also share a segment about her own black history in Ontario. Her mother was a historian and traced their family to descendants of the Underground Railroad. Such a story! We will also hear from Annie Xiong and Sue Janzen about their recent life makeovers. Karin Vagiste will share her stress buster: lifting weights.

Hope to see you soon! April 24^th at 7:00 pm. Details and tickets on Eventbrite.

Please glance at the rest of this newsletter to see what I’ve been reading and watching.
‘Letters to a Stranger’ was my recent favorite book.
I also signed up for a package of 12 films for this years’ Hot Docs Festival.

Do you want to learn how to curate and host a fantastic series to raise your profile?

After curating Spoken Lives for 7 years, I want to share the business layer of having your own series. I have developed an online course to teach others how to Plan, Launch and Earn with their own Speaker or Storytelling Series. Sharing our stories can be a powerful way to heal ourselves and others.

I’ll be launching this course, Your Applause Academy from Grow At Your Pace, soon and sending out a notice so you will be the first to know about this important step in my new journey. Please subscribe by clicking the button below to be added to the Grow at Your Pace Newsletter.