Tomorrow is my last full day of 5 weeks that I’ve spent exploring a few little known Greek Islands before I return home on Friday.

I was called to do this solo trip several months ago.

I didn’t really know why, but I chose to follow my heart without questioning.

I love solo travel.

It gives me the opportunity to make meaningful connections and observe the culture I’m visiting in deeper ways than if I’m traveling with family or friends.

As soon as I was old enough to travel alone, I dived into it, and spent all my time and energy making money so I could explore the world.

When I was 20, I moved to Togo, West Africa on my own.

It was 1988. I was a young single woman with a desire to improve my French and learn about West African culture.

I had no money for a study abroad program in France, and I found out about Togo in a brief serendipitous meeting with a fellow traveler that changed the course of my life.

This was long before mobile phones or the internet and there was actually only one book about traveling in sub Saharan Africa.

My friends and family thought I was crazy, but I was determined to go.

I went to Washington DC so I could visit the Togolese embassy and found out everything I could. Then I worked non-stop waiting tables to make enough to buy my plane ticket and have enough to live on.

I left the U.S. with $967 dollars (mostly in American Express Travelers’ Cheques) and arrived in what seemed like another world.

I found a place to live, started attending university French classes, met incredibly kind people and learned so much about myself and Togolese culture.

I witnessed a society that revered women entrepreneurs as well as women who were energy healers, and was exposed to things I had never heard talked about in the U.S. during the 1980s.

I became inspired to study anthropology, healing and women’s empowerment.

Just like I felt in Togo, I’ve fallen in love with Greece.

Each island I’ve been to has taught me a different lesson and given me so many gifts.

I turn 57 next month.

I spent the last decade care-taking my mother, who had dementia, disabilities and was very frail.

During these 10 years, my son was in elementary school, then middle school and high school.

I was juggling mothering my son with mothering my mother (along with the help of my wonderful siblings) and running my business.

Just like all care taking, it was a labor of the heart. Of course during the pandemic, it became much more challenging. Since I was self-employed and didn’t have as much exposure as my brother and sister, more of the in person care taking fell on me.

My mother couldn’t be left alone for the last four years of her life. We lived near her to make it easier on me. Still at times it was exhausting.

Honestly, it was my work teaching Transform Coaching Academy, coaching my marvelous clients, running my online programs, my personal team of coaches and healers, and all the breathwork and healing practices I’ve developed personally through my 24 years of doing this work that got me through.

Still by the time my mother died, I was profoundly tired.

I’ve been in a deep dive of restoring myself for the past 2 years–making meditation, healing, deep breathing, laughter, movement and connecting with friends and family a big priority.

These past 5 weeks of traveling solo by ferry have been a true gift to my soul.

When I arrived on Tinos Island in week one, I didn’t know exactly why I was on this journey other than to heal and restore.

Tinos is a sacred pilgrimage site for the Greek people. A big miracle happened there over 200 years ago and the Greek Orthodox church built a holy church on the site. People come from all over the Greek world seeking miracles and healing.

I happened to be there on a holy day and had the honor of witnessing the love and devotion of Greek women coming to Tinos to experience miracles.

It was the name day of Saint Marina, who many Greeks believe brings miracles to people when they need them the most.

Getting to see these women pilgrims’ staunch belief in miracles, reconfirmed my knowing that our lives (and life itself) are completely miraculous.

My heart opened wide and I realized that I was on my own personal pilgrimage of revitalizing my creative energy and embracing life, myself, my journey, my unique gifts and the future I want to experience.

In the solitude of these 5 weeks, I’ve been able to be in my own sacred presence and connect with myself in ways that have been so healing.

I’ve been working throughout this journey, coaching clients and teaching Transform Coaching Academy and my other online program, all of which are always healing, fun and so incredibly inspiring.

All the rest of the time, I’ve been totally free to do what I want, when I want.

It’s been liberating and freeing beyond words.

Any time we put ourselves in unfamiliar circumstances, we learn how strong we are.

By having to do new things and figuring out situations that we haven’t faced before, we literally open up new neural pathways in our brains.

Healthy habits are great for our minds and bodies, however neuroscience research shows us that doing the same things over and over again is not the best way to spark lifelong brain health.

In learning new things, exploring new landscapes (internally within ourselves or externally in the world) we grow and develop in remarkable ways.

I’ve had so much time to focus on healing—energetically, spiritually, emotionally and in all ways.

And I’ve gotten to breathe deeply, soak in hot springs, swim and connect with nature, spending so much time outside during this pilgrimage.

The wind, the earth, the sea, the plants, the birds and the cats have all been my guides to going within, getting grounded and giving myself time for reflection, sleep, joy and pleasure.

The Greek people and their culture, food, kindness and passion for life have been so healing.

Getting to watch the young children ride their bikes or play soccer in pedestrian squares every night while parents and grandparents visit and connect with one another is heartwarming.

Witnessing people and a culture with such a strong passion for connection and enjoying life, helps melt away the pressures and stress of all the crises and meta tragedies unfolding in our world.

I feel renewed, stronger than before, grateful, in love with life and ready to be of greater service to help shift the consciousness so we can create a sustainable future for all beings on this planet.

I know so many people in the world don’t have the privilege of being able to ever take time for themselves or the financial ability to ever travel.

This is particularly true for women, who do the majority of the care-taking in many societies or face violence, discrimination and limits wherever they go.

I feel truly blessed to get to do amazingly fulfilling work that helps people free themselves and also gives me the freedom and abundance to work from wherever I want. And I’m so grateful to the Transform Coaching Academy team–Lori, Tiffani and Lexa–whose support makes this all possible.

My life isn’t perfect. I experienced severe early childhood trauma. I was almost violently murdered twice at 22 and was assaulted multiple times in my early 20s. I’ve had severe health challenges and PTSD.

Yet, I’ve stayed committed to healing myself and raising my consciousness while helping thousands of others heal and embody true abundance through coaching, breathwork, shamanism and other energy healing modalities that are woven throughout the Transform Coaching Academy curriculum.

I believe that it was because of these challenges that I started on my spiritual journey studying shamanism over 30 years ago while I was getting my Ph.D. in Anthropology at the University of Virginia.

I intuitively knew that empowering others was my life purpose but I still doubted myself.

So after I received my doctorate, I worked for the White House and trained further in coaching, breathwork and energy healing (at a time when most people had never heard of any of these modalities).

Then I took the leap of faith and started my own coaching and healing business. I got clients from around the world and was amazed at the powerful life changing transformations they experienced in their lives and careers.

I have been a professional coach, breathwork facilitator and energy healer for 24 years and have taught others to become powerful/talented successful certified coaches in the Transform Coaching Academy for 14 years.

I’m so grateful for my path and getting to live my purpose empowering others to awaken.

Wherever you are on your path, I encourage you to take sometime in the coming weeks to connect with whatever is most important to you.

What does your heart desire that you want to open to?

Please share with us below and let us know.

Sending you so much love and light!