Brave Heart, Brave Soul. She who is brave is free.

'If you're lucky enough to be different...don't change." ~ Unknown Have you ever simply felt out of place? And I'm not just talking about feeling different or being mismatched. We're all incompatible at times. No, I'm speaking of something far more complex. Why this subject? Why today? Well I've been doing some thinking lately. See, I'm not remarkable or extraordinary. I haven’t broken the Internet with my ideas, style or popularity. However, I'm not the garden-variety either. I'm complicated, perplexing even and under no circumstances am I typical. Never have been, never will be. You know the type. You may very well live outside the rule yourself. So yes, today, I'm talkin'  the nitty gritty of being a divergent soul. Not some made up flamboyant show and tell reality show lifestyle either. If you’re truly a divergent mind you know what it's really like to live independent of convention and mainstream. And I've got t

“Happiness is not a checklist. A dream job, a fast car, a good home, even love, mean nothing at all if you have not yet found a way to feel full and content in your one mind and heart.” ~ Beau Taplin Let me first begin with this...  I usually don’t have a plan most of the time. My imagination, however, always has one. Combine this with my old pal weirdness and most days I’m off and running. See, I’m one of those old souls. I’m a little odd honestly but I’ve never minded the label. Life’s been tough. I won’t deny it. And yet somehow, I still carry a happy heart in spite of the struggle. I’m most definitely an only child, there’s no way around that. My imagination and curiosity can attest to this. I’ve never been lonely though. As for my life experiences? Well each one's fashioned me into the writer I am today. I’m happy I’m me. And I wouldn’t want it any other way.  Turning 45 has me calling my childhood to mind. It seems so long ago some days. Others it feels

“I’m not the same girl I used to be and I’m not sorry about that. It’s called growth --- and I thank God for it every day.” Cici B. How would you describe yourself? Are you quiet, shy or loud and the life of the party? Would you rather have your nose in a book or be the bell of the ball? We’re all different. We react, respond and reciprocate in vastly passionate ways. Personally, I’ve always been a Princess Mia. “My expectations in life is to be invisible, and I’m good at it.” I  don’t like the spotlight. I’m happy with being a wallflower and I rather like things this way. I’m not a fairytale princess. I’m not trendy. I’ve never been popular. I’m definitely not ironically beautiful, that’s for sure. I’m a redhead. Freckles are my only real indication of a tan. I’m weird, awkward and odd. I’m a writer. Not a starlet or beauty queen. I’d rather be the woman fixing another’s crown than the person shouting to the world it was on crooked to begin with. I like being behind the

"Life is a journey, not a competition." ~ Unknown As a little girl growing up in the 1970's and 80's I was surrounded by books, comics and my imagination. I'd spend hours outside running, jumping rope, climbing trees, crossing monkey bars, roller skating down the sidewalks and riding my bike anywhere I could. I loved to go berry picking, build forts and spend the weekends cooking out with our family and friends at the state parks. I loved skipping, fishing on the pier or out by the lake and roasting marshmallows every chance I got. I loved the long summer days we spent on the beach, the sand between my feet and the cool spring evenings we spent playing mini putt putt at the castle. I grew up an only child, this is a fact. So for me this meant I had to learn early on how to entertain myself and not get bored. Because of this I learned to use my imagination quite well and to explore and to take adventures within an adventure. I was the girl with wild ide

"WARNING: Reflections in this mirror may be distorted by socially constructed ideas of 'beauty'." ~ Anonymous How many times as women, even as men do we look into the mirror disappointed? We feel less than ordinary even, like we can never compare to the world's idea of beauty and perfection.  How many times growing up, did we step back into the shadows, afraid of our own reflection? How many times we were scared even to be ourselves? The fear of being judged by the outside world or even those close to us was stronger than drowning many times. I don't know about you, but the mirror has not exactly been my best friend through the years. Be it as a teenager, as a young woman, during chemo and the after effects of  breast cancer or turning 40, I have never had a great relationship with the mirror. In fact I was happier when I couldn't see my reflection, nose tucked away inside a book, hidden from the outside world in my room. I hated girly magazines, n