It was an absolute honour to have the conversation with Josh Alegre about his Chapter, Hereditary Spastic Paraparesis (HSP). Josh generously shares about his journey from the moment he was unable to get off his knees (during a photoshoot) to his diagnosis and beyond. Josh's Chapter is filled with a range of emotions, insights, experiences, and new learnings. I was unaware of this condition prior to engaging with Josh and I'm grateful to have learned a little about it. There were numerous standouts during this conversation; however, one of the main ones for me was, ''Have no reservations and tell people you love/appreciate them".

An enormous thanks to Josh for engaging with us in this important conversation. A huge thanks to everyone that will be watching or listening to this Chapter on Facebook or Podcast. 😊

It was an absolute honour to have a conversation with Brittany about her Chapter, Language and Literacy Connections. Brittany generously shares her journey and work in Speech and Language Pathology. We discussed her entry into the profession, what it entails in the specific setting she works in, and her love/passion/joy for her work.

An enormous thank you to Brittany for participating in this conversation and thanks in advance to all of our viewers/listeners. Please feel free to share this conversation with anyone that may connect. Brittany can be found on Instagram, @speechphonatic. Check out her fabulous posts and stories.

Engaging with Joseph and Robert about their Chapter, A Journey in Education was a deep honour. They are the founders of a wonderful Podcast, Pedagogy Non Grata and we discussed a number of topics within this detailed conversation. Some of the elements of this conversation included - Joseph's and Robert's journey into becoming teachers, their personal experiences, their journey with evidence-aligned teaching instruction, the equity piece of this gigantic puzzle, a brief history of the indigenous people, the origin story of their podcast, and much more.

A mighty thanks to Joseph and Robert for this incredible conversation. A huge thank you to everyone else that engages with this Chapter. Please feel free to share it with others that may connect. This conversation is also available on the Human Chapters and Pedagogy Non Grata Podcast (platforms include Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.).

Check out their podcast and blog - https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/pedagogy-non-grata/id1448225801 ; https://pedagogynongrata.com/ 

TW - trauma, sexual assault

It was a wonderful honour to have this open conversation with Zoe Suratman about her Chapter, Happiness Through Change. Zoe generously talks about pivotal moments in her life that have led her to reflect deeply on her 40th birthday. Zoe articulated about being content and happy during this reflection; however, while she experienced these beautiful emotions and deep gratitude, she was also aware of the depth of her previous experiences. Zoe posed a couple of questions that stood out to me and these were "Who are you as a person?" and "What do you want out of life?"  While Happiness is subjective, it involves a few things for Zoe - humour, family, connections, gratitude, passions, and appreciation.

A huge thanks to Zoe Suratman for taking the time to share her Chapter. She can be found on Instagram on The Bloom Edit and Bouffage

A massive thank you to everyone else that engages with this conversation on Facebook or podcast. Be sure to share it with others that may connect. 😊

TW - bomb blast, trauma, grief

It was an absolute honour to have this conversation with @Neha Samar about her Chapter, A New Life. Neha openly shares the defining moment in her life where 8 precious minutes initiated this Chapter. Neha has shared a part of her childhood, her parents' aspirations for her, the journey she has experienced since this moment, and her current life. Neha has recently launched an incredible initiative The Flamingo Project for women in the Goulburn Valley and she briefly talks about that during our conversation. A couple of things that stood out for me during this conversation was relationships are important and seize opportunities when they strike.

A huge thanks to Neha for taking the time and returning to a difficult space during the conversation. A massive thanks to everyone that engages with this conversation. 😊

It was an incredible privilege to engage in this conversation with Dr. Quintin Bostic about his Chapter, The Start Of It All. Quintin generously shared his deep-seated passion for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Antiracism and where it all began. Quintin articulates the defining point that was the start of his calling to work in the field of Education. He takes us through a journey of his deep love for books and the absence of characters that looked like him. We covered a broad range of topics including race, diversity, equity, authors, stereotypical depiction of characters, messages implied in texts, and so on.

Quintin also delves into the potential breadth & depth that can be drawn from diverse literature (discuss culture, race, politics, society, history, etc.). He has created a wonderful resource, Text Analysis Toolkit in partnership with Student Achievement Partners. This resource assists teachers to reflect on their self-identity and that of their students, analyse texts with multiple lenses (Cultural Competence, Academic Success, Social/Emotional Competence), and consider the implications for the use of texts. This resource can be found on https://achievethecore.org/peersandpedagogy/the-untapped-potential-of-text-analysis/

Quintin Bostic can be found on https://drquintinbostic.com/ and can be contacted via email on [email protected] .

A huge thanks to Quintin for engaging in this conversation and to everyone else that will be listening to it on Facebook or on Podcast. Feel free to share it with others. :)

I had the honour of having a beautiful conversation with Noureen Akber about her Chapter, Feminism. Noureen lives in Karachi, Pakistan and she generously shared a number of thought-provoking insights, connection points, and more about her experiences. Noureen shared a brief account of her childhood, why she is deeply connected with Feminism, the books she has resonated with, insights from some experiences, and key takeaways. A couple of the key takeaways I personally connected with were, 'Love and accept yourself as you are', and 'Think beyond religion, race, colour, etc.'

A huge thanks to Noureen for taking the time to have this conversation and to everyone that will engage with this Chapter. Feel free to share it with people that may resonate. It is also available on Podcast.

TW - rape, sexual abuse (mentioned on a couple of occasions during the conversation)

It was an incredible honour to have an open conversation with Amirah Zaky about her Chapter, Vaginismus. Amirah is a Sex Educator and a Vaginismus Coach. Amirah generously shares her personal experience of this condition (which was identified approximately 11-12 years ago), the treatment, implications, and impact on her quality of life (personally and in a relationship) as the Chapter unfolded. Amirah also shares - what her work (and calling) entails as a coach; the possible causes for this condition (trauma, lack of education about sex within conservative communities, etc.); a holistic approach to treatment; the statistics for women experiencing this condition; recommended books, and key takeaways for our audience. Amirah Zaky can be found on Facebook and Instagram (@amirahzaky).

A huge thanks to Amirah Zaky for taking the time to share her Chapter and a massive thanks to everyone that will be engaging in this Chapter (on Facebook or Podcast). ☺️

I was honoured to have a conversation with Jim O'Connor about his Chapter, Shepparton Foodshare. Jim takes us through his involvement with this incredible organisation, its aim, and its model, the impact of Covid-19, and the role of Shepparton Foodshare during the current crisis. Shepparton Foodshare amongst other organisations has been integral to the fabric of this community during this crisis situation. One of the many points that resonated with me was communities coming together with kindness, compassion, and support for each other is what it's all about.

Assistance can be provided to Shepparton Foodshare through donations and these can be made on http://www.sheppartonfoodshare.org.au/. Please share this Chapter with anyone that may resonate. 😊

It was an incredible honour to have this open and generous conversation with Serana Hunt-Hughes about her Chapter, Multidimensionality. Serana takes us through an interlaced journey that showcases her past, present, and ties to the future. She discusses a number of points and some of these include - her feeling like the last bird of her kind; discovering her Native American ancestry (Shoshone Tribe); their wounds/healing/repair; some experiences during her apprenticeship with her Native American Shamanic mentor; her spiritual growth and ongoing learning. One of the many points that deeply resonated with me was "Enjoy the medicine and healing properties of this Earth".

Serana referenced her website https://whitefeathermedicine.com/ during our conversation.

A huge thanks to Serana Hunt-Hughes for taking the time to share this incredible Chapter and to everyone else for engaging in it. 😊