Life is as beautiful as you see it, even in the midst of challenge and strife.  As India Arie says "It's the little things and the joy they bring." 
 My next guest takes nothing for granted.  She's a mother, sister, lover of the Lord, and a warrior woman. Meet Ashley Wherry Lane.  In this episode, Ashley shares her greatest love, her son Jordan, and her journey of learning how to raise an autistic child while conquering the daily challenges of multiple sclerosis. She proves that MS is just a diagnosis and not a defining characteristic.
 I hope  Ashley's journey reminds us that joy is a choice and it's as close as our breath.

Life has a way of showing us our strengths and weaknesses. Often times, we are stronger in places we though we were weak. I've learned that I tend to stay committed to my desire long after the payoff has expired. I'm often fighting an idea verses an understanding of what is.
This week's guest decided the clean house and pivot in a radical way and guess what, it paid off.
Meet Vanessa Moyen. She's a stage performer turned voice over actor who decided to release her narrow scope of storytelling and broaden her spectrum of possibilities.
In this episode, Vanessa shares her high highs and low lows that helped her land her dream job and fulfilling life.
I hope this episode reminds you to hold tight to your joy amid life's challenges and be available to pivot.

Want to connect?
www.vanessamoyen.com
IG: @voicedbyvanessa

The hand life can deal us isn't always pretty. At times it is pretty exhausting, overwhelming, unjust, and unfair.  Sometimes we help it along while we wallow in self-doubt, pity,  pride, and or ego. The joy comes in the shift found in the helping hand extended by a stranger, timing, exhaustion, and or your rock bottom. The gift is in the pivot, the prayer, the pick me up.

 In this episode, we meet Natasha Silver Bell. She is a fascinating woman of God who shares her journey of life's hard knocks and bouncebacks.  Natasha is the CEO and founder of SilverBell Coaching LLC. She has been a driving force in transforming the recovery landscape. An established expert in substance-use disorder and recovery for over a decade, Natasha has grown SilverBell Coaching into the global leader it is today. SBC’s global headquarters are in New York City, with anchors in London and Dubai.

SBC’s 150 coaches collaborate with best-of-class clinicians to bring long-term sustained recovery to clients of all ages worldwide. In recovery since 2008, Natasha utilizes the same life-saving qualities that sustained her healing journey in her work with others: tenacity, courage, compassion, and faith.
 
 I hope you leave this episode with a desire to live life fully and free of fear. If you know anyone ready to reclaim their life and would like assistance, direction, and support, please go to www.silverbellcoaching.com or email [email protected]. As long as there is breath in your body, it's never too late to soar.
 
 Want to connect?
 www.silverbellcoaching.com
 IG: @TheBell.SBC
 Blog: https://silverbellcoaching.com/thebell/

I never knew the consequences of being mentally two weeks ahead of myself.  I learned I was a future invader and present time thief  living constantly in the next while allowing the gifts in the moment to pass me by.  Remembering to be where my feet are is challenge for me. This can be heartbreaking because time doesn't rewind, it keeps a ticking and the last thing I want to do is look back and wish I would have participated fully in my life's journey.  How about you? Where do you live? Are you activity in the past living in regret, lost time or yesterday's joy or are you  in search of the next while neglecting the now? Wherever you are, I challenge you to find moments to live in the moment until those moments become your reality.  We only get one life. Let's enjoy today's gift, the present. 

Fear can be stifling. It lies, belittles and isolates. Fear tells you what your aren’t and can not do. It’s not your energizer, it’s your enemy. Love, on the other hand, tells you who you are and who you can become.  It redirects, resolves and heals. It motivates, supports and empowers. 
We have the ability to feed one or the other.Our decision can set us up for our wildest dreams or stop us dead in our tracks. Remember, what you feed will grow.

You are powerful.  You are capable, compelling and dynamic. You are impressive and mighty. Your strength lies in you knowing what you present and carry.  The best asset to power is knowledge. Knowledge of how and when to use it.  Sometimes silence is more captivating than any words spoken.  As you continue to grow and stand in the essence of who you are, remember that people are drawn to leaders who know how to follow.  You've got this. Claim your stake and stand tall in your power. 

Life doesn't always go as planned.  That can be a hard pill to swallow.  Thankfully, time and enough detours have shown me how to laugh in the rain.  Now don't get me wrong,  there are still days that I'm brought to tears and/or my knees but the gift is that it take me less time in my "whoa is me" phase than it used to.  I attribute my shorter pity parties to acknowledgement, acceptance and protection. You see the challenges haven't changed, my perspective has.  I'm more accepting of God's will and the lesson that's to come.
Peace soon reigns and I choose to rest in what is, because if I can't change it, then it's meant to teach me something so I just trust the process. 

Last week I had the honor of receiving an award from the The Association for the Preservation of African American History and Culture in Tipton County.  It was a day I will never forget.
This week, I’m sharing the motivational speech from The Awesome Women Luncheon. I hope it inspires you to live fully, love yourself without hesitation and be unstoppable. 

Who taught you how to love? Who showed you the power of love?  It can calm, renew, forgive and ease.  Love can heal. Hurt people hurt people because they haven't healed.  Healing is hard-work. It requires facing painful situations, conquering demons and releasing things. It's no easy feat to decide to do the work and make positive change....but the pay off, the reward is life altering. Everyone benefits from a healed soul so what's stopping you from healing? Are 
you comfortably uncomfortable? Are you living in your ego or are you lost in the how?  Whatever the reason, know that you are worthy of the gifts that healing can bring.  Your heart deserves to feel light and loved by you so let's heal.

Freedom. These seven letters form on of my favorite words. The definition of freedom  is  the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.  Yes, how exhilarating it is to exercise your God given right to freedom.  In the perfect world, every person with breathe in their body would feel free to do so. Unfortunately, that's not the case, but I'll tell you this, we are as uninhibited and as limited  as we allow ourselves to be. What often stifles us is fear. Fear of the what ifs and other's thoughts. Fear of the scenarios we've created in our heads. Fear of the evils of the world that we can't predict. Fear stagnates while freedom liberates. Both possess power but only one can give you full reign over your decisions, presence and pursuits. Freedom is a state of mind that manifests into action. You are as you allow yourself to be.