We all carry our own story of where we’ve been and where we hope to go but I believe the most potent part of someone’s story is where they are right now, especially if they’re a creative as it offers a stepping stone from our world into theirs.

I see this chapter of mine as a new beginning emerging from an old forgotten notebook and a buried dream both of which were whispering long before I agreed to listen.            

I have experienced many things throughout life but choosing to allow myself to wander with creative wonder by my side and curiosity in my pockets is my great adventure. Observing life through this lens has offered an alternative view to the one which was looking back at me. It’s offered a different way to be, showing the importance of living as our authentic self and the magic which can stir when we trust ourselves enough to offer new breath to our once forgotten dreams or what may even seem ridiculous.

I now recognise myself as an artist, a writer, a realm wandering wonderer, a hope filled adventurer and traveller of life. I’m a puddle gazing imaginer, friend to the animals and birds, a dreamer, botanical listener and moon watching soul.

My current work has been a long time in the making, I made a start albeit with a slightly different approach and certainly not travelling below the surface of the page quite some time ago. I now realise this was simply the first turn of the key to unlocking the door to the realm I regularly visited as a child dropping seeds for future self.

It took a while but I am now nurturing those seeds allowing them to blossom as they will through the magic of artwork and word gatherings creating what I feel to be creative alchemy on the page.

Creativity has been a constant for me and I also use it as a healing tool, one which I wouldn’t want to be without. It assists me with travelling the often rough terrain which living alongside physical restriction and chronic pain brings.  Although I’d of course rather be without these challenges I believe they did lead me to a crossroads offering an opportunity of a direction I may otherwise not have taken, one where I ignored the path I was told was likely and chose my own. This is the path I’ve wandered without a map or compass, a path which has been both beautiful and devastating. I’ve lost my way, met with many challenges and discovered alternative ways of being by searching beyond the obvious expressing my findings through writing and creating art.

Within times gone by I have written and illustrated a series of articles for the Teddy Bear Times Magazine and have been featured in the New Zealand Teds magazine. I have exhibited paintings in the Bankside Gallery London, while a student with the open college of the arts as well as exhibiting illustrations and related stationary products at various art and craft events. I also have work in private collections around the world and have created numerous commissions.

This precious life we find ourselves living is simply a ride throughout time and I believe the most beautiful way to spend it is with creative wonder, travelling the realms of imagination and reality weaving the two together.

Please follow the link above to my Substack to discover more.