There comes a time in your life when you realise just how strong you are, and what that means to you. The key is to notice it and then let it sink in and fully own it. We are all stronger and more resilient than we can tend to think we are. It is easy to compare with Joe, or Josephine Bloggs and think we are less than in some way.

At the age of 59 I can finally see how much stronger I am than I ever believed. By the time I was 50 I realised that I was strong and resilient. Now I can see just how strong I actually am. I can see how much capacity I have to cope with and deal with life’s challenges – or should I say the experiences and challenges I chose to have.

When I look back, I can see that much of my resilience has come from finding meaning in my experiences. For me, that meaning is rooted in a belief that my soul chose certain lessons and relationships for growth.

Yes, I believe my soul chose my life experiences and relationships before I came into this world. I chose them for my soul’s growth; to learn and to heal myself, in this life and past lives, to heal the ancestral traumas, and to give my son what others in my lineage couldn’t – emotional presence, depth, deep love and acceptance.

Too deep and too far out there? That’s fair enough. I’m done with hiding. I’m done with making myself small for others who didn’t want to see my strengths and chose to diminish me instead. And I’m done making myself small, because you know what, it got me a big fat nowhere. I tell a lie; it has made me stronger, and much more resilient.

The point of this post? Just me expressing some of my truth, in the hope that someone else will stop and think about their own strengths and see just how far they’ve come in their life, without focusing on what they haven’t done or achieved. Also, to instil the importance of gratitude, something I wish had been instilled in me, rather than finding out about it in my forties.

I am currently living a very, very simple life, in a touring caravan with a canvas conservatory. I really don’t have much at all by normal ‘standards’. It can be incredibly hard at times, not because I don’t have many material things, but because I don’t have what many take for granted. I don’t have much of what makes life a little easier. In part, a choice thing, but maybe also ‘given’ to me as part of a bigger plan from the universe.

Here’s what I do have: I am blessed with an amazing partner and son, the two most important people in my life. I really couldn’t have wished for better. They totally accept me - just as I am – that’s got to be priceless. I am mum to three fur babies, one of which gets me out into nature, even when it feels like the last thing I want to do. I have reasonable health, food available to me, a few good friends, a brain that looks for solutions and a way forward, even when my emotions have crashed. And I have been blessed with some wonderful clients that I have watched heal, grow and discover their own strengths, resilience and gifts for the world.