Hey there! My name's Vanessa.
I started this blog for two main reasons: First, I'm big ol' geek for our environment -- our home -- and conserving and sustaining our home in perpetuity. Secondly, I love writing. [insert nerd icon] I love writing so much, in fact, that it pains me to see the degradation of written language that is so rampant these days. But that is a different digression, for another day perhaps...
I originally wrote this intro while in my very early thirties, and still struggling to figure out what I wanted to "be" when I grew up. And now, a few years later, guess what? I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up. Do we ever? I don't know.
I do, however, believe we are free to choose many things in life, and these choices open doors and lead us down paths, and sometimes those doors and paths are not what we ever dreamed of as children. Sometimes they are even bad for us - sometimes irreparable. Regardless, we must own them.
The choices I have made - perhaps haven't made me the most successful or the most money - but they been beautiful in that each and every one has helped shape who I am, and what I care for so deeply. Some have also fit into a category I like to call "beautiful chaos" as they weren't always directly goal-focused. Rather, they were a way to exit or transition from a previous choice. Nonetheless, each and every one - intentional or not - have helped me write my own "Choose Your Adventure" book: a beautiful and convoluted path toward sustainability.
Let me offer one example for the more grounded, tangible readers who can only stomach small doses of philosophy and theory ;)
When I desperately needed to get out of an emotionally weighing career in social services, and swiftly said yes to the unexpected but immediately available opportunity in specialty healthcare, I learned more than I could have ever imagined about [wait for it]: gastroenterology. Although healthcare is a far cry from my calling, I spent nearly five years and worked three separate positions there - learning more about intestinal tracks and bowel movements than most would care to know. And these years - this experience - played a significant role in shaping what became my Capstone project achieved during the Master’s program at the University of Denver: Genetically Modified Organisms in America’s Food System.
Ultimately, our choices – planned, perfect or other – shape who you are and the mark you make on the world. Mine, I know, have augmented my strengths and skills and ultimate search for finding my way to make a difference on this planet. It's been a roller coaster. So far, I’m enjoying the ride!
I look forward to learning, sharing and growing with you!
I started this blog for two main reasons: First, I'm big ol' geek for our environment -- our home -- and conserving and sustaining our home in perpetuity. Secondly, I love writing. [insert nerd icon] I love writing so much, in fact, that it pains me to see the degradation of written language that is so rampant these days. But that is a different digression, for another day perhaps...
I originally wrote this intro while in my very early thirties, and still struggling to figure out what I wanted to "be" when I grew up. And now, a few years later, guess what? I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up. Do we ever? I don't know.
I do, however, believe we are free to choose many things in life, and these choices open doors and lead us down paths, and sometimes those doors and paths are not what we ever dreamed of as children. Sometimes they are even bad for us - sometimes irreparable. Regardless, we must own them.
The choices I have made - perhaps haven't made me the most successful or the most money - but they been beautiful in that each and every one has helped shape who I am, and what I care for so deeply. Some have also fit into a category I like to call "beautiful chaos" as they weren't always directly goal-focused. Rather, they were a way to exit or transition from a previous choice. Nonetheless, each and every one - intentional or not - have helped me write my own "Choose Your Adventure" book: a beautiful and convoluted path toward sustainability.
Let me offer one example for the more grounded, tangible readers who can only stomach small doses of philosophy and theory ;)
When I desperately needed to get out of an emotionally weighing career in social services, and swiftly said yes to the unexpected but immediately available opportunity in specialty healthcare, I learned more than I could have ever imagined about [wait for it]: gastroenterology. Although healthcare is a far cry from my calling, I spent nearly five years and worked three separate positions there - learning more about intestinal tracks and bowel movements than most would care to know. And these years - this experience - played a significant role in shaping what became my Capstone project achieved during the Master’s program at the University of Denver: Genetically Modified Organisms in America’s Food System.
Ultimately, our choices – planned, perfect or other – shape who you are and the mark you make on the world. Mine, I know, have augmented my strengths and skills and ultimate search for finding my way to make a difference on this planet. It's been a roller coaster. So far, I’m enjoying the ride!
I look forward to learning, sharing and growing with you!