What is the legacy you want to leave behind?
The legacy I want to leave behind is a better undemanding of mental health issues and more empathy and understanding for those affected by it. If I have reduced stigma and increased empathy and compassion for my fellow sufferers of mental health issues, then my life has been a success. My friends 🧡 tell me I have already achieved this.
How do you feel about cold weather?
I don’t like cold weather. Here in Melbourne, winter can be cold 🥶 and wet. I don’t like it. I much prefer late spring and early autumn here in Australia, when the weather is warmer and the sunshines. I think I dislike winter more than I dislike the extreme heat 🥵 🔥 of summer. I like wearing fewer layers and enjoying the feel of spring air on my skin.
The good thing about winter, though, is rugging up and taking Lily for her walk to get warm.
Have you ever broken a bone?
In my life, I have not had any broken bones,but I have had my heart broken 💔 a few times, and the pain of that I imagine would be the equivalent of a broken bone.
How do you balance work and home life?
The way I now balance work and home 🏡 life is to work from home. Now that I’m a writer, I can choose to do my writing ✍️ from home and structure my home life and responsibilities around that. When I was working in mental health, I had to travel large distances across suburban Melbourne for work, and this meant having to leave Lily for hours on end whilst I worked. Now that I write from home 🏡 I can be around Lily and focus on her,which means I have a happy, contented little dog. I must admit I prefer working from 🏡 home and feel like I am happier not having to travel to work.
What sacrifices have you made in life?
Probably the moat significant sacrifice I made was to leave my marriage when it became obvious that my husband was involved with someone else. It was not what I signed up for when I made my marriage vows, and I decided to stay true to my values and leave the marriage behind. If I hadn’t done that, my life would’ve taken a different course, and I may not have taken up writing a blog, and getting Lily, etc. I believe everything in our life happens for a reason, and I don’t live my life with regrets. I try to make wise, considered decisions, and not just react impulsively to whatever happens. I now have a happy , fulfilling life.
What’s the oldest things you’re wearing today?
The oldest things I am wearing today were some of the clothes Susanna gave me, some winter pants and a long sleeve bamboo 👕 shirt. They are good quality and comfortable, and I am drawn to them because of the sentimental value of them being given to me by Susanna. She had good taste, and I love her for her generosity. Wearing them makes me feel good.
Are you a leader or a follower?
Perhaps I am a leader because of my career as a peer support worker in mental health. I think the work I achieved in mental health paved the way for those lived experience workers who followed me. I tried to be a good role model, which I largely achieved, bur I did occasionally have a relapse of my symptoms, and this was frowned upon by some of my employers. It couldn’t be helped, though, because I never know what curve balls life will throw at me. I do the best I can and manage my illness well on a day to day basis. I try to be the best version of myself and find writing ✍️ about my life in this blog is both empowering and fulfilling. If writing ✍️ about my life informs and paves the way for people like me to follow, then I guess I am still a leader and a role model.
I’ve written a bit about my oldest brother Peter, but today I want to write about another brother of mine David.
David is my second oldest brother and is most definitely the most sentimental of my brothers. David has a remarkable memory, particularly of his childhood and teenage years. The things he remembers are amazing to say the least.
Right from birth, David has been obsessed by cars and used to race cars 🏎 as a young man. He has an incredible knowledge of cars 🚗.
David is also a devoted family man and has two stunning young adults in Emily and Kevin. He is definitely a proud father who is dedicated to his offspring.
David is so intelligent and at the stage wanted us as a family to compete on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. He is dedicated to our family and sees us all as success stories of which he is extremely fond. He regularly reads 📚 my blog and shows a genuine interest in what I write ✍️.
List your top 5 favorite fruits.
1 Raspberries
2 Strawberries
3 Apple
4 Mangoes
5 Melons.
What’s one small improvement you can make in your life?
I am a morning person and often get up early if I am awake and alert and have a busy day ahead. Unfortunately, I am not busy with a full agenda every day, and when this happens, I can find it hard to not think of negative things and find it hard to move myself out of bed on those days. However, I know if I do get up and get moving my attitude and therefore my day improves immensely when I do get moving. I guess that is the way my mental illness sometimes manifests, and I have learned over time to both manage and control it. I know if I can get busy and distract my mind me mental well-being improves, and I live most days symptom free. I must admit having Lily helps because she gives me something to care and be responsible for, and it is a pleasure taking care of her. Dogs really are canine antidepressants. She really dies wonders for me on those days that I find it hard to get moving.
One small improvement I can make is to walk her more than once a day. I normally walk her first thing in the morning 🌄 and I will continue to do so, but now tribal going to endeavour to walk her around lunchtime OJ the days I don’t have other appointments around that time. It would be good for the both of us.
Kaye's Life and other gems 