I've lived a very full life in my short thirty-seven years on this planet.

Born in Germany in 1972, my sixteen-year-old mother returned to the US when I was 7 months old. I spent much of my young life with my grandmother, who was still raising children of her own. Nucla, Colorado is and always will be my hometown.

When I wasn't living with my grandmother, my mother and I moved frequently. As a child, I attended more than 22 schools in four different states. I rarely attended a single school for a full year, my shortest term being a little over a month.

I was four-years-old the first time I was sexually abused, something I experienced multiple times by the time I was twelve. Friends of the family, neighbors, and even some family members left an indelible mark on my childhood, a mark I carried well into adulthood where I entered into several abusive relationships. At the age of twenty-nine I became a victim of date rape.

I attempted to navigate the justice system on my own and found myself lost and confused. Then I discovered the wonderful advocates at San Miguel Resource Center, based in Telluride, Colorado. Kind, caring, and compassionate, they helped me get back on my feet and three years later I joined them as a Colorado certified victims advocate.

I have also served as a Girl Scout and Youth Group leader, and worked with disabled children through our local schools when I was in high school.

My life has been an adventure, and I honestly wouldn't change a single moment. Each of those experiences has helped me to become the person I am today, it took me far longer than it should have to learn the many lessons I share with others today.

Because of the abuse we have suffered in our pasts, we don't always have the tools we need to have a happy life. Our brains have been wired towards negative people and situations, but with some work our brains can be rewired, and find our own brand of happiness.

Even if you have not suffered from abuse, you might still have some negative wiring in your brain. Your mind may b keeping you from the happiness and success that you deserve for many reasons, but when you finally begin to accept that you and you alone are the captain of your own destiny anyone can set a course for happiness.

Today I am a happily married mother of three, step-mother to one. I am surrounded by love on all sides, in my friends, in my family, even in my pets. My life is not perfect, and never will be but it is perfectly wonderful!

I am well known for being slightly snarky, and fully passionate about life. A freethinker and idealist, I believe that the way the world IS is not nearly as important as how the world COULD be. We have all been given the responsibility to make this world a better place, we all have a part to play.

A true Bohemian at heart, there is a fine line between life and art. I have been an avid reader and writer all of my life, my writing is often of a very personal nature and comes from my many experiences in life both positive and negative.

Much of my writing is dedicated to sharing the lessons I have learned the hard way. I believe in the power of words, both written and spoken. Simple words have changed people, countries, and the world. They plant seeds in the minds of others that when nurtured, can become almost anything.

If I do nothing else, I want to instill hope in others, to help them discover the person they were truly meant to be. Life does not have to be dictated by your past, and no matter what you have experienced in this lifetime happiness really is an attainable goal for all of us.

Thank you for stopping by, and I hope we can get to know each other better.

Most of all, I wish you love!

Ayngel
AKA Boshemia