My home is in the beautiful Dandenong Ranges in Victoria, Australia where I live with my husband Gordon and two cats - plus a possum or two in our roof... It's a lovely lifestyle amongst trees and hills and the sound of birdsong. We've been married for 35 years and have two brilliant children and three gorgeous grandchildren.

 

I'm a 'cockney sparrow' from Bow in London's East End, fifth of 6 children. We left London when I was 7 to live in Haverhill, Suffolk then at age 9 we moved again, to Dagenham in Essex. Leaving school at 16, I worked in clerical and administrative roles in local government, health and social welfare. I met Gordon when I'd been at work for just 8 weeks and we married in 1973, living in Ilford then Romford before moving 'down under'. 

 

Our biggest loss was the stillbirth of our first baby. With no support groups or counselling services at the time, we got through with the help and love of friends and family and were blessed to have our daughter a year later and our son two years after that. I took time out to be an 'at home mum' in the early years but usually had a part time job or community involvement. I returned to work as a marriage registrar/deputy registrar of births and deaths - we called it 'hatch, match and despatch'. I dealt with people at their happiest and most sorrowful times. It was a great job and I felt privileged to work there.

 

Emigrating was exciting but traumatic. I wanted a two year adventure, it wasn't meant to be forever! The family had other ideas... Now I'm happy. While I loved Australia from the start, it took time before I could call it 'home' from my heart. We had good neighbours and soon made friends but the homesickness was acute - I now realise that 'homesickness' is grief. A part of my heart is forever in England and we have many wonderful friends and family there. I visit often.

 

I was fortunate to meet Liz, who also yearned for 'home'. We became a mutual support system. It was good to know someone who felt the same but I also had to help myself so I raided the library for self help books, which eventually led to study of a more esoteric nature. In the meantime I did an administration course. This helped me to settle and get a fabulous job as PA/Secretary to an author of children's books. I stayed for 3 years, met some fascinating people and learned a lot. I loved my job but when my role changed it was time to move on. 

 

I had been attending meditation classes and my interest in healing and spiritual subjects had grown stronger, so when I left my job in 1996 I decided to focus on my spiritual life. Some profound experiences and heightened psychic insight  made me aware of a loving presence that I couldn't see but could feel - and I had a strong urge to write. As words poured into my mind, uplifting and often in rhyme, it was well beyond coincidence how often someone would speak to me of something I'd written about a few hours earlier...

 

I attended healing groups, spiritual development classes, trained in Reiki, tarot and colour therapy, later gaining accreditation as a trainer and as a volunteer crisis line counsellor - I even completed part of a degree via distance learning. Maybe I'll finish it one day... I've ventured into self employment and worked in a market with my daughter; good experience and it was fun working together. In my varied working life I've met people from all over the world and every level of society from the destitute to the millionaire. It is only as I've written this that I realise what a richness of experience I have had  - with all that material, I just wish I was good at writing fiction!

 

Since 1997 I've regularly shared my writing and poetry in talks, mainly in Spiritual Centres and Spiritualist Churches, taught intuitive subjects and facilitated workshops. I have just published my book Things That I Believe In. The launch was on 18 October - see my picture gallery. It was a great day, beautiful weather and a lovely location. Now I have other writing projects to complete, including a collection of my poetry, which I hope to publish in April 2009.