The alarm has gone off, you wake to start a brand new day! What are your first waking thoughts? Do you go to your “to do” list? Do you think begrudgingly about work? Are you excited to jump out of bed and greet this brand new day? Is your mind still replaying a “poor me”, life is so hard song? Did you hit snooze more than once? Is today an opportunity or do you see it as a curse? Do you wake and breathe deeply into the gratitudes of your life? How do you start your day in that fragile waking moment? This is when you set the tone for what unfolds in the next twenty-four hours, it’s literally your choice, will you begin in joyful gratitude or whining disappointment?

Over the recent months, especially the last couple I have been starting my day with deep breathing gratitude. Joyfully exploring all the amazing people, things, and experiences that bless my life. Wow…, I roll out of bed so humbled and in awe of the life I am blessed to live. Then I allow my mind to wander into the dreams and goals I am working on, filling pages of my journal with creative thoughts and how I plan to get there. My day bursts into life embracing my “WHY”! Now, I do not want you to think it is sunshine all the time, I fall down, I have disappointments, I experience moments of fear – however shifting my mind to see these as opportunities truly does change how I embody the experience and move forward.

This week I shall start the first of my two new classes. They will bless my life for the next four months. Twice a month each class will grace me with the opportunity to celebrate the women who are stepping up to say yes to their amazing heart and soul. Giving themselves the gift of quality time to explore the deeper aspects of their inner self’s, noticing what bubbles up from within, which begs to be expressed and shared with the world. This dance with incredible women in these classes literally fuels my heart and soul. They remind me of my WHY! The “why”, that spurred me to step off the cliff to go for it! “Why” I wake up every morning!  The “why” which drives me to keep taking action towards my dreams! WHY I am here!!

What is my why? My why, is the passionate dream to bring all who seek home to their true inner magnificence, to remind them how glorious they are, to help them go from WALKING THEIR TRUTH, to DANCING THEIR TRUTH with joy, love, passion, peace, and absolute freedom. This is a dream I have had my whole life. Unlike Wayne Dyer, one of my favorite authors and speakers, I did not have the guts as a little girl, teenager, or young woman to throw my voice out into the arena for all to hear. Sometimes I wish I had, for my life would be very different now. However, I would have missed so much along the way, thus all is perfectly timed and as it is meant to be.

I have continually served my WHY along the way, each day holding the “safe space” for those who seek a place to be heard and held without judgment. In fifth grade it was the girl in class that everyone made fun of, calling her names, and being mean. I would share my food with her at times, compliment her, smile and be kind.

At sixteen I dated my second boyfriend, I only got to share a little over a month with him, for I was soon to leave for Australia as an exchange student. He lived in the neighboring town, so we had to plan ahead for our dates and time. A year older than I, he was a senior in high school, coming quickly to the end of this time in his life. I often asked him, “What do you want to do? What’s your dream?” I would follow my inquiry with, “You can do anything. Anything is possible.” Fast forward three years and you find me in my dorm room at Michigan State University, the phone rings (yes, good old land line phone), I answer to hear a man introducing himself as the once upon a time boyfriend from my junior year of high school. I am shocked, for how did he find me, why is he calling me??? He goes on to explain that he got my dad’s number, gutsy, who gave him my number. Before I can say anything, he says, “Fawn, I am calling to thank you, for if you had not entered my life, I would not be where I am today. You told me I could do and be anything. You encouraged me to dream and go for it. I am graduating soon from Dentistry school and am engaged to be married. I would have never gone for this dream, or even thought to dream, if you had not planted the seeds that I could. Thank you.” I remember that phone call like it was yesterday, for time stood still as my heart swelled with joy and gratitude. Tears slid down my cheeks with complete happiness for this amazing man who had the courage to go for it. I was so excited for him and unbelievably touched that he would take the time to reach out. I feel today as I did then, this is WHY I am here, to help others dream, believe, dance, sing, and live life from their inner magnificence!!

There was the toothless, homeless man in Denver who came into the store I worked at to give me a Christmas present, wrapped in a torn, used, wrinkled, brown, paper bag. He stood before me looking up at me with tears in his in his eyes as he placed the gift in my hand saying, “You are the only person who has ever treated me like I am someone. Thank you for being kind to me. Merry Christmas.” This magnanimous man gave me the biggest gift ever, for he taught me the pure grace of humble love, of true giving, of pure connection, of the truth that connects us all. To this day I cannot remember what was wrapped in the paper. I just hold dearly the tears and hug we shared, hoping in my heart that he found a safe place to be, love from another, and that he continued to share his immense capacity to love and be brave.

My WHY shows up and exists wherever I go, for I love people. I truly celebrate the pure innocent joyful child that resides within every being. The child that loved freely, that danced exuberantly, that sang really loud, that ran free – the child that had not yet been “domesticated and tamed”. What is your WHY? What makes your heart sing, your soul dance? What makes you want to rise before the alarm? What brings a smile to your face from the very core of your being? What makes you literally wiggle in your seat with uncontrollable joy and anticipation? We all have a special WHY, or as some call it, purpose. Our unique and very precious gift to share with the world. I know I live and breathe for my WHY, it fuels my veins, pumps my heart, and expands my soul every day. It makes life a dance of miracles and grace.