It all began with a mooning.

Allow me to explain.

When I was young, I was the fat kid. In kindergarten, I was harassed by the class bully. One day during nap time, the teacher left the room. The class bully used this as an opportunity to taunt me. I got off my mat, walked over to where he was lying, dropped my panties and told him to kiss my you know what. Laughter erupted as the teacher returned to witness my glory blowing in the wind. I was busted and got into a little trouble. I didn't care. The bully never bothered me again and my other classmates became my allies.

A few days later, my father shared the story with family members. He chuckled as he said, "That girl is just like me. I'm proud of her. She stood up for herself."

And, in that moment, I learned a valuable lesson. When you speak up for yourself you may experience a little trouble, but you gain respect and usually get what you want.

I’ve been encouraging others to speak up for themselves ever since.

And from student journalism to social activist to public broadcasting to wellness coach to author to public speaker to artist to business owner, expressing ones truth and self mastery has been my work.