The Questions That Changed Everything

People often tell us how brave we are for living this way or say they could only dream of a life like ours.

The truth is, I don't think our story is really about bravery.

I think it's about asking ourselves a different question.

Nine years ago, I was sitting in a surgeon’s office when I was told there was a growth inside the last remaining inch and a half of my large intestine.

His recommendation was clear. Surgery to remove it. But because so little of my large intestine remained, the procedure would almost certainly mean living with a permanent colostomy.

I remember sitting there, trying to absorb everything I was hearing.

Like anyone in that situation, I felt scared. I felt uncertain. I had so many questions.

But somewhere beneath all of that fear, another question quietly began to emerge.

Why am I here?

Looking back now, I realize that question changed everything.

About a year before that appointment, I had already stepped away from working in the hospital because something inside me was telling me that my life needed to change. I couldn’t fully explain it at the time, but I knew I was being called in a different direction.

After that appointment, I knew I needed to pause.

I stepped back from making immediate decisions and gave myself time to listen more deeply to myself and how I actually felt.

Around that time, a friend gave me a book called The Root Cause of Cancer. That book opened something in me that I hadn’t yet been able to access.

It led me to Dr. Gabor Maté’s When the Body Says No, which became another turning point.

These books didn’t give me all the answers. Instead, they gave me something more important — they helped me begin trusting myself again.

They created space for deep reflection, and for the first time in a long time, I stopped asking, "Why is this happening to me?" Instead, I began asking, "What is this trying to teach me?" That shift changed everything.

This is where I began the journey of remembering me.

Not the version of me shaped by expectations, fear, or survival—but the deeper parts of me that had always been there, waiting to be heard again.

“Remembering me” has been my journey—and it continues to this day.

It began with plant medicine journeys. These experiences opened something in me that I hadn’t fully accessed before. They were not easy. At times they were incredibly difficult—even terrifying—but they opened a whole new world that I had been longing to discover.

From there, I was guided to an Indigenous Elder and an Earth Elder, both of whom shared teachings that deeply impacted me. Their wisdom brought tears. It brought grief. It also brought forgiveness. Ultimately, they helped me remember who I am and why I am here.

In those spaces, I began to reconnect with parts of myself I hadn’t fully known how to access for years—the parts that existed before life experiences, responsibilities, and survival patterns began to shape who I became. What I started to remember was not a different person, but a more whole version of myself. Someone who had always been there underneath it all, ..yet had been hidden beneath years of trauma and the protective ego I had built to survive. That ego had done exactly what it was meant to do—it kept Little Laurie safe. It deserved not shame, but gratitude, forgiveness, and love.

And that remembering continues.

It is not a destination, but an ongoing unfolding—one that still shapes how I live, choose, and move through the world today.

Somewhere along this journey, I was asked two simple questions:

What is your dream life?

And…

What steps are you taking to make it happen?

Those questions stayed with me for days, then weeks.

What was my dream life?

When I finally sat with that question, the answer surprised me with its simplicity.

I wanted to live somewhere warm, surrounded by nature. I wanted monkeys nearby (thank you, Ross from Friends, for planting that dream years ago). I wanted a slower, more intentional way of living. And I wanted to create space where I could support others on their own journeys.

Once I became clear on the vision, it became easier to see what was missing.

Then came the harder question.

Was I willing to step outside my comfort zone and actually do something about it?

Dreams rarely arrive all at once.

They are built one decision at a time.

One conversation.

One shift.

One leap of faith.

And dreams evolve.

Today, we’ve created our warm place with monkeys, and now its is time to continue to create our dream. We are ready to share this experience with others.

We want people to see that dreams aren’t meant to stay as ideas or distant hopes—they’re meant to be lived.

We want to show that there are many ways to create a meaningful life—one rooted in connection, community, love, joy, and purpose.

Most of all, we hope to offer a space where people can set down their fears, reconnect with themselves, and remember that they are already enough. A place where they are accepted, honored, and welcomed exactly as they are.

Nine years ago, one question changed the direction of my life.

Why am I here?

That question led me to many others, each one bringing me a little closer to the life I'm living today.

So now I'd like to leave you with the question that continues to guide me:

What is your dream life?

And perhaps even more importantly...

What is one small step you can take today to begin creating it?

You don't have to have all the answers. Sometimes asking the right question is enough to begin.