What is this page all about?
In my chaotic life, I have learned that when everything around me is messy and requires a lot of choice on my part, my values can provide certainty that I am following the path I believe in with each decision, each action. They remain at the centre of everything I do, and because I am in touch with them constantly, I am also learning and growing — and my values change as I do.
Hopefully the values I gesture to below are evident in the way I conduct myself, in the creation of this digital space, and in the access points to learning that I offer. None of the things you find of this site define me as a whole, but they have all contributed parts, and deserve to be named.
purpose is interwoven
we rely on each other
pleasure and play are sustainable practices
life is relational
truth is liberating
freedom is a beautiful responsibility
multiple truths coexist
we are all learning all the time
notice choices, provide choices
accountability is love
your worth is not up for debate
celebration is key
support changes everything
My Teaching Ancestry
I’ve been learning how to teach for my whole life.
Being in school, and taking trainings as an adult, I have had A LOT of experiences with teachers who harmed me and the class in various ways. I feel lucky that I made it through those experiences, some of them truly traumatizing. This taught me the power of the relationship between teacher and student, how it changes at different ages, in different class sizes, institutions, and when the teaching is serving different purposes.
I’ve chosen to learn everything I can from all of this, and to seek out teachers whose presence actually helped me feel safe, to learn, to grow, and to find myself.
I’ve been learning how to learn for my whole life.
My lack of focus has always been described as a hindrance to success in any one area. It took years before I realized I had been honing one very particular set of skills: how to learn new things.
This approach gave me lots of exposure to teaching methods, to self discovery, sensory experience, and the wisdom of different disciplines. I consider myself a professional learner, with years and years of experience and training.
My way of teaching is very much my own, but only because my teachers allowed me to figure out what it means to be me. I carry their support with me every day. So here they are, for you to enjoy, and for me to give thanks.
Fides Krucker
Kim Brodey
Doug Friesen
Kim Snider
Stephen Wei
Amber McZeal
Muriel Shockley
Tom Hart
Books I like
A selection of titles from my library that have shaped my health & teaching journey.
Resources I draw upon
Yoga with Adriene
Yawning
I practice with these videos to maintain my arms, neck, hands, and upper body health for making comics:
This article by Fides Krucker explains it, but yawning has become a crucial part of my every day navigations.
It can also be found in another format in her book, Reclaiming Calliope.
Journalspeak, The Cure for Chronic Pain
I don’t endorse anything as a cure for everyone, but the name of this woman’s work is not the best part of it. The practice of journalspeak is a very intuitive and helpful one, though I personally cut the timelines down to 5 minutes or 10 minutes, if I need to.
Here are her instructions for Journalspeak.
Try and see how you feel :)
School of New Feminist Thought - Podcast
First Light NL
I used to listen to these podcasts more often than I do now, but I draw upon them for reminders from time to time:
To connect with my community and learn other ways of relating to people, law, spirituality, and the land, I attend events at First Light NL.
The Indigenous Cultural Training was a good starting point, and now I am finding ways to continue to learn from this organization and its community members.
There are many friendship centres all over Turtle Island, you can likely find one like First Light in your area.