Hi!  Welcome to my blog.  My name is Elisha.  I recently started this passion project to fuel my soul after retiring from my partnership in an ergonomics consulting firm.  The path to get here, has been far from easy.

I grew up in the small town of Hastings, Ontario with two younger siblings –  my sister, Belinda, and brother, Kyle.  My parents still live in the house where we were raised.  

Like many in my generation, I followed the quote ‘traditional route’.  I pursued post-secondary education, graduated university, got a job, got married, and got a couple of fur-babies, my alternative to kids.  I had set myself up for living happily ever after.  Or so I thought.  

I had always envisioned living abroad, but ended up marrying someone who didn’t have a passion for travel.  Instead, our time off was spent with family in Saskatchewan and British Columbia.  These locations are lovely, but I had always wanted to expand my sights outside of Canada.  My desire to travel the world continued to come up, time and time again, but it was not something that fit nicely into the “happily ever after” I had created for myself.  

Although I had followed what I thought would be the path to ‘happily ever after’, it seemed to be something I was constantly chasing, always just out of reach.  

When my sister was diagnosed with a rare cancer in her early twenties, I finally gained the courage to resign from a toxic job to spend more time with her.  I quickly landed a part-time consulting job to provide income and the flexibility to be with my sister, but also to serve as a distraction from her battle.  Within 8 months of her diagnosis, my sister lost her battle, just as I discovered my husband’s second affair.  It was a lot to process and for the first-time in my life, fear reared its ugly head.  I was afraid to make big changes, while I clung to stories that were no longer serving me.  But I decided to move forward, somehow knowing that being alone was going to be healthier than constantly wondering what my life would be like “if only”.  Some serious soul searching led to a separation and ultimately divorce.  

I decided to embark on a four-week trip to Japan to give myself space to heal and think. I re-discovered my independence, power, and gained clarity. I came home refreshed and ready for the next chapter.  I focused on growing my professional life and eventually invested in ownership of the consulting firm I was working with.  I was traveling nationally and internationally for work, experiencing amazing opportunities and growing a business I loved.  I was enjoying life and being solely responsible for myself and my two Vizslas – Ginger and Scarlett.  Life was good.

When I wasn’t anticipating it, D was put on my path.  In came true love – partnership, support, compassion, like-mindedness, common goals and passions – engaging parts of me that I thought were lost forever.  Together, we began living our dreams of traveling the world, experiencing new cultures and foods, learning, growing, and falling more in love.  Every time we returned home, we immediately began planning our next adventure. 

Over the next few years, I continued to press on, celebrating being busy as a measurement of success.  In a world driven by progress, I had forgotten how to be still. I began to realize I was surviving in chaos instead of thriving in calm.  I knew I wanted more from life.  What if instead of celebrating ‘busy’, I celebrated how much time I spent listening, creating, being present, meditating, exercising and enjoying time with the most important people in my life?  What if I stopped overselling the value of having more and explored the value of having just what I needed?   

I did the challenging work, giving myself time to process, reflect and get real about next steps.  I trusted my inner guidance, my intuition –  that little voice that whispers from your heart knowing exactly what your soul needs.  I realized I have a new story to write and it looked nothing like my past.  I decided to face my fears, and made the difficult, but brave decision to retire from my lucrative ergonomics career.  It’s time to live the life that is calling me.  

Now I am here and ready to fuel my soul.  I’ll share my passion for travel, discovering new cultures, connecting and breaking bread with new, beautiful people.  I will explore life as a local wherever my journey leads.  While traveling, I feel alive and free, yet connected and at home. This is when I am living my best life.  

May you never settle for ordinary or silence your inner intuition, if you know your soul is meant for extraordinary experiences.