A Different Kind of Fight

Ever since I threw my first punch, I’ve been hooked. Something about Muay Thai answered a question I didn’t realise I had inside of me; stepping into myself, tapping into a visceral strength I didn’t know was there and actively doing something that so many defied me and my gender to do sparked a flame.

In embarking on this physical journey, I didn’t realise that my fight would become an emotional one: abuse, development, growth, isolation, growing pains…

The more I talked to people who walked a similar path in Thailand, the more I realised that my story was not singular.

I’m honoured that one of my friends, Nicola Kaye, shared her story and her fight with me.

You can read the interview here.

 

Seattle Womxn’s March

Yesterday was a Saturday, January 21st 2017 to be precise, a Saturday that will go down in history.

Yesterday, as Trump entered office, people all over America and the world left their homes en masse. A diverse global community of children, adults and dogs (!) took to the streets armed with intention. According to Komo News, 175,000 people turned out for the Seattle Women’s March. It’s empowering to have been one of the bodies in that number and even more empowering that my life partner, Matt, chose to march with me, for me, for him and for his own reasons.

When heartache becomes tooth ache

I speak multiple languages in silence.

That of the daughter,

the lover,

the friend,

the subjugated, the passive, the strong,

the inappropriate, the inspiring.

Out loud,

My mouth is a playground for ill pronounced tones and emotions that I don’t do justice;

By day, they lay on my tongue and weigh down my mouth.

By night, they come alive and grate against my teeth,

cut my tongue and seep out of my pores.

404 words: Stones in the Road

He hadn’t actually touched her, so it didn’t count. He was angry. He was drunk. He didn’t understand. Maybe she didn’t understand. Maybe this was her fault. The motorbike swerved off of the road. This must have been her fault.

How to Engage Men in the Prevention of Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence by Lyndsey Dearlove, Hestia

I am honoured to have had the opportunity to work with Hestia, UK Says No More and No more. The strong women and men that I have met, and continue to meet along the way, inspire me and propel me forwards.

“First and most importantly, the UK SAYS NO MORE Team and I are eternally grateful to Jess Boyd – Head of Gender and Community Involvement for the NFL for cementing an incredible bond between the campaign and the NFL. Jess and I started by talking to the young men who had attended the training camp the previous year to gain their feedback and what they  suggested  to us was simple, talk with us about this topic and not at us like we are all potential perpetrators – we want to be part of the solution.  This was not the first time I’d heard this comment from men but the first time I had the opportunity to do things differently.”

Check out the full article here

Tales from Thailand Pt.1 — Popcorn for Dinner

Let me take you back. Three years back.

I had applied, and been accepted, to a British Council program for teaching English in Thailand. After being underwhelmed by the training days in London, hearing from a Thai government spokesperson and deciding it was all propaganda, and meeting the other successful (and rather questionable) applicants who couldn’t wait to get “pissed” and go to the Full Moon Party, I was not sure what to expect. I took solace in my ability to speak Thai and that I already had some understanding of the country.

Blog post for “No More”

Check it out here