u003c!u002du002d divi:image {u0022alignu0022:u0022leftu0022,u0022idu0022:19596,u0022widthu0022:296,u0022heightu0022:443,u0022sizeSlugu0022:u0022largeu0022,u0022linkDestinationu0022:u0022noneu0022} u002du002du003enu003cpu003eu0026nbsp;u003c/pu003enu003c!u002du002d /divi:image u002du002du003enu003cpu003eIf life is a three-act play, I’m moving into my Third Act. A milestone birthday is approaching, and I feel so young! I have so much still to learn and do! I love saying YES to life.u003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu003cbr /u003eFrom one perspective, our lives are a series of experiences and choices. Lately, I’ve been reviewing mine. Some experiences included hard lessons – and losses. My grandmother died the week I was graduating from high school. I married young and was a widow at the age of 23. We might have had some amazing adventures! My mother died six years after that. She was a nurse and loved horses, and I feel her with me often. I’ve now lived longer than she did. Facing these losses in my 20’s made me stronger and contributed to the path I chose.u003cbr /u003eu003cemu003eu003c/emu003eu003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu0026nbsp;u003c/pu003enu003c!u002du002d /divi:paragraph u002du002du003e

u003cpu003e      I said YES to bringing my dad to live with me in his last years of life. He died four years ago, and I was at his side, every day, in palliative care. I cherish all these experiences, even though the grief was at times unbearable.u003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu003cbr /u003e      I said YES to love. It took eighteen years, and a bit of “looking for love in all the wrong places,” but I did get married again! He’s a real sweetheart.u003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu003cbr /u003e      I said YES to a life of service. I chose to work with addicts and alcoholics in treatment, and later with individuals living with HIV/AIDS. I spent a lot of time with people facing the end of their lives.  It changed the way I live. They taught me so much. Saying YES to those choices led me to be a kind and compassionate person. u003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu003cbr /u003e      I said YES to life-long learning. I started college two weeks after high school graduation (okay, I might have been running away from my grief and my small town, but it was a defining choice). I loved summer school. I was a registered nurse before I could legally purchase an adult beverage! I was 30 when I completed my master’s degree. I was 45 when I started my own consulting and training business and 50 when I became a certified coach. That was the year I first heard about coaching with horses, and signing up for Equus Coach training was a resounding YES.u003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu003cbr /u003e      What a great YES that has been! Being an Equus Coach brings me such joy. I’m grateful that horses are my co-facilitators and teachers. They show me presence, honesty, congruence, and patience. They mirror what is going on and help shape the session. They bring the truth. u003cemu003eEvery Single Timeu003c/emu003e. u003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu003cbr /u003e      Each of the choices I made in my training, education and career have been because I asked myself, “What will inspire me next?” or, “What do I want to learn or experience now?” And I trusted the process when the doors opened or when the teacher(s) or training programs appeared. I listened to my heart and paid attention to what was calling me. I’m happy I did. And now, I’m choosing to focus on forgiving myself for my mistakes, honoring the choices I’ve made, and looking for the grace in my experiences. u003c/pu003enu003cpu003eu003cbr /u003e      I’m not sure what the next few decades hold for me, but I will walk the path with curiosity and gratitude. And with horses. And I will keep saying YES as often as I can.u003c/pu003enu003cpu003e      u003cemu003eWhat is calling you? What would you like to say YES to? How would that shape the path you are on?  u003c/emu003eu003c/pu003e