The Gift I Received At The Kidspot Voices of 2013 Masterclass That Had Me Bawling | Life Love and Hiccups: The Gift I Received At The Kidspot Voices of 2013 Masterclass That Had Me Bawling
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Tuesday 21 May 2013

The Gift I Received At The Kidspot Voices of 2013 Masterclass That Had Me Bawling

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It's no secret that I absolutely LOVE being a part of the amazing blogging community in Australia or just how passionate I am about both my readers and my fellow bloggers. But back in September 2011 on the night I accidentally on purpose clicked on that little create blog button, I had no idea nor would I have ever believed that blogging would open the door to such an incredible world that I never knew existed.

I didn't even know just how much I loved to write, just as I didn't realise how much joy can be gained from sharing stories and experiences with others. I didn't expect that this blog of mine would become such an important part of my life or that I would care so much about the people it connected me with.

All I knew was that I had a voice and that I wanted that voice to be heard.

I feel so incredibly blessed that my voice was chosen to be a part of the Kidspot Voices of 2013 Campaign and even more blessed that some of you were so generous and thoughtful to nominate me (thanks Kylie and Teresa).

One of the most exciting parts of this whole experience is being given the chance to meet with some of my fellow bloggers - the ones you and I both love. And over the weekend I was lucky enough to do exactly that at the Kidspot Voices of 2013 Masterclass at Megan Morton's The School in Rosebery.

I am not going to lie to you, I was as nervous as hell. I always am before I go to these events and meet new people, but from the moment I arrived and spied some bloggy pals I have already been lucky enough to meet and then continued to spot faces I knew only from blog pages, I knew this was going to be a pretty awesome day.

I know that not everyone that reads this has a blog of their own and for that reason I am not going to go into details about what we learnt at the masterclass, or what the brilliantly talented and inspiring panellists shared with us that day.

What I do want to share with you is why within the first 20 minutes of the masterclass I was sitting there with tears streaming down my face.

One person, one incredibly brave and inspiring person sharing their story was all it took to turn me into a blubbering mess. And if ever I doubted that the universe puts you EXACTLY where you need to be at EXACTLY the right time, those doubts were well and truly laid to rest.

I had been waiting for a sign that the changes I am making in my life are indeed the right changes I should be making, and that day my sign came in the form of a petite woman / mother / wife / photographer / film maker.

Haily Bartholomew.

She will probably never have a clue that she gave me such an incredible gift that day. I tried to tell her after she spoke to the crowd, but I think I pretty much just left her stunned by the fact that some crazy ass mascara stained stranger had just come up and thrown some arms around her and proceeded to sob and sniff her way through some kind of jumbled thank you.

It was destiny that just one day after I resigned from the only career I have known to go and chase my dreams, I was sitting in a room with a hundred others completely enthralled by a softly spoken woman who was sharing how she has bravely turned her own dreams into reality.

Her messages were simple but smacked me right in the heart.










Hailey said loads more, but my mind kept coming back to those four key points like they were all I really heard or wanted to hear.

Hailey was living a simple life as mother and wife in the suburbs, a life she admits she never really planned.

She knew that 'one day' she would be free to chase her dreams and that the simple moments she found pleasure in, the moments with her precious family, would always remain her true treasures. Hailey had gratitude for what she had already had, and she found courage to make her dreams a priority and instead of waiting for the 'one day' to come, she just went out there and made those dreams happen and more than that, she made it a priority that her true treasures were a part of the dream.

I have included at the bottom of this post the short film that Hailey made 5 years ago for an ABC TV competition  The film that went on to win the viewers choice award and began her journey as a film maker. The film that was made on equipment she didn't own and didn't really know how to use, but was made by someone who had a dream and that dream was all she needed.

The purpose of this film is not to make you want to be a photographer or a film maker, it's about making you want to be something more than you already are today. It is about encouraging you to feel gratitude, live gratitude, find your dream and then find the courage to MAKE that dream happen.

As I said earlier, the rest of the Masterclass was brilliant, and the party that night? Well that was nothing short of fabulous. And whilst I didn't bring you home a piece of cake or a glass of champagne as a souvenir  I do have this to share with you.



A huge thank you to Kidspot for the opportunity to be a part of such a brilliant event and a huge thank you to ALL the incredible women (including Tahnee, Mel, Bron, Tina, Lisa, Rachel, Katrina, Vivian, Jen) who made the day and the night so much fun.

And the biggest thank you of all to Hailey for the gift you probably wont ever know you gave me.

For more info on the individual voices who are a part of the Kidspot Voices of 2013, click here.