The Main Curriculum of My Life

I am native to Chicago and now reside in Grand Rapids, Michigan. My life has moved back and forth between these two lands that hug the fresh water of the Great Lakes — places brimming with landscapes of endless discovery, much like the inner landscape of my own life.

It has often been through the harshest winds of my own story that hidden trails of glistening crumbs have appeared, leading me toward my own wayfinding. It is true that the painful parts of my story have, at times, broken my wings. It is also true that the truth of who I really am has been found within the complexity of those very stories.

The unexpected turns and disorientations have become the very impetus of my ongoing return to my true self. Through every right and wrong turn, every dream dashed and realized, every birth and death, every unknown twist — and especially, yes quite especially, through every paradox — I have come to believe that we return home to the beauty of who we are by way of the wounds that have the power to wake us up.

Thus begins the soul journey.

And I believe it is no different for you.

I have found that the journey is not only shaped by the “good” things, but also by the terrifying and painful things that can break us open into ourselves, if we allow them. For me, I have needed two things to help me find my way home: the courage to keep showing up to myself, and the companionship of wise spiritual guides.

I now know that I have come to this earth to help accompany others on their own transformational journey. I would be deeply honored to walk with you on your path of becoming and belonging — as the beloved person you already are.

With the endless love that often rides on the smallest strings of hope,

Val