In my 26 years, 4 months, 20 days, 9 hours and 44 minutes, I have lost 32 friends, family members, patients and/or fellow survivors. Three of them passed in front of me. Two of them were under eighteen years of age, and one of them was a boyfriend. By any account, I believe that is more loss than any one person should experience in the beginning quarter of their life. Sadly, I also understand that this number will only continually grow as I age.

A lot of you all are relatively new (within the last few years) to the Flying with Air tribe. I've had the absolute pleasure of living some of my best years with you - growing and exploring this beautiful earth. We've be able to truly fly by reaching new heights, places and healing together. Many of you have become family to me, and it has been a huge blessing and light in my world.

With that, I have shared chapters of my past with you all, and even written a few novels in hopes it will help someone else in their journey. 

As we enter a whole new evolution of Flying with Air, I find myself in a new position to mentor and share my experiences as teaching moments -or simply to show a new friend that I understand pain. As light and airy as my physical appearance may be or how I continually to choose joy and love over anger and hate daily, I feel like it is important to explain the reasons I strived to become a healer in the first place. 

I have three reasons why I became a healer. (or whichever label you wish to call me. You see, I have come accustom to all sorts of labels lately: healer, hippie, bohemian, gypsy, green witch, herbalist etc. But, I digress.)

I understand going into all three reasons may result in an overwhelmingly long article, so for this article I will just share the first. 

The first reason I decided to learn about the healing path was in hopes that I could prevent unnecessary, premature death. 

Many of the people I have lost in this lifetime could be argued that they were taken prematurely from this earth. Now, if you believe in a higher power and purpose, like me, then you could say that divine intervention is always timely. Yet, for the sake of a little girl growing up or even a young woman today, it can sometimes be difficult to accept this concept. 

This driving force is what led me to obtain three health science orientated bachelors degrees as well as work in multiple compound pharmacies and hospitals. In conjunction, it is the reason I love so deeply and relentlessly on an emotional and spiritual level. I understand life is too short to not follow your heart and dreams, not share that you love them or to stay in unhealthy relationships. 

Okay, back to the reasoning.

Before I decided to turn to the natural healing pathway, I was on my way to becoming an immunologist in hopes of understanding the prevention of asthma and allergy attacks. Why? I was hoping to learn how I could have prevented my passed boyfriend's death. 

This was not the only preventable condition or disease that ended in a sorrowful experience. Many of the lives that touched me had lifestyle changes that could have been easily managed or even reversed.

I learned more about such things as I was graduating college and soon there after. As medical school was reaping around the corner, I was introduced into a whole new realm of healing. Some of you all many know it as the new age, alternative or holistic healing path. The path was earth-spirited and focused on a relationship or connectedness with the earth and her almost magical qualities. 

This was the time I really fell in love with nature and found myself misplaced in my compound pharmacy and emergency room jobs. I found myself recommending more nutrition and lifestyle changes than western medicine aids, and it was pushing me to a new journey all my own. 

Now, let me pause here and express something I often share with my friends and customers. I am in no way against western medicine practices. I often joke by saying, "If I break my leg do not give me a potion or diet regime, take me to the **** hospital." And I mean it. There is a time and place for everything. 

In concluding, I should say the first reason I became a healer was the direct result of honoring the ones in which I had lost. It was in hopes I could learn how it all could have gone another way. But I am old enough to realize, it was time. Yet, my power and talent can be in line with what happens today. I can help the next person who needs this obtained knowledge. After all, the "-er" in our word "healer", refers to the doing not the done.

This article is in dedication to my Aunt and Malachi. They will always be the teachers of abundance and deep seeded joy in my heart.