Hi everyone! I'm so glad to be here. My name is not Lisa, 🙂 my name is Julie and I write under the pen name LJ Vanier. I am of Gnostic Faith and I am an entrepreneur, writer, and compassionate person. My work has been featured on Spirit Science, Quotes Catalog, Thought Catalog, The Minds Journal and many other sites.
I've experienced a lot of pain in my life, but it has made me into the person I am today. Let's take a journey together as I share with you my story of success and inner peace.
My Story of Loss and Heartache
Life hasn't always been easy for me. I have experienced much loss, heartache, and suffering over the years. Recently, I suffered through two life threatening strokes, and I am thankful to be alive. It is a common misconception that people who are ill or have disabilities life threatening conditions are "sick because of their sins". In fact, people who have conditions are ill because of things that were done to them throughout their lifetime. These experiences changed me forever; it made me more aware of the fragility of life and how quickly things can change for the worse.
Finding My Voice in Writing
A short time ago, my mother died suddenly, and I can tell you that no one can prepare you for that, young or old.
I decided that instead of letting my grief consume me, I would use it as fuel to pursue my dreams and passions. One way that helped me cope with all the pain was writing; it allowed me to express my thoughts without fear or judgement. As time went on, writing became my outlet—the place where I could explore myself without worrying about what anyone else thought or felt about it. It gave me a newfound sense of freedom that allowed me to tap into creativity like never before.
Achieving Inner Peace Through Compassion
In addition to writing, another important thing that helped shape who I am today is my altruistic approach to life; compassion and empathy towards others. Even though I had gone through so much pain in life, seeing others suffer reminded me to be grateful for what I still had left in life—and that is something that can not be taken away from you no matter how hard life gets. With this mindset, I found inner peace knowing that no matter what happened in life, there was always something beautiful around the corner waiting for us if we chose to look for it!