Interesting facts about me.......

My Journey.........

1. I was born in Bulgaria in 1981.

2. When I was young (5 and younger) I refused to paint and draw. It got to the point that teachers would call my parents and inquire why I refused to do any art. Eventually and with lots of persuasion from my parents, I started doing art and it has been my passion ever since.

3.When I was 5 years old my family and I started our journey out of Bulgaria. My country was communist at the time and quite oppressive with little freedom. We obtained a government pass to go on vacation to Yugoslavia, however the pass was only good for three people and my younger sister was left behind with my grandparents.

A few days after we arrived to Yugoslavia we illegally crossed to Austria via the Yugoslavian/Austrian border. My father carrying me on his shoulders and my mom struggled through the woods for hours attempting to cross. At one point of our journey, Yugoslavian enforcement noticed us and began to shoot. Fortunately we somehow arrived to Austria and became refugees.

The first night in Austria we slept on benches outside a police station in Zalsburg. In the morning we were processed in as refugees and remained under lock down for a month. During this month we slept in a room filled with other refugees also searching for freedom and a better life.

4. I lived in Austria for 2 1/2 years before coming to America. I started 1st grade in Austria and had to learn German. In fact German was the first language that I learned to read and write in. During these years, we moved around quite a bit and I repeated the 1st grade twice.It was a difficult time as I was teased in school quite a bit for not being Austrian.

5. My sister finally joined us at the end of our stay in Austria. My paternal-grandmother was allowed to bring my sister to Austria so that we may process to America together.

6. On May 10, 1990, We finally made it to America. We arrived via NY and came to stay in Fords, NJ with my mother's uncles.

7. The arrival was bitter sweet. Shortly after our arrival my mother discovered that she had cervical cancer. She was with a tumor for 7 years but due to not having proper check ups she did not know about her condition until arriving to America.

8. My mother was in and out of the hospital for about a year to a year and a half. It was difficult. I was between the ages of 8 1/2 and 10 during this time and I helped take care of my younger sister while my dad worked and traveled to the hospital.

9. On September 9, 1992, my mother at the age of 27 went back home. She transitioned to the afterlife and this has impacted me and my sister's life in a big way. It was difficult at first but through time we began to heal.

I am more spiritual now and my mother's death led me to search for a deeper meaning in life. Yes at 10 years old, I began my search. Through research and personal experience I am a deeply spiritual being and believe that we are all spiritual beings having a human experience. We will all go home one day and be reunited with our loved ones. The earth is but a school that we attend in order to grow, evolve and learn. Our true home is somewhere else..... Somewhere beautiful where beautiful healing light wraps us up in a blanket of love.