...influences...

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Since early childhood, I've loved reading. In spite of the e-book options, I prefer the feel of a book in my hands where I can annotate comments for future reference.

Subject matter is vast ranging from science-fiction (now reality in some instances), philosophy, spirituality, poetry and creative writing.

Since my first qualification in Naturopathic Medicine, I've been fascinated and informed by traditional knowledge and people's relationships with their country.....and this desire to keep learning still remains

Undertaking a Masters Applied Science in Social Ecology + Agriculture stimulated research into how integral language is to creating and holding belief systems. This was the stimulus to apply and interrogate how 'science' has been appropriated and used to destroy so many ecosystems.....

My first pet piggie was Priscilla, a tiny wild, black piglet who educated me in the intelligence of porcines. In 2013, I commenced breeding happy paddock piggies for meat. 

These wonderful animals are incredibly intelligent, affectionate, athletic and highly effective ecosystem engineers when they can realise their genetic potential. Every now and then a very small piglet required personal treatment and piggies are the most delightful pets. Pictured is Stewie, my first celebrity piggie whom I'd take for walks through the streets of Wagga and the Ambassador of the EAT LOCAL THURSDAY farmers market I established in 2014. Seeing these beautiful animals kept in squalor and used simply for transforming grains into meat is incredibly insulting. Although maligned in Australia, in other parts of the world,they are integral to kick-starting rewilding and the return of a plethora of species.

I am blessed to have known horses since I was two years old when my father plonked me in front of him on his horse. Not long afterwards, I started riding a black Shetland and , since then, I have enjoyed many wonderful equine friends. We competed in A-grade polocrosse, eventing, campdrafting, show-jumping and total pleasure in each other's company,  from my horses I learned to overcome fear, develop patience, study their anatomy and movements, know how to maintain health and vitality and be curious, calm and confident together.

My family had an Illawarra Shorthorn stud and regularly showed them. Preparing them was a family affair and I learned up-close-and-personally just how rough their tongues are!

Since 2019, I have raised Athena (pictured) and Lakshmi (both Jerseys) since they were five days old and trained them as I do horses to lead, tie up, travel in a float and stand quietly when asked.  To be safe, large animals need to be calm, curious, kind and confident with humans.

Ducks...... curious, sometimes defiant, excellent layers of eggs and wonderful additions to a garden to feast on snails, slugs, worms and other critters.  I choose ducks over chicken as they can co-exist within a garden as they don't scratch everything up and out!   Watching their pecking order is intriguing as is the deeply protective nature of the mamas to their ducklings.  The creation of their nests and dedication to nurturing the eggs is an example of devotion I have learned from.

Without plants nothing on earth could survive, much less thrive. The complexity of Nature is wondrous and preserving every species needs to be a priority. No plants exist naturally as a monoculture yet modern agriculture destroys any plant not deemed valuable. This appalling lack of ecological literacy is responsible for the ever-increasing biological deserts as a result of the use, abuse and overuse of toxic agricultural chemicals, killing off hundreds of species of plants, and habitats for birds, insects and fish.