"Darling your body was not made to be an ornament to be adored, it was made to be and do amazing and incredible things. It is the vehicle to my dreams."

"We need to stop complimenting our girls for how they look and start complimenting them for what they can do."

Last night was GATHER THE GIRLS for a Fab Film & we gathered to see the EMBRACE Documentary made by Taryn Brumfitt. Wow it was so great! And even though some of the girls suggested with giggles, "is the next one "GATHER THE GIRLS to Get Nude?!" haha.... It's NOT! So don’t worry.

I seriously loved the film & came home feeling moved & inspired. I made a herbal tea, took a look at myself in the mirror (yep, naked) & decided: "I can do this, I can love my body!" And I can teach my daughters by example, and by remembering to compliment them for what they can do, not just how beautiful they are (because they are!).

I loved so many aspects of the film. One thing it made me realize more than ever is that  as women, we are in this together! As I mentioned last night, I still remember my Grandma pointing out my "potbelly" when I was a child. And not just the words, but the feeling that came with them, too. As much as we can be our own greatest enemy, we can really damage each other with our words (this includes social media posts & comments about others behind their backs. You just never know who is listening and what impact you’re making…). And beyond words, those "little looks" we give ourselves and others can be just as hurtful. Let's be women who cheer each other on, who see the beauty IN each other, not in size, shape, colour and so on. We are more than our bodies.

I loved that the film was about being healthy and looking after yourself, and that that can look different for everyone. Your shape & size is not necessarily a reflection of your health.  As pointed out in the documentary there are many slim women who are quite unhealthy - they don't eat well or exercise and have health issues.  There are many curvy women who do eat well & exercise - they are very healthy. It really is not about size or shape! EveryBODY is beautiful.

I am so passionate about seeing other women flourish & succeed and this documentary has fueled that fire once more.  Keen to see where this leads and how some of our future GATHER THE GIRLS events can help bring change in this area of women's lives.  We definitely need to keep talking about how we view our bodies and how the media portrays women by bombarding us with imagery of how we are "supposed" to look!  Yet its completely unattainable (without Photoshop) & often the cost is way too high!

Let's be woman who EMBRACE our bodies - we are all different but we are all beautiful!

If you haven't seen the documentary I'd definitely recommend it.  Sure there are a few swear words and some nudity (yep there are breasts & vaginas - don't freak out!) it's so informative, fun & encouraging for all women. LOVED IT!

Love Kel xoxo

Gather the Girls to Get Real is a collaboration event between Events4Change (aka Gather the Girls) and GetRealLive.

Gather the Girls started after meeting so many incredible women on the Coast doing amazing things to change the world. I honestly believe that when the girls gather WE CAN CHANGE the world. Together we are better – women get it done & when we stop comparing & competing & WORK TOGETHER something incredible happens – CHANGE!!!!

There have been 2 “Gather the Girls” so far and they are a fun girls night out that raises funds & awareness to local based non-profits doing amazing things here & around the world.

My friend Susan Sohn – who is an Entrepreneur and Founder of GetRealLive (Yes, hence “GATHER THE GIRLS TO GET REAL”)…..

SO WE decided to do a collaboration event that would incorporate the idea of getting the girls together & having a fun night but with a purpose of TALKING ABOUT STUFF THAT MATTERS.

Susan is a verified social / mobile / online media maverick. As a wife, and mother of 3 beautiful children she firmly believes that community starts in the home. Her “others” focused ethos makes her amazing at connecting people to stories & people to one another!

GetRealLive is an authentic community connecting people through the online Radio Show/Podcast, Social Media Sites, Live Events, Lifestyle Retreats.. They are Community Builders & Engagement Specialists with huge success in building a strong community through authentic & very organic conversations.

On Thursday 16th June 2016 – we had our FIRST GATHER THE GIRLS TO GET REAL! And it was amazing….

With two incredible speakers:

Sara Clignett who is a Senior Psychologist and Director at The READ Clinic at Erina. She has a degree in Psychology and a Post Graduate Diploma in Family Therapy. Sara is also a Clinical Hypnotherapist. Sara works within a Cognitive Behavioural Framework. Sara specialises in the area of trauma and sexual abuse. The last few years Sara has been asked to do a number of presentations particularly for health care professionals on how to recognise burnout, inspiring self-care and managing grief.

AND:

Amy Mackenzie is a Life Coach + Cheerleader + Biz Bestie for Heart Centred coaches, Spirited Leaders and Big Dreaming Entrepreneurs who are making a big beautiful, inspired mark on the world. Amy brings passion-fuelled women together to dive into their hearts desires and design a life and business they love. She uses her experience to inspire and motivate women, to explore a more fulfilled, soulful and inspired lifestyle and business. Her heart dances between her business, travelling the world, soulful conversations and making memories with her loved ones.

HOT TOPICS: Loneliness & Self-Care

The reason loneliness and self-care are the focus of our first gathering are simply that everything we do through GetRealLive is user generated. The conversation of Loneliness and Self Care has come from a current book project that Susan is working on. After interviewing over 200 women across the globe via Skype and learning that one of the main challenges facing women today is loneliness we decided that this was a perfect place to start.

In this hyper-connected world, we are lonelier than ever. We are sitting in our homes and feeling more and more disconnected, yet we are highly connected. Events4Change & GetRealLive are all about community & what GetRealLive does so incredibly well is authentic conversations and never shying away from the tough subjects.

We believe that when the truth is out, we can walk through anything. So we took the lid off of loneliness, and gathered intentionally and connected so that we can live strong.

We weren’t designed to do life alone.

Consider the ‘Gather the Girls to GetRealLive Events’ as:

the community well
the office water cooler
the town square.
It’s a place to gather & to know that all you need to do is show up, and someone will be around to meet you, to chat and to build community with you.

Last night was a group of over 30 women sitting together – it felt like in a home – talking about how life can be hard sometimes, how we all feel loneliness & feel it in different ways… That friendships can take time, that there are seasons & different types of friendships. That we need to be each others BIGGEST CHEERLEADERS and not be comparing & competing but working TOGETHER!

There was a beautiful sense of coming alongside each other, a feeling of community & togetherness. We are so excited about the next one!

Love Kel & Susan xoxo