AKUA GRAY shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi AKUA, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What is a normal day like for you right now?
If you can imagine a symphony of birds cascading you at the awaking of the morning which takes you into a peaceful moment of meditation and gratitude is how a start my every day. Because I’ve learned over the past 35 years of in health and wellness work how important exercise and good nutrition is my day includes either a walk or invigorating resistance training that concludes with preparing my fresh homemade meals for the day. Then it’s off to the office which is just a few feet away from the kitchen to pour out and receive the good work for the day. At quitting time my organic garden awaits me for a little love and nurturing as i grow about 75% of the foods that I eat so I have to keep this sacred part of mother nature happy and in my favor. At the close of the day I daily find myself just doing absolutely nothing but relaxing in the cool ocean breezes flowing freely through my windows until it’s time to retire to dreamland for a peaceful nights’ sleep. It is said as you age one of the healthiest things you can do is normalize your environment for minimal stress and longevity of life. I really like that and believe me it works.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
In every generation there are special people who choose to take up the calling of carrying on the traditions of the ancestors through the knowledge of natural medicine and in my family that would be me. I started my wellness journey with becoming a vegetarian and a herbalist. It skyrocketed from there to naturopathy, reiki, to providing wellness services to my family and friends, to teaching others, and it all came together under the umbrella of A Life Of Peace Wellness Education Institute, Inc. (ALOP) as a 501c3 non-profit organization that has been serving the world for 20 years!
ALOP as a cornerstone in the wellness education community has been training wellness providers in the underserved communities worldwide in over fifty-six courses of complementary and alternative therapies including our board certified courses in Naturopathic Mastery Associate Certification, Naturopathic Herbalist Certification, and the Natural Health and Wellness Consultant Certification. We have operated on five continents through the expansion of our online offerings and are now ready to open the ranks to the next generation of directors, and teachers.
I consider ALOP quite special because we have as a goal to train a healer for every home by making our certifications available to all seekers no matter their income level. Through our ALOP Membership Program and Financial Assistance Program which has helped thousands of students realize their dreams of bring wellness to their families and communities.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
Life unfolds in the most wonderful ways if we are open to the lessons and blessings. The question of why my life was the way it was is something I pondered for some time until the beauty of meditation revealed the startling answer. How can a child be wise enough to maneuver through growing up in a way that every door she approached opened to an adventure that made her unafraid to live freely. I think being the last-born girl of my parents was a lucky position to hold because everyone had done everything else that could have possibly upset my parents and so they just let me be free to make some decisions and follow my heart. I don’t recall too many times my parents told me no. If it felt right, I welcomed it with open arms and was rarely disappointed and learned a lot. This trend continued into adulthood and even today. Saying this comes with the label of being led by a higher intuition in my life. An entity that was ensuring that I could be the healer I needed to be by providing me with three hundred and sixty degrees of protection so that I could be a testimony of a life of peace. So, life nurtured me from the very beginning to love, trust, help, wonder, and fulfill destiny.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
If I could say something to my younger self, I would say little girl, I am so proud of how far you have brought me to where I am today. It was every step that you took that made me see the world as a beautiful place. It was your courage that provided me the comfort to explore this wonderful world through travel. It was your quietness that taught me how to listen to my elders and learn from those who paved the way. It was your curiosity for books in libraries that made me a reader and a professional writer. You are the life that I have lived, the life I live today and the life I will explore through the rest of this lifetime!
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
There is one thing about being a lifelong wellness provider and teacher, it is you must practice what you preach. This is especially necessary in the healing arts because everything that we promote affects the lives of others. What you see is what you get! Being honest with yourself about life is healthy. There will always be imbalances if a healer is not truly living according to what they know to be right living. The body, mind, and emotions will tell everything. Now that is not to say that wellness providers never face issues with their character, but believe me whatever the troubles, they will be short lived.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
I like this because I would not stop anything that I’m doing, which let’s me know I am living life on purpose! I would still live a peaceful life by the seaside. I would still teach student seekers in the classes at A Life Of Peace Wellness Education Institute and I would still travel the world to see and experience as much as I can. There is a question a time management coach as recently in a book I listened to and she said and I paraphrase, if you knew today was your last day to be alive would you have done what you did today? When I heard the question i smiled because my answer yes, and it continues to be yes everyday.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.alifeofpeace.org
- Instagram: alifeofpeace1
- Facebook: alifeofpeace
- Youtube: alifeofpeace
Image Credits
myself
