Women, Community and Art: Jill Lambert

The Sweet Jill Lambert

I found my community of creative women and artists online while taking e-course by Kelly Rae Roberts “Taking Flight”, mostly through our Facebook Group.  We met online over a year ago and I feel a really deep connection to these fellow flyers, soul sisters we sometimes refer to each other as. 

I also started finding my true self and confidence through the Brave Girls course “Soul Restoration.”  Through the exercises of journaling and artwork, I started to see myself as valuable, important, special and that my dreams mattered.  I was introduced to accepting myself, the weak and strong parts, just as they are.  That was a pretty new concept for me for sure!  Growing up and especially in high school I always worried what people thought of me and Brave Girls really really helped me gain some self-confidence.

So many changes have occurred since I met this community of fellow creative women.  I now have a group of people who encourage me to “go for it” and congratulate me when I do.  They also “pat” me on the back when things don’t seem to go how I had hoped.  We not only share our creations with each other, but we talk daily on-line, all day long when we get a chance to pop in and share parts of our lives.  We’ve been through sharing divorces, births, deaths of friends and parents, licensing contracts, etc.  

I can honestly say many of these girls are like the sisters I never had—I feel so comfortable sharing my real self with them.  They’ve also pushed me to make my own decisions and accept them instead of always doubting and second-guessing myself.  Not that I still don’t do that, but they’ve sort of forced me to trust myself and believe that I can make decisions and they may be the “right” ones or they may be the “wrong” ones and that’s okay—they keep making me stronger.

What has awakened in me?  Wow…great question!  A newer confidence and ……excitement…a desire to share my dreams with the world, especially other girls and women…a desire to encourage others to accept themselves AND realize what is really truly important to me, what really matters…the drive to make goals and go after them…the realization that my dreams ARE important and valid…that I AM brave and strong and have something to share.  I’m also learning how to deal with setbacks and see them as a push or an opportunity in a different direction, one that may be more “what’s meant to be.”  

Finding my community has truly been life-changing and when I count my blessings and thank God for the gifts in my life, my fly sisters are in that conversation every time now.

Jill Lambert