A Story of Destiny (Not Success)

Sometimes we think we’re telling a story about success. Or about following a dream.

But when we look closer- really look- it becomes something more sacred.

A story about remembering who you are… why you’re here… and the quiet, unstoppable pulse of your soul that never stops calling.

That’s what this story is.

It began, unexpectedly, at a Bryan Adams concert.

We were in box seats- food flowing, drinks chilled, space to dance and sit and sway however we pleased. (A tiny blessing of comfort I mention not to brag but because, truly, if you ever get the chance… take it.) But also so you understand what was about to happen came truly out of nowhere.

The music was electric, the night carefree. And then Bryan Adams began to play that song- the one he created for Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron back in 2002 “Here I Am”.

I lifted my phone to record a few seconds for my daughter- now grown- who had adored that movie as a child.

But within seconds of hitting record…

I was crying. Hard. Uncontrollably.

Yes, the song is breathtaking. Yes, the imagery of that horse running free next to the water still touches something primal and ancient within us.

But my tears weren’t just nostalgia....They were recognition.

See, I became pregnant with my daughter as a teenager. She was born into a life that required grit- two young college students trying to make ends meet and raise her, figuring out adulthood while caring for a new soul.

When Spirit came along she was 4 years old. It imprinted on her, and something in her ignited.

I didn’t understand it at the time, but looking back now… it was her soul remembering its path.

She didn’t merely “like” horses. She devoured knowledge about them; checking out every book in the library, not just the children’s stories but dense manuals, textbooks, histories. Anything that would bring her closer to understanding these beings she felt tethered to.

She had her first short ride at a friend’s birthday party, and to this day she can recount every detail of that moment.

Eventually, we stumbled upon a summer “horse camp.” Not the glamorous, movie-version kind. This was the Arizona desert in July; dusty, scorching, nothing but determination and love to keep you going. She was only in 5th grade. She came home looking sun-weathered, exhausted… and absolutely radiant.

Her soul was awakening.

Then came her years-long campaign to join the 4H horse program.

We didn’t own a horse. Leasing one felt impossible. But her spirit didn’t waver.

Finally, at fifteen and a half, her Christmas gift was the thing she had begged for, worked for, and manifested her way toward: she joined 4H. She spent the rest of high school learning to show in both English and Western disciplines-with a fierceness and devotion that felt far beyond her years.

"There is so much promise woven into the fabric of our lives. So much potential.

So much quiet guidance waiting for us to slow down and hear it."

After high school, she was accepted into the top Animal Science program in the world. She tried out for the polo team having never played a day in her life and became an NCAA athlete when she made the team.

Now, she works in the field she fell in love with as a child. A life in service to the calling that whispered to her before she even had the language to name it.

So yes, I cried at that concert.

Because I watched my daughter’s entire journey to this moment flash before me- the way her soul nudged her, guided her, insisted. The way she followed it with everything she had.

And it made me ask myself a question I want to ask you:

When your soul calls, do you listen?

That kid worked her heart out and never stopped, and she still doesn’t. She kept going long after others would have given up. I am endlessly proud of her; there are truly no words big enough to capture her drive, her determination, or the grit she carried from the very beginning.

But even with all that effort, I know there was also something deeper at play: a freedom, a clarity, a willingness to answer the calling her soul had already chosen.

Because when you are aligned with your purpose, is it really just “work”?

Or is it the purest form of remembrance?

That night, sitting high above the arena lights with music vibrating through my chest, I was overwhelmed not just as a mother… but as a human being awake to the magic of this world.

There is so much promise woven into the fabric of our lives. So much potential.

So much quiet guidance waiting for us to slow down and hear it.

I hope- truly- that you are finding yours.

And if you’re not yet… may this be the moment you start listening.