I always look forward to February. Not just because it’s my birthday month, but also with Valentine’s Day around the corner, it’s a great time to celebrate our relationships.
Celebrating relationships don’t always mean our romantic ones -it can mean our friendships too. Friendships are an important part of life. They become even more important as we navigate through change, and write the storylines of our lives. Sometimes when writing our storylines our friends, and their roles, change too. A friend who was a main character may step away, take a supporting role, or vice versa. New characters may be introduced into our stories, and in the process, might become new friends.
I kickstarted my February by making some fabulous new friends. I volunteered to model for a Charity Fashion Show for UNITY ONE/The Faces of Change. This group promotes inclusiveness, diversity, and gender equality. They also fundraise for creators who are navigating change and need a helping hand along the way.
When it comes to modeling I am like Schultz on Hogan’s Heroes - I know nothing. If you asked me if I have any modeling experience my answer would be zilch- except in my head of course. That’s because as a child I imagined being Farrah Fawcett, modeling holiday dresses for the Sears Christmas Catalogue. In other words, to say I was under-qualified for this assignment would be the understatement of the year.
This show was no loosie goosy event. There were hairstylists, make-up artists, and owners from local boutiques organized into teams, volunteering their time to make things happen. To complicate matters I arrived late to the rehearsal and missed my catwalk practice -totally my bad.
Moreover, the choreographer, who was a very nice person, but understandably under a lot of pressure, was at that moment a little like Anna Wintour on steroids. As you can imagine it wasn’t exactly the best time for me to raise my hand and ask for a hall pass. I quickly realized my modeling debut was going to bring “fake it till’ you make it” to a whole new level.
For this the event, I had the pleasure of being on a super awesome team with my new friend and boutique owner Monika Waszczuk. In a word, Monika is inspirational. Nine months ago, with literally nothing, she started her consignment store Sell it To Wear it Inc. Today she is a successful store owner, making her dreams happen because she believes in herself, her vision, and her community.
As the day unfolded, I learned that in the runway world there is a lot of hurry-up-waiting. Passing the time, I met more fantastic people including super talented musician Lisa Gudgeon, real-life model Julia T, make-up artist Violetta, (aka the miracle worker), and superb hairstylist Susanna DaSilva. Modeling experience or not, nobody brought their ego with them. We all just had fun helping each other get ready so everyone could look and feel fabulous. Finally, at showtime, we watched as Julia led the way, set the bar high, and cheered each other on as we all walked, and rocked the runway.
Afterward at the after party I had the pleasure of meeting a fantastic creator; two- time Juno award winner and international recording artist Carl Henry. He told me he was super supportive of local talent, and that after seeing me on the runaway, he would be happy to promote my modeling career and clothing line.
When I spilled the beans and told him I would be much better suited to writing his biography than modeling and designing a clothing line we both shared a good laugh. We also celebrated that for a brief moment, I had successfully achieved my dream of being Farrah Fawcett, modeling holiday dresses for the Sears Christmas Catalogue. More importantly, that he had discovered Lisa Gudgeon and her incredible trumpet playing to showcase on his new album.
Stepping into February, I hope you can have some fun, celebrate your friendships, and make some new friends too. Special friends that support you to feel fabulous…ones that help you make your dreams come true.
Thanks for hanging in there with me…until then…stay super awesome!
Best,
Jane