“Welcome to the Firelight: Why I’m Writing and Why It Matters”

I started writing as a way to process and understand the confusion of what had happened to me.

I had been manipulated—first by religion, then by men. More than one. And I kept asking myself: Why?Why did I feel like such an easy target?Why, after doing all the right things to protect myself—educating myself, training in self-defense, teaching others about human trafficking and domestic violence—did I still find myself being sold online?Why was I being hit in the name of “healing”?I came from a loving home. So how did I end up here?

Writing helped me discover the hidden parts of me—the ones only exposed through reflection and honest processing. And I noticed something: as my words shifted from rage to redemption, I was healing.

Refiner’s Reach was born out of that healing. It’s a raw, emotional pouring onto paper—again and again.There were countless pages crumpled and tossed.But those trashed drafts weren’t wasted. They were part of the healing too.

Just when I thought I had arrived at “healed,” God exposed deeper wounds I had buried. I didn’t understand the danger of helping others while still deeply hurting myself. I threw myself fully into human trafficking rescue work—before ever admitting the secret pain I lived with behind closed doors.

Eventually, it caught up with me.I was left with crippling anxiety, sleepless nights, and unhealthy ways of coping.I had to stop helping others to learn how to help myself.

That season of hidden healing became the final shaping of Refiner’s Reach—a testimony of how God met me in the ashes.

And then came the follow-up book:The Exploited: What Healing Looks Like Now A guide for anyone who has walked through trauma—and wants to find peace in helping others without losing themselves in the process.It’s for those who want to recognize when their motives are bleeding, before those wounds consume them.

Now, I feel like there’s still so much more to say.That’s why I created this platform.

This blog.This podcast.This website you’re reading now.

A space to process.A space to pour out.A space to share truth, stories, hope—and healing.

I hope you’ll read Refiner’s Reach.It’s a short book—but it packs a punch.Then join me here. Week by week.Let’s walk the road of healing and helping together.