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Anna M Valerie
Anna M Valerie

164 Followers

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Published in

Modern Parent

·Pinned

Stop Asking Kids “What’s Your Favourite Colour”

Encourage them to think outside the box — and explore the world beyond their preferences. — Imagine this scenario. You, an adult, have a new job. Your manager is showing you the ropes, and you interject: “What’s your favourite bit of the job?” “Uh, well — probably liaising with clients.” “Who’s your favourite client?” “Sorry?” “Your favourite.” “Um, I’m not sure — “ “You’re only allowed…

Parenting

4 min read

Stop Asking Kids “What’s Your Favourite Colour”
Stop Asking Kids “What’s Your Favourite Colour”
Parenting

4 min read


Pinned

Why Self-Help Isn’t Helping You

The more you try to “fix” yourself, the more broken you feel. — I was 25 years old and I’d just fallen out with a friend. We’d both said things calculated to hurt one another, but when I reached out to make a half-baked apology (of the ‘if you’ll say you’re wrong, I’ll say I’m wrong’ variety) she didn’t take the bate. She…

Self Improvement

4 min read

Why Self-Help Isn’t Helping You
Why Self-Help Isn’t Helping You
Self Improvement

4 min read


Published in

ILLUMINATION

·Apr 23

Do You Really Want an Open Relationship?

Or are you just too scared to break-up? — A year ago I wrote an article on Medium: ‘Help! I’ve Fallen in Love with Another Man’, subtitled ‘And my husband is okay with it’. I liked the idea that I could be the type of person who could have an open relationship. …

Relationships

3 min read

Do You Really Want an Open Relationship?
Do You Really Want an Open Relationship?
Relationships

3 min read


Apr 15, 2022

I Fell in Love with an Alpha Male

And other women don’t like it. — He is tall, unfairly handsome, with a voice so deep that it makes others sound like tinkling cutlery. I have a type — and it’s not him. I shy away from power. I don’t much like to stand out. The thought of trying to catch someone’s attention is tiring to…

Relationships

5 min read

I Fell in Love with an Alpha Male
I Fell in Love with an Alpha Male
Relationships

5 min read


Apr 13, 2022

I Fell in Love — and I Miss the Crush

He loves me back. The only problem is, now what? — A beautiful man is sitting in front of me, telling me he’s fallen in love. Instinctively, I want to look over my shoulder — to see who he’s really talking to. We’re alone, of course, and I’m the person he’s come to see. I’m the person he’s talking to —the…

Relationships

4 min read

I Fell in Love — and I Miss the Crush
I Fell in Love — and I Miss the Crush
Relationships

4 min read


Apr 9, 2022

You Don’t Have to ‘Make a Comeback’ to Come Back

Stop waiting until you’re perfect to show your face. — February 2021. Finally, I was going home. I’d been away from New Zealand for 20 years, since I was a teenager, and I was more than ready to put down roots— again — in a country I still loved and missed. I never intended to be away for that long…

Life

5 min read

You Don’t Have to ‘Make a Comeback’ to Come Back
You Don’t Have to ‘Make a Comeback’ to Come Back
Life

5 min read


Mar 28, 2022

Help! I’ve Fallen in Love with Another Man

And my husband is okay with it. — I’ve always been a “good girl” — even though I hate the term. Even though I admire women who buck against society’s expectations and expect more for themselves than the pat on the back they get for their obedience, repressed desires, and failure to live up to their potential. …

Family

4 min read

Help! I’ve Fallen in Love with Another Man
Help! I’ve Fallen in Love with Another Man
Family

4 min read


Jul 24, 2021

My Teacher Fell in Love with Me

A word of warning for my daughter — I hope my daughter is spared the kind of teacher who takes her aside and in a hushed voice tells her she’s special: she’s not like the other kids. That she’s got something. The kind who turns off the lights in his office after school — so anyone looking in…

Life

10 min read

My Teacher Fell in Love with Me
My Teacher Fell in Love with Me
Life

10 min read


Published in

ILLUMINATION

·Jul 24, 2021

I Quit my Life and Moved to an Intentional Community

We couldn’t afford to buy into modern life, so we opted out — and we love it. — ‘Family’ can’t truly thrive unless we start viewing the rest of the world as family too I wouldn’t call myself a hippie, but here I am: living in community, among people who care about our planet, about living green, sustainable lives whilst interrogating what it means to be human, and…

Life

3 min read

I Quit my Life and Moved to an Intentional Community
I Quit my Life and Moved to an Intentional Community
Life

3 min read


Published in

ILLUMINATION

·Feb 13, 2021

One Quote to Make You Question Everything

(And start making radical changes to your life) — As a teenager, I’d always felt “wrong” for being so anxious and unhappy — I saw these feelings as a sign of my failure to fit in, and as long as I felt them, I thought I would never be the well-adjusted person I so wanted to be. If only…

Life Lessons

4 min read

One Quote to Make You Question Everything
One Quote to Make You Question Everything
Life Lessons

4 min read

Anna M Valerie

Anna M Valerie

164 Followers

Naturally secretive, trying to be brave. New to Medium. Words in Curious & Modern Parent.

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