Christmas is a heartwarming time of year for a lot of people and especially for children. It’s traditionally celebrated with special foods, treasured rituals, and lots of presents. Imagine, though, being excited about Christmas as an orphan in Africa and your presents are a home baked gingerbread man, a handful of nuts and candy, and a dress picked out from a box of donated clothes from Germany.

Maria Nhambu, I salute you! This was singlehandedly one of the most fascinating stories I have ever read. I laughed until I cried, I cried until my heart ached, I jumped up and down, I screamed at the pages of the book as if I were speaking to real life people!

The last few months I have had a series of radio interviews nationally and in Canada, which I will post periodically. Most were an hour long and but a few were 30 minutes.

One of the “Oh yuk” chapters in Africa’s Child, the first book in my memoir series, deals with how we were rid of parasites and other infestations common at the orphanage and in Africa.

Back at Rancho La Puerta for another week of teaching Aerobics With Soul® and enjoying the spa, massages, the food, morning hikes -- all of it!

On the one hand it's hard to believe that 3 years have already passed since my first book was published. On the other hand, I can still feel every lo-o-o-o-n-g hour of labor and the years of sleepless nights that gave birth to 'Africa's Child'. Happy Anniversary to the first book of the Dancing Soul Trilogy - the book that took 25 years to write!

I am incredibly excited to announce that I have been recognized as a Book Excellence Award Winner for my book, DRUM BEATS, HEART BEATS, in the Memoir Category.

Earlier this year I had the pleasure of speaking at A Novel Idea Bookshop in Dar- es- Salaam, Tanzania. It was a wonderful modern gift and book shop. This flagship store carries over 15,000 titles including best sellers from around the world, Africa Interest, Cookbooks, non-fiction, children’s, educational, travel and many more.

We had so much fun filming Kilimanjaro -- the advanced level of Aerobics With Soul® -- at Tarangire National Park in Tanzania, East Africa, in 1994!

“It took me a good five hours to finish reading this book from cover to cover. There is much to learn about the human spirit, struggles, perseverance, triumph in the quest for meaning, purpose, and ultimately, peace!…”

This article is in the St. Catherine University Magazine (my Alma Mater), Spring 2019. I am very honored to have my books featured.

Enjoy some photos from Tarangire National Park in Tanzania - one of my favorite spots in the world - especially at sunset! The Park offers the highest population density of elephants anywhere in Tanzania.

Come join Cathy (my adoptive mother) and Jackie (the editor of my Memoir trilogy) and me, on our recent Safari to Tanzania. I returned to the orphanage where I was raised, and had an opportunity to give a talk to the students. A truly unforgettable experience for all of us. Enjoy the video and please share, share, share!

Some fashion tips from my recent trip to Africa.

The best fashion tips I have, I learned from sorting through hand-me-downs and donated boxes of clothes at the orphanage where I grew up in Tanzania. The Precious Blood Sisters who raised me, drilled into me, that Color Coordination had nothing to do with fashion!

Church was really wonderful on my recent trip to Africa last January. Much, much participation by the congregants! Brought me back to my childhood when I used to pray in Swahili.

Back in March I had a great time in Naples where I taught an Aerobics With Soul® class to 55 fired up dancers who attend AWS year round, instructed by Diane Gayes. It was an easy class to teach because everyone knew the moves and wholeheartedly participated in the fun.

Do you see why I NEVER use a hand-held microphone when I give speeches? I need my hands to talk! I'm afraid I will hit someone on the face when I let go of the mic.