Teresa

Woman of all trades

I was born in Porto, and since I was a child I believe that evolution is something constant that has to be worked on daily ... but I rarely listened to this reality in me. I listened much more to what other people said to me, the traditional and what others expected and tried to live up to it, trying to fulfill the expectations imposed by family, friends and society. 

I studied Communication and Marketing and was educated to work to support myself and be independent at all levels, especially financially. Most of my life, I tried to find who I was in the things I had, in professional positions I held, in family, in relationships I had and I never really knew who I was. Until one day, in a distant country, I was alone, truly alone, without a partner, without close friends and without family to support me, and I realized that life had to be much more than what I lived until then. 

When the Awakened Life Project came into my life, and inspired by the evolutionary context they live, I started to dismantle piece by piece who I thought I was, I started to realize that the responsibility of my life was mine and nobody else's. The victimization that until now was a constant, had to end. I also realized that the image of Teresa that I had built over the years was not genuine and every day I am still surprised by what I don't know about myself. I realized that a lot of my unhappiness came from my limitations and the separation that I created with all people and things and that, if I chose, I can be my greatest potential for transformation.

Above all, I realized that certainty of experiencing a constant evolution was not just one thing in my head, it was possible and real. And not only it was happening to me, it's also happening to a lot of different people. I realized that this evolution has to start with us but as soon as we make it real, it becomes addictive and visible in the way we are with ourselves and with others.

When I joined the women's group led by Cynthia Bampton from ALP, and during these 8 years of working together, I realized that in addition to my conditioning and limitations as a human being, I have specific women and Portuguese conditionings and limitations. Meeting with other women in a context of evolution, in which we try to surpass ourselves by something bigger than us, made me realize that we are one, we are all the same, and when I hear each other's reports, I know that their fears and expectations are the same as mine. And besides, I know that I am not alone on this journey. I can count on each one of them to help me and support my best part AND i can do the same for them.

Today I am more myself, trying to live without knowing or controlling what is around me, trying not to assume or have expectations about myself and others, trying to live in the present, leaving aside the nostalgia of the past and the uncertainty of the future. I try to live my relationships with maximum openness and honesty, always giving space to what I don't know about each other, regardless of whether I'm talking about my parents, friends, partner, acquaintances or strangers. 

Today I am much more relaxed, I live in the middle of nature with my husband and two children and I try to do only what makes me happy. And every day I try to pass on to my children this whole experience of transformation in a positive and motivating way. After all, life is beautiful ... and so am I. 

Here is a video in which I talk about the change I have undergone since I first met the Projeto Vida Desperta.