Ep 1: My Audacious Midlife Wake-Up Call - Scared And Doing It Anyway

Welcome to the very first episode of Midlife Audacity. I’m so glad you’re here. Today I want to share a bit of my story, the moments that cracked me open in midlife and why I started this podcast.

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Transcript

Hey and welcome to the midlife audacity podcast. I'm your host Celeste. This is about the reality of the midlife Madness and the audacity to Live Bold, Soulful and Unapologetic. I'm not claiming to be an expert. But after 30 plus years of teaching building businesses navigating, life and Diving deep into Soul work, I've learned a lot along the way and now I want share all of it with you, the madness and the magic. So you can step into midlife with courage Clarity and a whole lot of audacity. So grab your coffee or your walking shoes, hit play. And let's dive in. Welcome to midlife audacity.

Hey, hey, and welcome to the very first episode of midlife audacity. My My name Celesta Donna and I am super excited to be here with you today. But to honest with you, this has been a time in the making I have had this idea on my heart for quite some time to have always known that, my voice has been powerful and if you know me, you know that I usually have a to say 

There was something that definitely kept me back. It held me back from getting this up and running and going. And if I'm gonna be completely transparent with you, It my ego. I have been bruised as probably all of you have. And those experiences while I hold them dear to heart because they have made me who I today. They definitely have left some scars and For whenever I start something new, I notice that these scars tend to show up and start to rip open. Maybe I start to feel like that itching on my skin and I noticed that that scab is starting to resurface and it's in those moments that I start to procrastinate and maybe you have felt the same way when you've tried to start something new and there's this resurfacing of old experience, is that have happened that come up and all a you feel paralyzed. You feel like you can't do this. You feel like Nope, I'm not meant to or you start doing things that take you away. From what it is that you really want to do, right? You start to ignore this tug in soul. and you just, You know. do other things to occupy your time and distract you So that you don't have to pay attention to what God is really whispering to you. And I am firm believer lady. I am a firm believer that God is constantly whispering to us. Our intuition is powerful. And we tend to ignore it. For. The sake of fear. The. feelings of past experiences that have taught 

us. That. This won't happen or this is going be a failure or we can't do it. And we allow those things to lead us. and so, I am here, before you today with this, very first episode being published, because I made a decision, To not allow my ego to have the mic. And I made the decision to give my soul the mic. And so I am completely unscripted showing up here as real and authentic as I possibly can. Because I truly do believe that in mid-life. We can step in to our greatest boldness. We can step in to being Soulful and intentional and deliberate. And we can become Unapologetic. For. we show up in world? I think a us have spent so much time. Living in the shadows of. Who we know we can really be and how we can really show up in the world and what we can really do, and it's time for us for me for you. To say no more. I'm done with that. so, That is why I've decided today just hit that record button and to go. so, I think if I were really think about my audacious midlife wake up call It would have to be about. 10-ish years ago, maybe 11 years ago when I felt like my life was really on this hamster wheel. Of work and then coming home and doing all of my mommy duties. I am a parent to three amazing. They not kids anymore. On Amazing humans and I felt very much in a cycle. Of. Emptiness. and, I, Was suffocating right? Like I was silently drowning in the everyday cycle of life and I wasn't quite sure how to get off that hamster wheel. and, I had experienced something actually that became physically transformative for myself. I started to work on My physical. You know, body. And when I did that, this like, light started to shine inside of me, and it shined a brighter than normal. I had a lot of these Sparks. I knew there was always this little flame inside me. That told me that that I could do and be and have anything that wanted, but it was very, very dull, it very, very dull, almost done existed. and I decided to work on my physical health. At the time, it was about losing weight and just feeling better and having more energy and that decision Opened this entire new world for me. and I ended up becoming a Network marketer for the and That was transformative to say the least. and there were many things that I, Experienced. In those 10 years that were so powerful. And changed. Who I was as a person. It was like, I had stepped into that next level of myself. And the physical transformation is what gave me this confidence to then start really believing in my self and it was through that physical transformation and it was through the doors of network marketing, that allowed me to start believing in myself again, that started getting me to dream. Again, that started getting me exposed to the whole world of personal development and the Law of Attraction. And I was reading all of these books and I was surrounding myself with all of these inspiring. Really like go-getter women and it felt so good. It felt so good to Nourish myself. That's really what it was about nourish myself in that way because I hadn't for so long, I felt like everything and maybe you can relate to this. Like I felt like I had poured everything into being a mom and a wife and prior to those two things, a teacher and I had lost myself in all of that wifing and mommy being and teaching I had lost my self. I had lost that spark that light. 

I had. Something in me, had dimmed and I wanted it back desperately. And so when I began that part my life, this new exciting. Thing that gave me such purpose. I felt alive and I met such amazing people, some of whom have remained really, really true. Soledad friends, right? and, so, that Journey did come to an end. About two years ago. I really felt like that just wasn't my calling anymore. It just wasn't giving me the same type excitement that it had. When I first got started And I knew that there was another direction for me and I wasn't sure what that was. I really As someone who's like type, a person and somebody that always wants to know what's the next thing. And once I know the next thing like I'm on it, like I just die full in. I've always been like that. But this was a for me to really pause. I had poured so much of my heart and soul into that business and I had ultimately, 

Worked so hard burning. The candle at both ends that I was in Burnout and I had lost all of my motivation. And it's also Ironically in that moment that I started to once experience some physical changes. in my body, that's when I was in, full-blown perimenopause and We know, hormones are no joke, ladies, right? So the mix of me feeling this burnout and then combining that with the lack of motivation to continue building something, that was no longer really inspiring me. And you throw in the hormonal changes that we're going on, physically. I felt just so lost. And I also knew because of all the work that I had done on my self in those last 10 years. I knew that It was a time. Of. Reflection. And it was a time of quiet. And it was a time to surrender. I knew that without a shadow of doubt. That it was a wake up for me. To actually. Do nothing. And that was a really hard thing for me to Understand because that is not. The identity that I had of myself. Prior. and, In that time, it also felt like I was failing. Because I was no longer working and bringing in like another income stream and I felt like I had let something go. That I had worked so hard to build. I really felt like a failure if I'm going to be honest here and so I had to sit with that and it was, it was a difficult time for me but As we know and I am all. So, a really big believer in where there is dark, there is always light. The law of polarity, it's always truth. It's a that when there is something bad there's always equally, something good. happening at the same time, and Because I held that belief. I was able to. really lean into this time of inner reflection and You know. listening to the next Direction, listening to the next calling for myself and I'm so thankful for that time that period where was able to do that and Because I allowed myself that gift. I was able to really build, I guess, you could even say rebuild. 

Quite a powerful relationship with God in that time. And I felt very connected. To. His. Direction for me. And that was because I released a lot of the control that I always wanted to have, right? Like I love control and I grew up with a lot control in my household, will probably get into an episode with that. but definitely felt like, In that releasing of control. And in this allowing like 2025 my word for this year is allow and in this allowing is when I decided, you know what? I, Love. Helping people and I love serving and I love. being in a community with other women and it's in those moments that I have always thrived in my life and I then felt cold to start this podcast, all Is taken me how long to really get it up and going going back to how I started this whole thing with like, yeah, there was doubt. There Was Fear, you know, I had experiences that were basically, I was up against saying, you know, my ego saying, know why start something new? This isn't work out. You've tried a million things and it and they're not panning out. Why you going to go in this direction? Yada yada, yada it just was endless and I had to finally take my ego and sit her down and say, to her. Listen, girl, I know you are here to protect me and I know that you are scared because this is something new. And you have your doubts. I get it. But guess what? I am co-creating this thing with God. And he believes in me. And because he loves and Believes In Me so much, I am willing to let him lead. And he's telling me that my voice is a gift. and, He's telling me that this is going to be so important for me to do. And I don't know where it's gonna go. I'm trusting the process. Of letting him lead and that is not a comfortable place for me to be but it is the place that I am. leaning to and so, here I am. I have started. midlife audacity I have started putting together a courses. And a membership, a group membership for women, just like you, who are excited to step into this next phase of their life. With boldness and with a soul connection to God and their intuition. And to start living unapologetically. Living out loud. and I know that sounds a little cliche because we hear it all the time but that is Where I am in my life at 52 and that's the purpose of this podcast. so that I can speak that life into all of you who are listening So, midlife ladies isn't about a decline. It is about an Awakening. And I am here. And I stand proud in this calling because I have had this Awakening and I feel inspired and renewed and ready for this next phase of my life. As I head into retirement from my 30 plus year teaching career, and as I parent my Adult. Aged children. Which is looks very different at the stage that it did 12 years ago. and I want to provide a place where we can normalize these feelings of being stuck, in, unsettled and unsure, and our egos running the show, and I want to 

Basically, speak into all of you that this is your own wake up call. And you can step into this new identity. It's in you, it's for you and you can do it. And we are all in it together. So with that, my friends, I will see you on the next episode.