Introduction

Welcome!!

And so I am starting a blog. Never thought of it until a friend mentioned it. Welcome to my Blog. 😀

My name is Els Brussel and I am Dutch, born and raised in Amsterdam where I still live. My life has thus far been quite a challenge and I am inspired to share with you what I have learnt over the years; in my emotional struggles and my life as a child of God. What I write on this blog are my own opinions and experiences. Everyone is different, we can agree to disagree. Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions. As you can see this blog is written in English. I have many international friends, so this seemed like the best choice.

I was raised in a loving Christian home. I have three brothers, two are 1 and 3 years older than I and then there is my twin brother Erik, who sadly passed away during birth. My parents were quite zealous in the church and that unfortunately caused me to turn away from the Christian faith at a young age, because I associated God with loneliness and pain. We all make mistakes and my parents changed their ways in the end. Of course I forgave them. We live in a broken world and I became a victim of sexual abuse numerous times by multiple men during my childhood and teenage years. This caused many scars that left me with Complex PTSD which was not diagnosed until 2013.

God has given me much! I have been blessed with many talents and because I live in a rich country I have had education and training. Being curious and self-taught has only expanded my possibilities. And nothing gives me greater joy than to teach others what I know or to create gifts using a variety of techniques.

I am a trained secretary/office manager and the challenge of modernizing or starting secretarial departments has always been my strong point.

Creativity is a major part of my life. As a little girl I could spend hours cutting, gluing and coloring by myself, totally happy. Over the years I have done some photography, taught myself how to use Photoshop. I crafted cards, like so many of us (mostly) women, knitting and crocheting, which I still do. In the last 10 years I picked up sewing. Starting with quilts I am now making all kinds of things. For one I make my own clothes which is really handy because I am quite dis-proportioned. If you are curious at what I make, check out my website: elsbrussel.blogspot.com.

Many years ago I was on holiday with a friend here in Holland and while strolling through a village we came across a quilting store. It was stunning to see all those prints and colors, I could have stayed there for hours. As a souvenir I bought a ready cut pack of matching pieces and brought it home. It was not until 2007 when I was home in a very serious depression that it started playing a role in my life. My mom stayed with me at the time because it was not safe for me to be alone. She brought her sewing machine and put the pieces together. It was almost another year later when a co-worker gave me a simple sewing machine and I took off from there.

I never had any sewing classes but I found my way through trial and error. It takes some natural talent (God was gracious to give me that too), persistence and practice. My curious mind made that I was willing to keep researching and trying. And when I did not know how to do something I would ask the Lord to help me. It either came to mind, I am quite visually oriented so that is easy, or I would run into a you tube video that explained it. 

And now it is my way to give. I love making gifts for under privileged children, I don't mind repairing my friends or neighbors clothing, why throw away your favorite jeans right? things like that.
Whenever I am stuck in bed because I am exhausted once again or not feeling well I can practice and ponder on creative projects. So much time, so little energy. And it give joy, like no other joy, the joy of the Lord, that I am sure off!

In this blog I will go through various stages of my life, focusing on specific subjects like how I deal with the struggles of my mental health and physical issues and God’s providence. I pray this blog will be a blessing to you as you go through life’s challenges.