Women Talking with Suzanne Walker

Ruqxana Vasanwala on Navigating Change with Pottery

For over 20 years Ruqxana or Ruq would invite tourists to her home for a cooking class on local cuisine, followed by lunch or dinner in her lovely garden where if you were lucky, you would spot one of her cats. But things have changed in the past couple of years, reservations now come few and far between, rent is rising and costs aren't coming down. I caught Ruq at a time when she was at the junction of change. She was in the midst of looking for a flat and coming to terms with the need to move on from a business that had worked so well for so long. As we sat in her lovely home and Ruq showed me around her kitchen and garden, she talked about how pottery has helped her and why letting go and moving on isn't so bad. Discover Ruq's work at cookerymagic.com or visit her IG @midnightpottersg

(Part 2) Seraphine Ann Chia on how style can help women reclaim their identities

In the 2nd and final episode with Seraphine or Sera as she is often known as, she shares about how starting a business is the closest she has come to reclaiming her identity. We cover the steps women can take to start their journey of reclaiming their identities and living the life they want. I like the parts where she mentions how women's emotions have been weaponized and how our lives should continue to evolve as we age. I asked Sera to reflect on her journey and what she would say to her past and future self. To find out more about Sera's style and identity reclaim services, visit Style with Sera - Personal Styling and Life Coaching, Authentic, Confident and Empowered [https://stylewithsera.com/]

(Part 1) Seraphine Ann Chia's journey to self-advocacy

Style coach Seraphine worked at being the person for everyone, but not herself. It took a health scare during COVID-19 for her to realize that she needed to start advocating for her authentic self. She started losing the weight she put on, and friends who could not accept the boundaries she drew but it empowered her to start her business. Today she helps women find their authentic selves through style coaching, and in Part 1 of this two-part series, she shares about her journey to self-advocacy. Find out more about Style with Sera @ Style with Sera - Personal Styling and Life Coaching, Authentic, Confident and Empowered [https://stylewithsera.com/] Note: The audio recording has been tightened and differs slightly from the video version

(Part 3) Jill Alphonso, Breast Cancer Survivor. Back to Work & Life Post Cancer

In a previous job I held, I saw colleagues come to work post cancer with a scarf around their head and tubes under their shirts. The entire office felt terrible and we knew, it was not our boss who insisted they return. My sense is they felt they had to. So I asked Jill to share her experience, and I am touched by how compassionate her supervisor has been to her. Noone can be the same after cancer and Jill has definitely changed. Throughout our conversation I thought how life can be unfair and capricious, yet I could not be prouder of my courageous friend. So so very proud. NOTE: I tightened up the recording for Spotify. There were some long pauses in the heavier moments of our conversation which works on video (Youtube) but were a tad too long for audio only.

(Part 2) Jill Alphonso, Breast Cancer Survivor - Coming to terms with death and growing spiritually

Jill retraces the emotions that she experienced in 2023 during her cancer treatment in this episode. She candidly shares about reconciling and coming to peace with the possibility of death and reclaiming her spiritualism, largely through therapy. I reflected on why everybody avoids speaking about death: the fear that death will come simply by its mention. It becomes conversations persons living with cancer will have with themselves, and I think that is where and why spiritualism grows. When we are, to borrow a phrase Jill uses in this episode, "cracked open".