Helen Pengelly, Brighton, Feb 2010
I am mum to 3 boys and used to run an internet business selling gluten free and allergy food for people with allergies and intolerances. A few events in the summer of 2009 made me realise I can’t do it all so I am looking at alternative ways of making a living. I used to be a Maths teacher in a school but after 3 years I couldn’t hack institutionalised life and decided to work for myself. Ever since I was a child I’ve had a problem with authority and working in a school made me feel like a naughty schoolgirl again! This was in 2005 – I’ve made huge mistakes along the way, had some really bad advice (and good – but at the beginning you don’t know which is which!). I’ve met some fantastic like-minded people and now have a good network of real-life and ‘virtual’ friends.
Why ‘Less is More’? When I started my business I wanted to rule the world! Along the way I have learnt to despise the globalised food industry, the damage that supermarkets and huge corporations are doing to our economy, the truth about cancer and vaccines and the ‘matrix’ that we live in. I grew up without a tv and read George Orwell’s 1984 when I was about 10 so maybe that explains why I don’t appear to be as ‘conditioned’ as some people. Instead of having lots of employees I want to work alongside other independently-minded people. I’m not bothered about being a millionaire but I also don’t want to be a mortgage slave!
I started meditating in 2007 and have been on a few retreats. I sing in a couple of choirs locally. My boys are musical too and we have a large array of instruments. We are very fortunate to live on the coast in West Sussex.
