Caught On The Equator; Finding The Fire Within

In 1983 - Kenya was on fire with corruption and at the height of ivory smuggling....Based on a true story, Caught On The Equator is about the amazing, and sometimes dangerous, trek through East Africa in 1983, seen through the eyes of a nineteen-year old. Follow Heather Shreve, a naïve American student, who struggles against the odds to see Africa...but upon arrival gets caught in the savage beauty, but also deep in a savage business--the illegal ivory trade. Eventually kid-napped and jailed by rogue police, find out how Heather was unknowingly caught in a country struggling to recover from the coup in 1982 and what can happen in the bush on the equator. WHO ARE YOU? WHAT DO YOU STAND FOR? HOW FAR WILL YOU GO? Authentic, moving, and beautifully written, this story shows us that BECOMING who you were meant to be is the essence of life.
About the Author: In the words of John Muir, "Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul." Intuitively, this has been Heather's perspective and belief since she was very young and continues to perpetuate these ideals through her pursuits; her writing and art. The decision to write this important part of her life story came after the economic downturn of October, 2008 when her twenty year professional art business faltered. At age 45, Heather decided to change careers and so a new company, Lifeguard Wellness, was born. At the same time, in May 2009, she began putting her memories of Africa on paper- for her children and before too much time had passed. In the country's current sea of uncertainty, Heather thought the timing was right and began writing Caught On The Equator, Finding The Fire Within for anyone who would enjoy an adventure about a teenager in an exotic country with her own uncertainty. As a lifetime artist, Heather has also logged more than 30,000 hours behind the brush. In her career as a professional artist her clients ranged from large companies like McCormick Spice, CSX, and Sheraton Hotels to the city of Baltimore, the state of Maryland and former Governor Bob Ehrlich. Heather has been commissioned to do hundreds of paintings in her lifetime so far. Individual clients have asked her to paint everything from eighty foot murals to illustrating custom children's stories. Fluid in many mediums, Heather's ability for detail can be seen in her architectural renderings as well as in a birds' feather. For this book, the acrylic paintings on board were done with an under-layment of swirled gesso to give the images a rough appearance, like the textures of Africa. In addition- only the three primary colors were used plus black and white. Going forward, Heather's wish is to help wildlife conservation in Africa, especially the plight of the elephants with the sales from this book. The messages in Caught On The Equator are also pivotal to Heather's work in public health and well-being, in all its forms. Her focus is on thought patterns and how it affects not just physical health but emotional, mental and spiritual resilience. As a certified Wellcoach(TM) (ACSM) and human behavior specialist, she pursues these principles with this book and her two health workbooks, (Drawn Into Wellness and Doodle Yourself 2 Health) also on Amazon.