Broken Roads Lead Me Here

Broken Roads Lead Me Here tells the true-life story of a boy born into unimaginable abuse in Glasgow in the sixties. By the age of eight, Colin had been abandoned by his mother and continued to be sexually, physically, emotionally, and spiritually traumatised by the man she left him with. Blunted by severe trauma, Colin went through one unimaginable nightmare after another, each more traumatising and soul shattering than the last, with no one to tell and no way to understand why. He wondered as he drifted through life, what was to really become of him? Or his half-sisters? All the while, deep down, sensing that one day it could be his last. At fifteen, he was thrown out of school, and at sixteen he was sent to prison. Colin survived rejection, abandonment, homelessness, gang wars, addiction, mental illness, overdoses, suicide attempts, and abusive adult relationships. But it always seemed as if he was living on borrowed time... Even as he started writing his memoir, Colin had suffered a stroke, and near his recovery’s conclusion was then diagnosed with what was initially suspected as pancreatic cancer. While Colin’s diagnosis was eventually re-assessed as not immediately life threatening, it did leave him with a series of conditions which would continue to limit the quality of his day-to-day life. His illnesses and his experience of this instead of instilling a sense of profound hopelessness surprisingly led him to a profound sense of inner peace, clarity, and re-awakened purpose through his renewed faith in the real presence, love, forgiveness, and grace of God. His is a miraculous story of faith and redemption. Colin Mackell is a husband, father, and grandfather. In his professional life as Psychotherapist, he has helped people who struggle to overcome drug and alcohol addiction, and helps them find new meaning, and explore new life paths. He is also the founder of Chrysalis Supported Association & Group CEO of Chrysalis Group Services, providing homes and support to some of life’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged people.

Broken Roads Lead Me Here tells the true-life story of a boy born into unimaginable abuse in Glasgow in the sixties. By the age of eight, Colin had been abandoned by his mother and continued to be sexually, physically, emotionally, and spiritually traumatised by the man she left him with. Blunted by severe trauma, Colin went through one unimaginable nightmare after another, each more traumatising and soul shattering than the last, with no one to tell and no way to understand why. He wondered as he drifted through life, what was to really become of him? Or his half-sisters? All the while, deep down, sensing that one day it could be his last. At fifteen, he was thrown out of school, and at sixteen he was sent to prison. Colin survived rejection, abandonment, homelessness, gang wars, addiction, mental illness, overdoses, suicide attempts, and abusive adult relationships. But it always seemed as if he was living on borrowed time... Even as he started writing his memoir, Colin had suffered a stroke, and near his recovery's conclusion was then diagnosed with what was initially suspected as pancreatic cancer. While Colin's diagnosis was eventually re-assessed as not immediately life threatening, it did leave him with a series of conditions which would continue to limit the quality of his day-to-day life. His illnesses and his experience of this instead of instilling a sense of profound hopelessness surprisingly led him to a profound sense of inner peace, clarity, and re-awakened purpose through his renewed faith in the real presence, love, forgiveness, and grace of God. His is a miraculous story of faith and redemption. Colin Mackell is a husband, father, and grandfather. In his professional life as Psychotherapist, he has helped people who struggle to overcome drug and alcohol addiction, and helps them find new meaning, and explore new life paths. He is also the founder of Chrysalis Supported Association & Group CEO of Chrysalis Group Services, providing homes and support to some of life's most vulnerable and disadvantaged people.

an unlikely romance between a Washington rancher and an illegal Mexican immigrant whom she rescues one snowy night. When a saddled horse shows up riderless at Alice Anderson’s snowed-in ranch, she knows someone’s in danger—no one could survive long in the bitter Washington cold. Bundled up atop her best horse, Alice sets out to find the rider, preparing herself for the worst. But when Alice comes across a hunched figure in a snow bank and brings the man back to Standfast, she realizes she wasn’t prepared for Domingo Rolodan. The Mexican raquero is on the run from immigration services—and harboring a deep secret. He and Alice slowly develop an abiding friendship that gradually blossoms into romance. Now, facing threats that include deportation, cultural misunderstandings, and the looming presence of a drug addict with claim to the ranch, can Alice and Domingo find a way to hold firm to their new love? Through her warm and engaging prose Foster skillfully brings to life the pastoral landscape of Washington state, transporting readers into her breathtaking world.

Has there ever been a time in your life when you had to leave everything you have ever known and rush headlong into something not known, not wanted by you? At such times, all of us experience deep fears, doubts, and horrifying anxieties. We don’t know which way to turn. All we want to do is go back to what was and no longer is. Mourning is a non-illuminated place. We don’t want to experience it, especially for long periods of time. It’s the blackest of black, the darkest of dark, and the gravest of grave. It is a place most of us would just as soon not visit. But if we don’t go there – and allowing ourselves to go there is a choice – then we would never experience the rich treasures embedded within its solemn dreariness.