Oelklaus, Nancy: - Author of "Journey from Head to Heart" and "Alphabet Meditations for Teachers", Dr. Nancy Oelklaus has spoken throughout the U.S. as well as in Indonesia, Singapore, and The Netherlands. Her articles have appeared in The Systems Thinker, Leverage, The American School Board Journal, The Austin Business Journal, and Leaders of Learners. Her leadership profile, "The Power of Love," appears in Appreciative Leaders: In the Eye of the Beholder, published by the Taos Institute. Her poetry has appeared in numerous publications, including the newsletter of the Story Circle Network and the monograph of the Texas Council of Women School Executives, entitled Women as School Executives: The Complete Picture (2000). Dr. Oelklaus has received numerous awards and honors for civic leadership, including the Vision to Action Award from the Visions of a Better World Foundation in Boston. She was named Leader of Leaders by Sam Houston State University's Department of Educational Leadership, Outstanding Graduate by Texas A&M, Commerce, Department of Educational Leadership, and Woman of Achievement by the Business and Professional Women of Marshall, Texas.She holds a Doctor of Education degree in educational leadership from Texas A&M University, Commerce, a Master of Arts in English from the University of North Texas, and a Bachelor of Arts in speech communication, cum laude, from Oklahoma Baptist University. After her college graduation, Dr. Oelklaus married and threw her anchor into the safe harbor of Marshall, Texas, where her husband's family had lived for generations. She pursued advanced education and a career in public education, which, along with motherhood, were very fulfilling.Then the day came when the children were gone, and she had reached her professional goals in that place. A voice deep within said, "If you don't get out of here, you'll die." In response, she left her career and her marriage. The next six years were full of change-new city, lots of travel, new career, new homes, new friends, new marriage.In that second marriage, Nancy decided to stop running from emotional pain and simply go through it. With a lot of help-professional, personal, and Al-Anon-she finally learned that peace comes from within, after truth and taking responsibility.The meditations in this book come from the simple serenity she lives today in Sedona, AZ.