If you had told me six months ago that I would be starting my own multimedia production company—creating content across multiple platforms—I’m not sure I would have believed you.

If you had told me ten years ago, I definitely wouldn’t have believed you. I would have laughed and said, “I don’t know anything about that.”

Yet here I am… building the foundation of a new life. I want to tell you a little bit about how this came about.

I was taking care of my mother in a nursing home, coming in two or three times a week to make sure she was okay and had everything she needed. Rolling into a nursing home as a visitor in a wheelchair is a whole different experience. People are quick to assume that you are one of the residents, and it gave me this unexplainable, deep-seated fear… like I was walking into Hotel California—and one day, I wouldn’t be able to leave. The realization of my possible future punched me in the gut every time I went.

So, to face that fear, I leaned in. I immersed myself in the environment. I met people. I heard their stories. I played bingo. And I experienced it all alongside my mother. It turned out to be the greatest gift.

My mother was blind, very hard of hearing, and she had diabetes. As a result, she couldn’t feel much with her hands. She could only sit in her wheelchair, and she spent a lot of time by herself.

She wasn’t able to watch TV and couldn’t hear music, so she cherished the moments when people came to see her, took her to church, or played Bingo with her. Her communication was very limited, and many times we simply sat together in silence.

She passed away in the company of a chaplain who sat by her bedside all night, and at 4 a.m., I got the call that my mother was gone.

Grieving my mother—and everything she endured—had a profound impact on me. It led me into a deeply reflective time. I thought about all the things I wish I could have done for her… and then I began to think about what this meant for me going forward.

There was now this big empty void in my life.

And that’s when I felt it—my biological clock started to tick like a bomb.

At 57, I began thinking about everything I still want to accomplish and experience before my time is up… before those opportunities are gone. It is a sobering and humbling realization.

I wrestled with the question: am I too old to start something new like this?I could stay on disability. I could remain “safe.”But I also knew what that path looked like.

So I made a decision.

I am going all in on the life I want to live for the rest of my days.This became the driving force behind EthaWa Studios.

Over the last couple of years, I’ve spent time exploring AI and learning how to use it creatively. I quickly realized I could use AI not just as a tool, but as a creative partner. It sparked ideas I hadn’t considered and helped me refine my storytelling and music production. That’s when EthaWa Studios truly began to take shape.

I saw a path forward—one where I could honor where I’ve been while actively creating the life I still want to live.

So I began building my foundation—setting up income streams and creating something of my own.

On January 3rd, I released my first set of music through DistroKid. Songs I’ve written over a span of 50 years are finally coming to life.

And beyond that, I’ve stretched myself into immersive cinematic soundscapes, blending music and sound design to tell narrative stories through sound.

I invite you to explore my website, where you’ll find my projects, samples of my music, and updates on my upcoming podcast focused on disability, accessibility, and how AI can help level the playing field.

I’ll be sharing my journey, the backstories behind my work, and the experiences that shaped it.

I hope you’ll join me.

And if you’d like to support what I’m building, you can do so through my Buy Me a Coffee.