Sometimes I wrote off my own failings as just another example of the world trying to keep a black man down. I had a tendency sometimes to make excuses for me not doing the right thing.

Fear of flying.

Fear and all of its consequences.

Having no patience.

I’ve seen it a lot, I’ve been it, and I’m not afraid of it! You can be a woman on the edge, but also be a soulful woman, a playful woman and a funny woman. You can be all those things at once.

I felt very unhinged in my early 30s and kind of mentally not well. There was something very, very sobering about that time and letting go of people that weren’t very healthy for me. Unfortunately, a lot of that has been in relation to men, I suppose.

My son's second birthday. It was a typical autumn day – bright sky, cold fingers. He was dressed as a skeleton and we ate chilli in the garden.

I felt very unhinged in my early 30s and kind of mentally not well. There was something very, very sobering about that time and letting go of people that weren’t very healthy for me. Unfortunately, a lot of that has been in relation to men, I suppose.

My mother. She raised four children pretty much on her own. My father was around, but always out at work.

I’ve seen it a lot, I’ve been it, and I’m not afraid of it! You can be a woman on the edge, but also be a soulful woman, a playful woman and a funny woman. You can be all those things at once.