title: The Voyage: Finding the Beautiful Gems of My Being
author: Holly Ruttenbur Dickinson
description: Holly Ruttenbur Dickinson is passionate about the earth/nature, writing, hiking, connecting with people, adventure, youth leadership programs of Girl Scouting and Boy Scouting, and empowering women and youth. She is a wearer of many hats. First, and most importantly, is the Mother of 4 now grown children, one son and three daughters, all achieved in scouting. She is happily married for 22 years. Holly is a Master Educator of the National Leave No Trace Outdoor Ethics organization/education program. She has taught Leave No Trace with/for the National Camping School (NCS) in Arizona. She is an Instructor/Trainer of two self written courses offered to women at Arizona Becoming an Outdoors Woman (BOW) to help women become more empowered in outdoor skills and personal confidence. She is an Outdoor (Skills) Trainer/Facilitator for adult development for the Girl Scout Arizona Cactus-Pine Council and also for the council an apprentice trainer/facilitator for Authoring Your Own Life (AYOL) and Live, Love, and Lead adult wellness retreats. In the past Holly has served as a facilitator/trainer for the Boy Scout National Camping School for their camp staff adults. She has also served as a Cub Scout Summer Camp Program Director and Cub Scout Summer Camp Archery Director. She continues serving as a Girl Scout Troop Leader. A few of the Awards received (not all listed) are the highly sought after National Boy Scouts of America Silver Beaver Award, the Girl Scout Appreciation Pin, Girl Scout Outstanding Volunteer Of The Year Award and Pearl Awards. etc. Part of Hollys future journey includes writing and publishing many books to help empower other souls on many topics. She has had four articles published in the Arizona Wildlife News and is quoted in Bryant McGill's book, Simple Reminders. This is her first book.
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  **CONTENTS**
  
   _TITLE PAGE_
  
   _DEDICATION_
  
    
  
   _GROWING UP_
  
   _THE YARDBIRDS_
  
   _JOHN MAYALL_
  
   _CREAM_
  
   _BLIND FAITH_
  
   _DEREK AND THE DOMINOS_
  
   _LOST YEARS_
  
   _461 OCEAN BOULEVARD_
  
   _EL AND NELL_
  
   _THE END OF THE ROAD_
  
   _HAZELDEN: PICKING UP THE PIECES_
  
   _RELAPSE_
  
   _CONOR_
  
   _THE AFTERMATH_
  
   _CROSSROADS_
  
   _MELIA_
  
   _A FAMILY MAN_
  
   _A YEAR ON THE ROAD_
  
    
  
   _EPILOGUE_
  
   _ACKNOWLEDGMENTS_
  
   _PHOTO CREDITS_
  
   _COPYRIGHT_
  
  > > > To my grandmother, Rose Amelia Clapp,  
  > to my beloved wife, Melia,  
  > and to my children, Ruth, Julie, Ella, and Sophie
  
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   **E** arly in my childhood, when I was about six or seven, I began to get the
  feeling that there was something different about me. Maybe it was the way
  people talked about me as if I weren’t in the room. My family lived at 1, the
  Green, a tiny house in Ripley, Surrey, which opened directly onto the village
  Green. 