Sonja, 50 – The 50 Over 50 Women’s Portrait Campaign
Sonja, 50
Where are you from, and where do you currently live?
Outdshoorn, South Africa
If your friends were to describe you, what would they say?
Exceptional, Compassionate, Accomplished, Passionate, Remarkable, Loyal,
Honest, Hardworking, Graceful, and laughs the loudest!
What is your favourite quote or saying?
“You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore before you decide to be happy.”
If it makes you happy,
It does not have to make sense to anybody else.
I am enough!
What would you say you are most proud of?
Raising my 2 beautiful daughters to be the independent women they are today!
Teaching them that they can achieve anything they set their mind to.
It is rewarding to see that they are building on the foundation that we as parents laid down for them.
I am super proud of my two girls! They are my biggest
accomplishment in life!
What advice would you give your younger self?
Be more adventurous.
Go and see the world.
Do not wait for things to happen to you, go and make them happen.
Follow your dreams and do not let other people tell you otherwise.
You are the navigator of your own life!
Life itself is a privilege, but to live life to the fullest, well that is a choice!
What is a goal or dream you still wish to accomplish?
To be the best version of myself.
To allow myself to experience new things.
I want to learn another language and learn to play an instrument.
My goal is to teach my 2 daughters to chase their dreams and believe in themselves.
I always tell them you get what you work for, not what you wish for!
What are your thoughts on ageing?
Turning 50 was very emotional for me.
This is when I realized that time moved by so quickly and there is so much that I still wanted to do and experience.
It took me a very long time to accept and grasp the concept of turning 50.
My body was ageing but my mind was still in its 20s!
We are often so critical of ourselves: not thin enough, not beautiful enough, not just enough for anybody anymore.
I embraced the process of turning 50 slowly and decided it was my time to shine.
I am not too old to experience life.
I realized that I could do anything I set my mind to, even at my young age of 50!
And most importantly, shake off the negative opinions of others.
I am doing things for myself and not for the approval of others.
Live adventurously, laugh uncontrollably, love wildly!
Be you, do you for you!
Do not compare yourself to others, you are your unique self.
Compare your today with yesterday and if there was an improvement, that is an achievement!
What did you enjoy most about The 50 Over 50 Women’s Portrait Campaign? And how did the experience leave you feeling?
The calmness of the whole process.
The moment I met Monica I knew, this was the best decision I made.
I am very critical of myself and often do not feel beautiful enough or brave enough to do something like this,
but Monica helped me feel so at ease and I experienced all different kinds of emotions throughout
the process.
I discovered that it is okay to turn 50 and I felt my own beautiful me!
And I AM ENOUGH! You are born to be real, not perfect!
Thank you Sonja, for the most amazing day! Kirsten and I had such a great time with you, and we’re looking forward to seeing you at the 50 over 50 gathering.
Hair and makeup: Kirsten Murphy
