At the beginning of February, we were invited to a special screening of a new adventure film, Brave Enough – A Journey Home to Joy.
The film features our very own Brand Ambassador Jo Moseley and her 11-day coast-to-coast paddleboard journey on the UK’s network of canals.
Jo was the first woman, aged 54, to stand up paddle 162 miles from Liverpool to Goole along the Leeds Liverpool Canal and Aire & Calder Navigation in the summer of 2019. She was picking up litter, raising awareness of plastic pollution in our waterways and fundraising for two charities, The Wave Project and 2MinuteBeachClean Foundation.
Photo credit: Jo Moseley.
Photo credit: Frit Sarita Tam.
We were really proud to support Jo and loved the film, Brave Enough, a collaboration between her and filmmaker Frit Tam of Passion Fruit Pictures. It was wonderful to see her wearing FINDRA from the opening shot to the final scene!
A few days later, we caught up with Jo to ask her a few questions about the adventure, kit and how she is feeling now Brave Enough is in the world.
Hello Jo, how are you? Congratulations on bringing Brave Enough to a wider audience. Can you tell us more about how you and Frit met and decided to make the film?
Hello Alex and thank you for your kind words about Brave Enough. Serendipity and indeed FINDRA played a part in how Frit and I began this creative journey. After a chance meeting at the Women’s Adventure Expo in Bristol in 2018, we met again at Kendal Mountain Film Festival where I was speaking with you and the FINDRA team!
Photo credit: Frit Sarita Tam.
We spoke about our dreams for the future. When I shared my dream to paddleboard coast to coast, Frit asked if she could join me and the rest is history. You can read more about this in my blog and the part FINDRA played!
We loved to see you wearing FINDRA almost every day on the canals and other times during the film. How did you find it stood up to the demands of the adventure?
Oh, my FINDRA kit was great on the canals. Design, quality and performance are all put under pressure when you are wearing things day in and day out in all sorts of weather and they never let me down. The Tiree Printed Leggings were probably the most useful piece of kit. Comfortable, quick drying in the rain and with practical side pockets they were invaluable. I wore the Nine Iron on the canals and the Grape Wine in some of the backstory footage.
Photo credit: Frit Sarita Tam.
Photo credit: Jo Moseley.
The Ailsa Merino-Lite T-shirt was great on days when it was sunny and I needed to keep cool paddling in the summer heat but then as the afternoon chill arrived, it kept me warm. Also the anti bacterial properties meant that even after 8 hours paddling in the heat it still felt fresh! I wore the Teal Stroma Jacket at the start of the adventure too and this will always be a special memory as I am relaying to camera that I am living my dream – just a soggier version of it!
How do you feel now Brave Enough is out in the world? What are some of the key messages of Brave Enough?
At the start of the adventure I felt excited, terrified and grateful and in all honesty, that is exactly how I am feeling right now. The response to the film has been amazing and so positive. Frit and I feel a little overwhelmed by the love for Brave Enough. We are taking it one step and one day at a time!
Photo credit: Frit Sarita Tam.
Brave Enough shows how we can discover the extraordinary in the ordinary, cherish the smallest of joys and the magic of adventures on our doorstep.
It’s also about finding purpose in midlife and living by the idea that “I can’t change the world, but I can change the little bit around me” with beach cleaning and fundraising.
A key thread within the film is that you are never too old to dream a new dream or do something wild and it’s never too late to make a difference.
Photo credit: Frit Sarita Tam.
It’s been described as a kind, thoughtful and tender story and our hope is that it will encourage other midlife women in particular to put their wellbeing on The Priority List and make time for things that bring them joy, however big or small.
Brave Enough is also about realising we don’t need to be super brave to make a dream come true, we just need to be brave enough to take the first tiny step and then the next and then just one more.
Are there any books that have inspired you to create the adventure and Brave Enough?
I’m a huge fan of Brene Brown Daring Greatly and her TED Talk on Vulnerability. I also love Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic and her podcast series Magic Lessons.
Is there a quote that has inspired you?
Yes, I often share this quote on my Instagram account. It is from David Nicholls book One Day which opens in 1988 in Edinburgh! It inspired me to think that whilst I can’t change the world, I can change the bit around me with litter picking every day, fundraising and raising awareness of single use plastic with my coast to coast adventure.
‘Live each day as if it’s your last’, that was the conventional advice, but really, who had the energy for that? What if it rained or you felt a bit glandy? It just wasn’t practical. Better by far to be good and courageous and bold and to make a difference. Not change the world exactly, but the bit around you. Cherish your friends, stay true to your principles, live passionately and fully and well. Experience new things. Love and be loved, if you ever get the chance.
Photo credit: Frit Sarita Tam.
Is there a song that has inspired you?
The song that always inspires me is Try by Dolly Parton.
We understand that the premiere of Brave Enough and the second screening have both sold out and you now have a new date! Can you give us the details of the third pop up cinema evening and what will be happening on the night?
Yes, we are quite overwhelmed that both evenings have sold out! Our third date is Thursday 11th March at 1900 and there will be a Q&A with Frit and myself and also some lovely prizes to win.
Brave Enough Trailer
Brave Enough (Trailer) from Passion Fruit Pictures on Vimeo.
Tickets are £10 for General Admission and we have a £6 ticket for NHS staff, keyworkers and those on a low income. Tickets are available from Eventbright here.
Photo credit: Frit Sarita Tam.
Thank you Jo, it was great to catch up with you and everyone at FINDRA wishes you all the best with Brave Enough and your new podcast series, The Joy of SUP Podcast.
You can follow Jo on Twitter at @healthyhappy50 and Instagram @healthyhappy50 and @thejoyofsuppodcast_
Website www.jomoseley.com
BOOK OF THE WEEK
Daring Greatly by Brené Brown
Daring Greatly is the culmination of 12 years of groundbreaking social research across every area of our lives. It is an invitation to be courageous; to show up and let ourselves be seen, even when there are no guarantees.
Jo says, “I’m a huge fan of Brené Brown Daring Greatly and her TED Talk on Vulnerability” and the book no doubt had an influence on her coast to coast journey by paddleboard.
PODCAST OF THE WEEK
The Joy of SUP (Paddleboard Yoga)
Photo credit: Charlotte Graham.
Hosted by Jo Moseley, the podcast is a series of conversations with guests talking about all the health, happiness, friendship, purpose and possibility that SUP Yoga brings to our lives.
From world endurance record holders to SUP Yoga, SUP with a Pup to SUP Surf, the podcast covers uplifting stories and information to help you on your paddleboarding journey.
Subscribe to the Joy of SUP podcast here and find the joy of stand up paddleboarding.
MUSIC OF THE WEEK
Try by Dolly Parton
From the 2014 album Blue Smoke, the last song on the album, Try was released as a single in the UK following the huge response to Dolly's appearance at the 2014 Glastonbury festival.
According to Dolly, the song is “based on the fact a lot of my relatives couldn't read and write and I saw how crippling that was, but also the struggles I've gone through as an artist and in my life.”
We all love a bit of Dolly. Enjoy.
