‘When destiny calls’: Jerome native sets to publish book based on her life story

In her living room, McGregor was surrounded by plants, stacks of books and decorations gathered from years of travels. Rays of sunlight peeked through the closed blinds.

In a few weeks, McGregor will self-publish “Turbulent,” her first poem collections, honoring her younger self and sharing her life experiences with her community.

“It’s a poetry book,” she said, “but the premise comes from everything I saw while I was traveling… I have lived quite a colorful life, and I could always do more, I guess, but I’ve written since I was 10 years old.”

Every morning, McGregor sat at her kitchen counter and typed out her poems onto an iMac, meditatively capturing her thoughts and past experiences. Sophie dutifully sat by her side.

McGregor inherited her love for travel from her parents, who lived out of suitcases while she was growing up. When she returned home from college, McGregor worked and used her savings to move to Hawaii for a year.

For the next five years, she traveled around the world, meeting new people, immersing herself in new cultures and writing about her experiences. Eventually, she fell in love, halting a one-way trip to Thailand she had planned in 2015.

After her relationship ended in 2020, McGregor has been regrouping since then, she told the Times-News. Around the time she publishes her book, she hopes to open her own bakery, which is another childhood dream of hers.

“I thought writing my book would be a good way to remember who I was,” she said. “I’ve always had a dream to own a little stone cottage, have a bakery, sell my books and grow flowers. It seems like everything’s kind of falling into place.”

“(My dreams are) coming together, just like I thought they would.”

McGregor’s loved ones have supported her goal to capture the stories of her life. In 2018, she traveled to Bali to attend a yoga retreat and met a like-minded spirit who soon became a good friend of hers. When her friend traveled to Bali, she wanted to find someone to gift. When she learned about McGregor’s plan to write a book, she gifted her $1,000.

“She sent me a massive text message through WhatsApp, saying, ‘I know you’re going to try to send this back, but I’ve sent you $1,000 on PayPal because I think the only thing holding you back from writing your book is the money,’” McGregor told the Times-News.

Another one of her friends have helped her throughout the writing process as McGregor had to relive some of her most traumatic memories. Both, along with her parents and her other friends, will have a dedication in her book due to their help along the way.

McGregor hopes that her sharing her story will encourage others to do the same. Throughout her life, she has learned that time is precious, and if she wants to fulfill her dreams, the time to do so is now. The friends that she lost along the way continue to inspire and encourage her to keep moving forward.

“Everyone has a story, and those of the people who are brave enough to tell usually are not easy and not pretty,” she said. “Maybe when all of this is said and done, people will have a broader perspective to realize that you can go after your dream.

“I don’t have time to act like none of this matters because it all matters to me… When destiny calls, all you have to do is answer.”

McGregor plans to publish her book on Oct. 1. To purchase a copy, search for “Turbulent” on Amazon.