Nine months pregnant, two kids, you're living in Kuwait and you wake up one morning to learn that the country's just been invaded

We all love a good story, right? They are the means by which we make sense of the world and our place within it - so I thought I'd start sharing snippets of mine to offer you an insight on me and my own place in the world, as I see it.

To set the scene.... it was 1 August 1990, early morning. I was laying in bed contemplating the day ahead whilst tuning in to the air-con whirring in the background. My thoughts were now suddenly interrupted by my husband, who had left for work 30 minutes earlier, suddenly appearing in the bedroom of our apartment in a complete panic.

This was Kuwait 1990. Saddam Hussein's military force had just invaded

That's right. This was 1990 and I was living in Kuwait with my husband and 2 children. Our apartment was in the middle of Kuwait City, and the military were making a bee-line for the city to inflict as much damage as they could on key buildings. What on earth do you do when your husband bursts in with that news? I'll tell you what you do.

Even at 9 months pregnant and 2 children in the other bedroom, you move like you've never moved before!

We packed a small bag, got the kids dressed and we ran. Ran downstairs, got in the car and drove to a friend's villa in a quiet suburban area where we thought we'd be safe.

The next 4 weeks tested us all like we've never been tested before, but we were lucky enough to be caught up in all this with close friends of ours who also fled their apartment in the city to take refuge in this villa with us.

So imagine this, my third baby was due in 2 weeks time, between our 2 families we had 3 children aged 9, 8 and 6 years old, food was running out (yes, and toilet rolls), Iraqi soldiers patrolled our quiet suburban area day and night looking for Westerners to pick up, Saddam Hussein was threatening chemical warfare, and somehow we all needed to find ways to get through this nightmare, stay strong and stay calm.

People tell me that I should write a book! And I think they're right, but I'm going to leave it here for now. This particular story needs time and space to be told - and I will, but it's quite a long one so maybe I'll share it in small chunks on here over time. But in the meantime, I'll leave you with this....

Never judge a book by its cover

Oh how true is this?! Always be mindful that there's a story behind every person you meet - we've all got one somewhere. But whatever your story is, learn from it, take the positive, use it and move on!

?Anne is a Personal Brand Photographer working with businesses to tell their story through stunning professional imagery that talk directly to their audience.