I have loved to write since I was in grade school. I was the kid trying to impress the teacher with my beautiful penmanship and, hopefully, witty papers. In high school I got A’s in Poetry. (Yes. Poetry.) My reports always got great grades, and I wrote songs, musicals, kids programs, and – oh – just about anything that needed to be written. BUT it never once crossed my mind to actually pursue WRITING. Not one time.
After a life where all my white picket fences were torn down, and REAL LIFE happened, I found I had A LOT to say. Did I write? Not really. It all got stuffed inside – in the cracks and crevices of my heart. I have seen our house burn down, lost a husband to cancer, raised six kids, experienced depression, had bitter experiences, and painful roads to walk. Literally. I had painful roads to walk – walking on two bad knees. No, more like TERRIBLE knees. I was headed for a wheel chair, but thankfully, a doctor friend helped me receive two brand new knees in 2012.
For ONE year of my life, I had to SIT DOWN
Really. Just sit. I watched entire series of TV shows (TV was NOT something I generally sat down to watch. Seriously – I was always too distracted!).
THEN A LIGHT WENT ON IN MY HEAD! THE PLANETS ALIGNED! AND I realized – I SHOULD WRITE! Oh boy, did I write! I actually wrote a real BOOK. Well, an e-book for now. It is about never giving up. I share 365 reasons why NOT to give up. All from my own stories, life lessons, pain, grief, joys, and all the things that make up a life lived out. My purpose from my pain became my book – #365ReasonsNOTToGiveUp.
Why am I sharing this?
Well – I still have a lot to say (hey, women always have something to say!) AND because just maybe YOU have something inside you that’s been locked up, that looks past due, or worn out, or forgotten, or dusty.
Restoration means to restore something to its original state…to lovingly polish it up, clean it, and guess what – THAT increases its value.
I CHOOSE to write to inspire myself first, and then for anyone else who possibly needs encouraged. Writing is the place I find my safety…it’s my log cabin in the woods; it’s my “warm and cozy”; it’s the song my soul longs to sing; it’s the WHO of WHO I am. It’s my WHY and my purpose.
Today, I hope if anyone reads this, that you lift up your weary head and remember that everything you need is within you. Remember the cowardly lion in the Wizard of Oz and how he just wanted some Courageeeeeeee (in that memorable character voice) He already had it INSIDE of him! Your safe place, your refuge, and your “warm and cozy” is within you. Waiting.
So – go write, or sing, or feed the homeless, or take care of animals in a shelter. Be a journalist, be a missionary, teach, be a doctor, work in retail, cook, or whatever it is that makes you feel ALIVE and fulfilled, and whole. Me? I’ll just be over here writing.
#ILiveToWriteAndWriteToLive
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