“It’s so cold in here!”
“Let’s sit together for warmth.”
When I was a teen, my mom and I lived almost a year without many modern amenities. One of those was heat. The lowest temperatures that year were in the range of 17 degrees Fahrenheit. Many of the nights were in the 20-34F range. We learned to wear our coats indoors and wear blankets around the house. We offered blankets and coats to friends who would come for movie nights on the couch. We would all watch our frozen breath puff out in front of us as we munched popcorn and drank steaming hot coffee and tea. We’d pretend we were explorers on Arctic expeditions, Flowers in the Attic, Pioneers.
We rented from a curmudgeonly family member who wouldn’t fix what was broken. Though I resented him for that, we were thankful for the place. Looking back later, mom and I agreed that the year we spent there was one of our favorites of all our time together. It knit us together in ways we would never have enjoyed otherwise. It gave us shared resilience.
Life throws us many twists and turns. The world of man-made rules and constructs is often difficult to navigate. Not everyone is nice. Not everyone is compassionate. Some people are downright diabolical.
As much as I hate difficult times, I have learned that some of our greatest strengths come from living through and conquering obstacles. For me, this means keeping eyes on the prize. Cultivating a habit of positivity and goal setting. 1
One goal that I most enjoy pursuing is writing for publication. Self-publishing and traditional publishing. Continuing relentlessly, regardless of obstacles, rejections, or slow growth. When you are in the thick of it, you can’t see what the ultimate outcome will be. You can only push through each day, each week, each month, until a goal is reached. You can make a list of goals, and check them off one by one as you reach them. You can get mired in the negativity of a situation, or you can look for the silver threads shining through.
Reaching one year of solid publication on my Substack site (TODAY!!!) is one of those shiny threads. It glittered in the distance like a carrot dangled in front of me on a stick. I have followed it like a voracious equine plodding toward the prize. This year, following this goal has helped solidify my understanding of my own style and genre. It has helped me form a larger list of goals and check off a few already on the list. It has helped me reach people who might enjoy and benefit from what I have to offer.
I am a “slice of life” writer. I am a poet. I am a Journal Journey facilitator. I am an aspiring memoirist. I dabble in fiction. I hope to spread inspiration and positive personal transformation wherever my writing reaches. I hope to be a silver thread for someone in the dark. I know my mom is watching from her place in eternity and cheering me on. I know she can see my eventual place in the sun, and she sends me little reminders to keep going. Sometimes in the form of red robins. Keep pushing. Keep spreading light. Keep being true to the promise, and keep ignoring naysayers.
Thank you for being here to engage and follow this journey on the road of life. Thank you for staying true to your journey and pushing through to reach your goals. Please remember to stop in with a comment now and then to let me know that you have reached a goal. Let me know where you find your silver linings. Here’s to the next year of Substacking!
Sometimes I use sentence fragments as a stylistic choice. Often, in fact. Just so you know, I realize I am not creating complete sentences when I do this. I realize my elementary grammar school teacher would disapprove. Please don’t tell her.
Congratulations! I have fallen out of sync for now.
Congrats on your anniversary! Few writers start and stick it out.