My Declaration

For the first time in a long time, I'm being honest with myself which is in turn forcing me to be honest with the people I love. I've been discovering this Katie for about a year now, and some days I really don't like her. I feel that twinge of jealousy for people who are doing things that are more impressive than what I will do in life. I hate thinking that I won't be successful, but I love remembering that I know it's about happiness. I need to be happy. There are a lot of things in life that make me happy, more than I could ever name. But, could I ever give up having a career as an educator or as an impressive business woman, to work in a little scrapbook shop while writing freelance?

I have grown up under the impression that writing is not a true profession. Writing has simply been a hobby, something I did to ensure my own happiness. I've been told that no matter my ability, I won't be able to make it in the real world. And, so I've believed that. But now, now that I am becoming who I'm supposed to be, the signs keep pointing me in this direction: this path that won't be paved in gold, that I won't walk in designer shoes, nor with a handbag filled with the money to buy everything desired along the way. I won't live in a grand mansion filled with every element of earthly desire, but since when did those things ever make anyone 'truly' happy?

The path I'm choosing will be well-paved by other writers following their heart. That, however, won't make it easy; I'll have to clear the overgrowth and step on some thorns while sometimes stumbling forward in the dark. I won't walk alone, rather I'll be among some of the greatest mentors I have had in my life. There's a possibilty that I will plaster my walls with thousands of rejection letters, never to receive one of acceptance. Yet, there'll always be that hope for acceptance, and that in itself will make me happy. I'm not expecting to write an international bestseller, nor am I expecting to make millions with one novel. I am expecting to find true happiness.

People keep telling me that I have been given this talent so that i might develop it and use it to bless the lives of others. So, that's what I'm going to do. Here's my declaration to follow my heart; as a writer, a dreamer, a thinker, a lover . . . a unique me.