Mile Markers

Imagine the hundreds of miles, hundreds of minutes it took to get home to a family. The family that took hundreds of days to build itself with tears that smeared mascara and stained blankets, screams that shook the walls, and toasts that made everyone smile because when a family gathers, everyone is happy.
Thanksgiving is tomorrow. Lock up your turkeys --it's dangerous outside. All the thanks I would like to give. Lets start from the beginning.

• Thank you Denver School of the Arts for rejecting me, twice. If I didn't burn the letter of reject on a patio of a two bedroom apartment, I would have never been so down to notice a flyer. 
• This brings me to my next thank, thank you Alice Aldridge-Dennis for hosting my first conference. If it wasn't for the free pitch there and the array of workshops, I would have never felt like a writer. Alice also made it possible for me to feel like a success. 
• At the Castle Rock Writer's Conference, I met Trai Cartwright. Trai gave me the opportunity to share, during her workshop, my character idea. She thought it was a hit and this gave me motivation after thinking I was a failure. From there, I went to create my novel which Trai edited. But Trai helped me much more than just there. She helped me get a footing in the industry --she was my guide up until I met Nancy Stohlman. 
• Before Nancy, I stumbled across Phil Whitmarsh. He was the one who told me to start this cooky blog. More importantly, he helped me understand self-publishing.
• After calling broken link after broken link of poetry readings, Nancy answered my plead for a new area to sell. Nancy, luckily, was getting ready to start a new online workshop for writers. For the next three months, I worked with Nancy every week. She taught me selling, she taught me persona, she taught me how to be a published author.
• One place that deserves a special thank-you is The Mercury Cafe. There is no way I can thank all the people who work there. A big thank-you for offering readings and letting my sweaty palms hold their mic as a reader.

Recently, my life picked up. There is a laundry list of people to thank. My father for motivating me and my mother for supporting me. Also, the wonderful workers, that of the libraries across Colorado and conferences across Colorado, for offering opportunities I never dreamt of. Never have I ever thought I would be speaking at conferences about my journey.

Thankfully, I am. 

 My journey has been a miracle. I thank everyone who has helped me and will continue to appreciate them no matter how big my head gets. This is just the beginning and I hope next year, my list will be even longer. Like any story, mine had a rocky beginning. I know what rough is and I do not wish what I went through upon anyone. Instead, I want to inspire. We are all successful, we all have passion for something. Passion is all we need. How can we love unless we love what we do? My success came from two rejections enclosed in white envelopes. Don't let failure ruin passion. Failure is a mile marker. What happens when we run out of mile markers? We arrive to where we need to be. My journey had two mile markers before I realized I was on the right road and pushed forward. Your road might have a few more but your destination is still waiting.