I almost threw myself a pity party yesterday, complete with blue streamers and “woe is me” punch. Luckily I connected with some friends who helped me to realize how good I actually had it. What happened was that I “forgot” to write a gratitude list! When I skimp on my daily spiritual practice (morning prayer, meditation, writing and gratitude) I begin to focus on the problems I face, which are really luxury problems. One of the pipes in my house is leaking and my toilet isn’t working and I live on my own so I have to deal with the icky stuff myself. That is the only thing that I can consider difficult today. And I was feeling sorry for myself. So I set out to address invitations to my pity party. I figured I could have snacks and maybe a game or two. I am writing this sitting in front of a fire in my beautiful apartment on a gorgeous, crisp, winter day. I have a brilliant red cardinal visiting my feeder and two cats curled up on my lap. And all I have to do is call the plumber. Yes, I am getting over myself. I will write my gratitude list, offer up a prayer of thanks to God for this fabulous life, eat a nice nutritious lunch and watch the cardinals at the feeder. Time to put those invites away, until next time.
● About Me
I wrote and published my first blog post on May 26, 2009. I was about to turn 36 and had been accepted to Mount Holyoke College as a non-traditional student, on my way to completing a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Medieval Studies. I had managed, finally, to know what general direction I was traveling. As a self proclaimed voracious reader I knew that I needed a vocation that would allow me to engage daily with words: reading words, writing words, and hearing words. I also needed to eat, so I navigated my way to a teaching position and I began to fine tune my craft. I love to teach and I love my students, but I also needed to continue to hone my own literary technique, voice, and style. I continued my education in order to delve deeper into literature, making connections, and most definitely, writing. I gained more confidence as a reader as well as a writer of both creative and analytical text. That first blog post in 2009 is short, the writing average, and the topic mundane, but as I continued to learn from other writers I began to understand that to become a better writer I needed to write more. Each time I write and release a poem, a post, or a story, I hone my skills. I invite you along for the ride, for this journey of mine as I attempt to wrangle a wealth of ideas and competing directions into an organized freshly paved path to publication. I might get distracted along the way, but sometimes those detours lead us to amazing views and new friends.
Laura Smith Writer 
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