“We write to taste life twice, in the moment and in retrospect.”
Anais Nin
I was never a good writer. Perhaps it stemmed from growing up speaking, reading, and writing two very different languages: English and Spanish. I would invert my adjectives, leave my participles dangling, and forget about remembering the order of a basic positive sentence. (I still don’t remember!)
My ability to write well began to change when I went through law school. I went to Chicago-Kent College of Law and one of the reasons I chose this school is because of its award-winning, five-semester legal writing program.
I actually wanted a rigorous writing program so I could learn to become a better writer.
At the time, I did not know that writing would become such a gift in my life. Over the years, I have used my writing skills to become a better communicator and student of life. I have used writing to help me process what I am feeling and seeing and I know it has helped me on my healing journey. In addition, writing has helped me connect with others. Whether it is writing a post on social media or sharing more deeply through my blog, writing has opened up a new world for me.
Writing has also allowed me to fulfill a lifelong dream: publishing a book. In 2018, I published an illustrated book called “Mama, Where is the Truth?“. Later, I went on to self-publish (through Amazon) a book called “The Evidence of Magic.” I would love to experience the creative process of writing another book, and I know it will happen when the time is write. (Misspelling is intentional.) :)
I share this because there was a time when I did not think I could write. I truly struggled with writing a sentence correctly. As much as I wanted to, I never thought I would actually publish a book, let alone two. I had a dream, yet the challenge of learning how to write felt insurmountable because it felt too hard.
Dreams are SO possible, yet sometimes we feel that if the dream doesn’t happen right away, it never will. And I hope that, through this story, you can start to see that your dreams truly are possible. You don’t necessarily have to go to law school to make them happen (unless that’s your jam!) but you most likely will have obstacles and challenges along the way.
And you know what? Those challenges and obstacles make the journey that much sweeter.
Cheers to your dreams. Cheers to the work it takes to get there. And cheers to knowing YOU absolutely, positively, indubitably CAN.
In awe of you,
Gabriela | The New Firm
www.thenewfirm.co
PS: I think one of the greatest inventions of all time is Grammarly. I have it installed on my computer because I still don’t know what a dangling participle is. :)
Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash