Staying the path

This morning, I'm drinking my espresso and giving some gratitude to the universe. This month has started off grand. School is starting and although I am only taking one class (a workshop with Professor Juyanne James), I know it will be both fun and low key. I also just received a grant and had a panel accepted with a bunch of my favorite writers for AWP in Kansas City. 

Now I am not a Pollyanna at all, but everything is going so well. It's a little scary. They say when you find your purpose, life is easy. And right now it is. Even my work as a deputy public defender, which everyone knows can be challenging at best, has been particularly rewarding. It's as if I found my mojo.

The trick, at least in my opinion, is finding your groove and just going with the flow. I've pulled back on events a bit. I am trying not to overwhelm myself, which is what I tend to do, and staying true to me and my mission. 

Just a few years ago, I was in crisis, plagued by health issues and feeling like I would never finish my longer book which I'd been laboring over for a decade. I had to take a medical leave from work and have a very invasive surgery. Thankfully, my publisher Frank was very supportive and gave me more time, and then I re-edited the book (working backwards) and at the last minute I included some older poetry (from a collection I'd put together and stuck in a drawer), making both of my books hybrid. It was as if a higher power intervened to help me over the finish line and poof, it all came together! 

I suppose what I'm saying is don't give up. It may be a cliche, but it really is always darkest before the dawn. The sun will rise and throw big golden hues your way if you persevere. Just stay on the path and I promise you'll get there. You will get there. You will.