It’s Been a Decade
I have been seeing people post their decade in review in various forms of social media, and it got me thinking, what would mine look like?
I love to travel, so I could give details of all the places I’ve been, but as I thought, that seemed too showy. The “look at me” mentality slapped me in the face. The irony is, I’m posting a blog which is all about me, flashy or not.
I could look back and write of the relationships that have come and gone. Not for any ill-will, but just the nature of the beast as people flow through life like a changing of seasons, while some pass more quickly like a lightning storm or a nice spring breeze. These dots on the timeline of wise words spoken or lessons learned are just as memorable as driving along the coastal highways of Ireland.
One thing that comes to mind in the last decade is the belief in a dream. A dream that would appear ludicrous to some, but for me, it was a calling to the heart in the darkened nights.
I love to write. Give me a moment of quiet, whether it be at home or a jog or a brief drive in the car and my mind goes off on tangents at an unbelievable rate of speed. I try to scribble my thoughts down, but too often when I reread them, they are just words on a page. It’s like the passion and adrenaline evaporated, but the blue ink remains on the napkin or old notepad. And that’s where many of my first steps in the last decade occurred. In those moments when a spark would ignite something that is beyond all reason. I had a decision with each match to fan the flame or blow it out.
2010 – I finished my first book in the prior decade and was rejected by everyone. Publishers and agents looked at me like an annoyance. I put the book in my closet. My heart sank, but another idea sprang up. I wrote Achieve Your Dreams. My dream wasn’t achieved, ironic, isn’t? Rejection after rejection once again.
2011 – I continued to send Achieve Your Dreams to agents and publishers because I felt God gave me this book to encourage others. Apparently, I was the only one who thought that. So while I was pursuing that book, I wrote another book, Intertwined. In the fall I started sending it out to agents and publishers. Zilch.
2012 – I felt defeated. 3 books written and I couldn’t see any fruit to the labor. So I started journaling with no purpose. Journaling just to write my thoughts and reflections. Journaling my prayers became an outlet.
2013 – No new books, but writing songs became my focus. I loved the idea of crafting a story in a 3 to 5 minute span. Submitted some of them to people. No response.
2014 – I didn’t send anything out to publish. I came to a spot in life where I was content writing for my own enjoyment. But I continued to pull out my old stories and reread them. I still thought they were pretty good.
2015 – Writing was my time to lean into God. I didn’t need approval of men, because my heart was open to Him. My songs became more worship filled lyrically. Behind my piano and guitar was where I felt whole because I hardly shared them with anyone. It was rare. But I was happy singing only to Him.
2016 – Took a trip to Washington DC with my parents which inspired my book Solomon’s Dreams. I was nervous since the last three books didn’t pan out the way I had hoped. However, I finished the book in late autumn and waited for a few friends and family to read it. They liked it.
2017 – Started sending it out to publishers and agents once again. “It’s an interesting premise, but since you’ve never been published, we are going to pass.” Once again my heart sunk. That’s when I started researching self publishing. I got connected with an editor who was going to look the book over.
2018 – My editor liked the book. So I spent the summer improving the book. In September I released my first book. People were surprised that I wrote and many people approached me on how I did it. Suddenly, the book I wrote back in 2010 resonated in my heart. I wanted to help others achieve their dreams. I gave the book to my editor to look over.
2019 – My editor liked the book and I renamed it Dream Chasers. As my editor was working on that book, I picked up my other book from 2011 and reread it. I still liked it. So in August of 2019 I released Dream Chasers and I gave my editor Intertwined to look over. So far, she is liking it. I also finished Solomon’s Dreams 2 in the autumn. In November I started writing a new book, a book that has been haunting me for years to write.
2020 – I do not know what the future holds, but if everything goes as planned I will have 2 books out in 2020.
I’m not writing this to boast, but to fan the flames in your life. The decade wasn’t easy, but I didn’t give up. I’m not where I want to be, but I am a whole lot closer now than I was ten years ago.
I hope you can say the same. And if not, make the next decade better than the last! Life is too good and too short to just hope on the sidelines. Get yourself out there. You may feel like a fool, but who cares, it may lead to something bigger. And if it doesn’t, you won’t live with the gnawing question of “What if?”
So if you can dream it, you can do it!
Peace and Dream Big!
