Your Gift

I love quotes. Some are witty, some are plain silly or even dumb and on the rare occasion, we find ourselves hearing something quite inspirational. This week, I had a friend send me one I haven’t read before by Helen Keller and it reads, keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow.

This quote really resonated me for several reasons. One, I’m an optimist, so I tend to look at the bright side of a situation anyway. Two, we have all been dealing with quite a bit this year (and if reading this haven’t been affected in any way or form then I’m wondering if you live under a rock)—some more than others—and either way, we may just be ready for a sanity check. And three, I’m convinced that during the more difficult times, it is absolutely necessary to search out a direction forward. It doesn’t mean that this is an easy solution but what good does wallowing do to get you out of the darkness? And admittedly, I know I’m making this sound easy and it is not. I really don’t think it is easy and I also don’t believe we can all come out of these more difficult situations alone. We need help and we need friends and we need wise words.

So this week I have an ask for all you authors, writers, poets, wordsmiths out there… for all of you who know the power of words… use them to help those around you. Cheer a friend up or give them some sage advice. Paint a picture of a time when there is much less suffering and more celebrating—give us something to aspire to. Create a world where we can get lost, if only for an hour or two. Use your gift.

Have a safe week and happy writing!