Good news, good vibes

It's been a long, tough year for me, hence the blog hiatus. It started with influenza A in January. Influenza B in February, and then a stomach flu in March. Then a bad car wreck in April that I have not since recovered from emotionally. My hubby had surgery in June. And I had my first root canal ever in August. What should've been a 45-minute procedure turned into a 2.5-hour harrowing ordeal. I'll spare you the gory details. In the midst of these aforementioned adversities, there has been more cons than pros at times, and despite some intense efforts to stay positive I still ended many days asking "Why me?" Needless to say, I've fallen short on my reading and writing goals of late. I'm always struggling to stay afloat.

When I least expected it, something wonderful happened today that gave me the boost I needed to pick up my pieces and carry on.

So, I won a contest on SMITH Magazine's Six Word Memoirs (SWM). You can view the announcement here - Contest: Why I Love Where I Live. I posted a photo of me as a child standing yards away from the Space Shuttle Challenger. The contest called for a photo and backstory for the theme. I wrote about Houston, the Space City, and why I love it so much and feel proud to call it home.

Here is the link to my winning backstory and six-word memoir "There's always space in my hometown." The irony is that through all these tough months, I had a long lapse in posting on the site and hadn't entered any contests for months. I missed being a part of the SWM community and decided to log in and see what they had going on. I posted this last week as my only entry, and it won the backstory portion of the contest. I hope SMITH Magazine knows that it is also a place I consider home. It has been a great source of inspiration and support to me as a writer.

I'm sharing this as an example of why writers should never give up. Even after a lengthy drought, opportunities and milestones still lie in wait. Only our greatest efforts can take us there.

I'm so grateful for this 3-day weekend. I know what I'll be doing, for the most part.

Happy writing.

Day two of the new year. As with each new year, I feel a renewed sense of enthusiasm about pretty much everything. I don't bother setting resolutions, but rather keep the idea of them in the back of my mind. I want to write more, read more, stay more positive, shun negativity, submit more stories, enter more writing contests, meet more people, learn new things, get better at writing, make more paper flower designs, be a better human overall.

New endeavors this year, well. I started keeping a handwritten journal like I did when I was much younger. It's fun, nostalgic, and will help me remember things. I've updated my blog with this post. I've eaten healthy so far this whole year (ha!). And today, I go back to work after a 2-week holiday break, better after having the flu.

Reading wise, I am on book 4 of the Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire series that became the show True Blood. So far so good. I met Charlaine Harris at a Story Con event in NOLA in 2016, so it's nice to read her work finally. Talented lady and such an inspiration.

Not a bad start to 2018. Let's see what else it brings.