I have a reminder that goes off each Monday at 8:30am. The reminder says, "Write a Thank You Note".
I have a friend I met in college. We worked the box office at a movie theater together. We bonded over 80s music and Harry Potter. She was always creative. She could paint. She knew how to work a sewing machine, which was -- and still is -- completely foreign to me. She made her own Halloween costumes. But always side projects. She went to school to be a nutritionist, then worked as a personal trainer and then in a hospital before becoming a stay-at-home-mom, which is what she enjoys the most. In this role, I've seen her decorate nurseries and create intricately designed birthday cakes.
A few years ago she asked me to take a look at a draft of a children's story she'd written and was thinking of entering into a contest. It was a beautiful piece about a child's first plane ride. I recently had lunch with her and she has another story that she's working on. She's thinking of joining a writer's circle for feedback. And she's terrified.
She recognizes that she needs this push. I think she told me because saying things out loud have a way of making them more real. And also so I will ask about it next time I see her.
I love her for this. I love people who have an idea inside them but they aren't sure how to make it come to life. I love seeing that excitement. That petrified joy of doing something they love and hoping someone else loves it, too.
And she shared that with me. It was a reminder for me to keep searching for that passion. That petrified joy.
And that's why I wanted to thank her.
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