Sharing your gifts with others:

Sharing your gifts with others:

With the print copies of my novel The Burden of Destiny due to be released soon, (the beginning of November). I have been so excited to be able to share my experiences of becoming a published author with others while at the same time promoting my book release. I was so pleased when I was invited by my former high school, Essex High School in Vermont to come back and speak to four different English classes as well as being a part of the career panel to tell the students all about how the lessons that I learned at Essex helped me on my path to becoming a published author. 

(Below image the front of EHS)

At first I was so nervous about the idea of going back. Rewind about twenty two years, I was a fourteen year old scared kid entering what seemed like a huge building to start four years of HS. I went through grade school 1^st-8^th grades in one school with the same 30 kids so to leave that comfort and go to a much bigger building with over two hundred kids in my class alone was a big change. Some people in my eighth grade class were ready and excited for that change, but as for myself I was beyond nervous. I remember feeling invisible and so shy that I barely said anything to anyone. I was so worried that I would get lost on the way to class or not make any friends or say something embarrassing and people would laugh at me. I was practically scared of my own shadow. If someone had asked me then to stand up in front of classes of students and tell them about myself I would have nervously shook my head no. 

While preparing for my speeches at Essex all of these old memories came rushing back. I sat down and wrote a speech which was fairly easy to do, (I am a writer after all.) But then my father suggested that I put the speech into note format so that I was not reading it but making eye contact with the students instead. I took his advice and wrote out note cards. I practiced reading them a few times. I knew the basic talking points I wanted to include but I hadn’t spoken in-front of a group of people since finishing graduate school eleven years ago so it has been a long time.

While driving to the school I put the speech out of my mind and instead listened to my favorite band to amp myself up. Then I pulled into the school and my stomach started fluttering with nervous butterflies. As I walked in behind some students in my dress and heels I couldn’t help but smile the building was so similar to what I had remembered but seemed smaller somehow. I checked into the office and was given a visitor pass. Then I met with the career service director and was given a tour of their new library she also took me upstairs to meet the English teacher of the first and second classes that I would be talking to. Pretty soon it was time to give the speech. I stood at the front of the class of about thirty students and glanced around at their young faces. I was holding my note cards but at the last minute decided that I would rather just speak from the heart so that is what I did. It was not a polished speech but an honest one about my life’s journey and how I became an author. Then we started a question and answer portion and I was surprised at how quickly the students raised their hands, eager to ask different questions. Some had had questions prepared but after listening to me decided to ask something else. Some asked their prepared question. But all of them were well thought out, genuinely good questions and the students seemed engaged and happy to have me there. After almost everyone in the class had asked a question and there was nothing left to say the teacher thanked me and the students clapped and I left and walked to the teacher bathroom. As I glanced at myself in the mirror I smiled and thought. Wow, I did it! 

(Below image the EHS Library) 

The rest of the day was the same. I spoke to three more classes and a group of students in the library for Career Talks and was treated to lunch in the executive teacher dining room. I was so thrilled and proud to come back and share my story with the students and receive such a positive warm welcome in return. I felt like after all these years I had conquered my fear of high school and proved to myself that I am a successful person who can be an inspiration to the younger generation. I couldn’t help thinking of Isobel (my main character) she is so full of doubt in the beginning of the novel and her mentor tells her, “Isobel, don’t worry so much. I know that you doubt yourself right now. You feel that you are young and inexperienced in the ways of the world but please trust me…You, if anyone, can accomplish this goal. That is why...we all believe in you. You must believe in yourself, however, in order to truly be successful.” I believe in myself especially now, do you believe in yourselves dear readers? You should. Until next time remember, writing=happiness ;).

P.S. I’ll be returning to Essex and other schools in Vermont again, hopefully in January 2017. I am looking forward to it, thank you again Principal Reardon and Pam Hemingway and all of the other staff at EHS.