Reframe

Recently a friend contacted me after reading my blog and asked why after 20+ years, he didn’t know this person – this Grace – from which sprung my voice.  My response to him was that I hid my voice (unconsciously) and for various reasons had not shown up for myself in my life as I was supporting everyone and everything else.  It was the nature of my upbringing and how I learned to cope with life.  The pain of that hiding in essence propelled me forward as pain is the great awakener.  It is to this awakening that I have responded, knowing that my gifts and talents are unique and there can be no other expression in the world like mine.  There is only one Me, as there is only one You.  It is all a matter of how we choose to tell our story and sing our song.  How do You view yourself?  When considering who am I, there is always one key question – Shall I repeat or reframe? 

I am a writer.  My journey is one of healing on the road to self-love.  I have responded to an inner urge to be “authentic.”  It is as simple as that.  I could describe my accolades, saying what I’ve accomplished in spite of my challenges and obstacles.  I could tell you about my hometown, what schools I attended, and what brought me to be the person that I am.  Also worth nothing might be where I live and what I do for a living.  Certainly, telling you my story and sharing my traumas, wounds and triumphs is a common theme today.  But would all that really tell you about Me?  Shall I recite or reframe?

As a writer, I am the author of my own story and I am free to create a masterpiece.  I can choose a story that supports me and my creativity, and thus sharing my story becomes quite simple versus a complicated assortment of landmarks, events, milestones, successes and disappointments.

My story is simple – Writing is my passion.  The form is irrelevant – be it creative, business, professional or academic – writing simply comes naturally for me.  I didn't go to school to learn about writing.  It is my gift, my natural talent, my joy and the core of who I am.  Since I was a young girl, I loved any subject that allowed me to write.  I especially loved English, Reading, Religion and Physical Education.  Participating in spelling bees, and writing book reports or research papers was exciting for me.  I’d sneak away to read the Encyclopedia (dating myself) because I loved learning, and writing about what I learned.  I simply loved taking words and synthesizing them into works of art.  I loved bringing words to life.

I didn’t keep a traditional journal as a child, but I’ve always had some form of writing mechanism to capture my thoughts and ideas.  I’d read poetry, rewrite it, and then create my own.  I also loved music and would listen to a song many times in order to learn the lyrics so that I could write them down and see how the words fit together rhythmically.  I’d write with any instrument I could get my hands on – pencil, pen, crayon, marker, chalk, you name it. 

During challenging times, I found writing to be a form of self-soothing.  Perhaps, this is what led me to start my official journal writing as a young adult.  As I grew older, the gift of writing naturally formed into a way to assist and edify others.  As a way to glorify God, it birthed itself into poetry and creative writing.  As I matured into adulthood, I began to freely help others with writing projects because it was something I enjoyed and performed well with little effort.  It became, and still is, my gift of service.  Interestingly, I was named after my great aunt, Sister Grace Maria, which some say is indicative of my calling – maybe or maybe not.
 
It is my mission to share my divine creations and to assist in the empowerment of others on the journey to self-love; for it’s the journey that I am most experienced.  Through the adventures of my life, and its joys and pains, I have returned to myself.  I have awakened and fully remember the reasons I am alive.  My adventures have made me who I am and who God wants me to be.  I am a healer.  I am love and light.  It is my purpose to bring blessings wherever I go.  It is the Grace that was bestowed upon me, and the Grace that I am, that ignites my desire to give and love unconditionally.

Along my journey I have earned a Master of Science degree, completed 23 years of government service, worked as a community college adjunct faculty member, and have achieved many awards and acknowledgements.  Publishing my first book – Psalms of Grace: Poems and Songs of Inspiration – is my treasure.  Publishing my second book -- Soul Songs, is my desire.  I am also a proud mother, loving daughter, and inspiring friend.

Today, I am a graduate student of Counseling Psychology with a concentration in the Creative Arts.  I have selected this path because my mission is not only to share my divine creations; it is also to help others find their own creations within and to support them as they reframe their own stories into masterpieces.  My success is not defined by money; it is defined by the extent in which my work is aligned with my Divine Purpose.  Writing and sharing my authentic voice keeps me aligned with that purpose.

I am a writer.  I am Love.  I am Grace.  It’s that simple.

Who are you?  What can you look at, present, or think of in a new or different way?  Will you repeat, recite or reframe?

Grace