Last August when my youngest of four left for college I thought my simmering writing career would finally boil. Instead of imagining fascinating new plots my mind lingered on the memory children I saw everywhere. They splashed down a slip-n-slide in the front yard, rode sheep in the barn, shuffled over the carpet in their footie pjs trying to shock each other. Always there is the echo of their laughter. Gratitude overwhelms me with a tinge of sadness.
In an old movie, “The Other Side of the Mountain,” Richard leaves his love promising to return to marry her saying, “What a privilege it is to love someone so much it hurts this badly to say goodbye.” He then dies in an airplane crash, but she remembers his words and finds comfort in them. My children haven’t died, but life as I knew it has changed forever.
My husband urged me to join Toastmasters International. That forced me to create speeches and helped my mind let some steam escape.
Last fall I also joined National Speakers Association (NSA), attended a writers retreat and the Pittsburgh Women Etcetera! Seminar. Networking from those events has lead to opportunities. I competed in the final round in Toastmasters’ Table Topics and Humor. Plus I taught a class at Point Park University through NSA. Characters converse in my mind again. I’m so excited my stomach churns. The lid on my simmering career dances.
carolmhamilton 