Over the Edge

In January 2014, someone I consider a friend, and happened to be my boss at the time, asked me to do something that scared me to death. He asked me to actually use my degree and write some articles and try to get them published. After talking to my husband about this, who encouraged me and told me I could do it, I knew I couldn’t say no; but I didn’t know if I could do it. I knew I had to challenge myself and agree to try. I was scared to death; over the edge.

I not only said I would try, I did it, and the first thing I wrote made it into the Trib. No by-line, but it was mine. I wrote it. The second thing I wrote was published in The Enterprise. I called my parents and told them that I was finally being paid to write and that degree they paid for, back in 1988, was finally being used.

This lead to more bravery.

I quit my job, (sorry friend), and started writing full time for The Enterprise, 26 years after graduating with a journalism degree. He pushed me to the edge and I jumped. And when I landed on my feet, I ran.

Since then, I have slowly become a person that I sometimes don’t know. But I like her a lot. I have pushed myself to do what some people might think is not brave at all; but to me it was heart-racing and uncomfortable, but when it was over I was left, standing, in my new shoes, upright and alright, and better for it.

After all, Marilyn Monroe said, “Give a girl the right shoes, and she can conquer the world.”

These things that challenge me, could hold me back or I could push through them and have new experiences and success, either by writing a new story or going to new places, and sometimes both. The momentary fear is scary but by pushing myself, I push toward the payoff.

Darling, let’s be adventurers.

I have now done new-to-me-things like go to the Food Truck Showdown, the Waco Downtown Farmers Market, eaten lunch by myself in public, attended events by myself for the paper, taken my dogs to a dog park by myself, walked in a pet walk for charity, went to London with my daughters without my husband and I interviewed Waco Police Spokesman Patrick Swanton. I have also spoken to Sheriff Parnell McNamara, and called people on the phone that I didn’t want to but had to for a story. Simple things for some. Over the edge for me.

And sometimes, I bring my daughters along, pushing them, also, which helps me be braver.

The Over the Edge for Communities in Service event was the biggest by far. When I was asked if I wanted to rappel down ten stories, 138 feet down the Texas Life Building, as a media person, I was shaking in these new shoes I now wear. Thrilled, excited, heart-racing and scared to death, all at the same time. Who am I? All for a story. For charity. For all those kids that CIS-HOT help challenge daily and help graduate. I can do this, I told myself.
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Well, I did do it. I am proud of myself but still a bit in shock that I did it at all. While walking backwards, down the perpendicular sidewalk, gripping for dear life, praying to get to the ground safely, I realized I am now a different person because I stood up to me fears, conquered them and lived. On to the next metaphorical cliff.

Thank you, Dr. Marc Faulkner, for pushing me, out, over the edge.

 

 

*So this, my first blog post, is an editorial that I wrote for The Hometown News, a weekly-small-town-newspaper that covers Waco and all small towns in McLennan County. I was reflecting on how I seem to be growing as a person, a writer and how I am trying to “push” myself daily. My life has changed since I began writing.  I feel I have been a writer my entire life but put it aside while I did the most important job of my life-raise my three blessings, otherwise known as children.  And I strongly believe in “All in His time.”

Writing a blog has been a dream of mine for about a year.  I took another leap over the edge with this. Bucket list stuff.  I always say “but I have nothing to write about” and still maybe I don’t. I may never write another post, or I may write everyday.  At this point who knows.

love and blessings~dd