You have to own it

"Each time I write a book", says Maya Angelou, "I think, 'Uh, oh, they're going to find out now.  I've run a game on everybody and they're going to find me out."

I did some research to see exactly how many books Angelou has written and found at least 30.

Guess we haven't discovered anyone running a game when it comes to this renown author, poet, speaker, and who is, according to her website, a Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University (that's big to me; many years ago, a favorite pastime was walking on the campus of Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, North Carolina).

I think she's a writer - don't you?

How about Sarah Ban Breathnach, the author of one of my favorite books, Simple Abundance, A Daybook of Comfort and Joy.  In the pages of that book I read that after she had written her first book, she had a difficult time referring to herself as the writer of the book.

Breathnach was having a heart to heart with her sister, Maureen, who told her that  it was high time for her to own up to her talent.  Breathnach said that she had found comfort in thinking of herself as a wordsmith, not a "real writer".

My aunt, Beth Weitzel gave me this book many years ago.  I put it on the shelf thinking - I"ll read it one of these days.  Later a copy arrived from my friend, Deborah Fairchild Hansen and I thought "Hum - two people I value have thought I should read this...".  Better check it out.

So I did and it's been a daily encouragement to me - after devotional reading.  And sometimes, just like the words from Scripture help me, so do these words.

Especially this week the words  about owning my talent.

My what? Do I have talent?  I must.  At least others (my mother, my siblings, my children and other family members and now my friends, my peers and my editor) seem to think so and they have encouraged me beyond anything I ever dreamed.

I have written before of a writer's conference experience where I said "She's the writer" when talking about Deb Hansen.  She was a bit irritated with me as she said, "so why are you here?"

"Okay", I said, "I'm a writer".

I started saying it, told my children and grandchildren that when asked what their mother/grandmother does for a living to say "she's a writer", and I paid attention to what I was hearing.

So this is a formal acknowledgement .

I'm going to own it - I am a writer!

It's also a note of appreciation.  I would never try to name the people who have encouraged me in my quest to become a "real writer" but I so appreciate their support.  From  Ray to Rich to Coulter (with a couple 'of 'love interests' in between) and so many of  my family members and friends - especially Tamra, Sandy, Diane, Debbie, Virginia...you have me convinced.

So did the check that came from Beson4 publications :) and the contact pages on HealthSource, Mature Matters and North Florida Doctor - the ones that list the names of contributing writers and where I see the name Paula Huffingham-Suhey!