These were the words that sent me hurtling over the inspirational edge to start writing again.

And for the first few weeks, I found the “Wows” all over the place – maybe not every day – but often enough to be satisfied.

The “Wows” first came in the form of the blogs themselves. The words flowed non-stop and frequently elicited intense emotions and pride that I hadn’t experienced in years.  I would wake up in the middle of the night to start working through an idea or jump out of the shower to jot down my thoughts just in case the idea was so fleeting that I’d miss it.

Digital publisher IRIS.xyz graciously accepted me as one of their regular contributors. Another “Wow.”

And writing coach Amy Brooks allowed me to join her Write for ME forum to share my work and gather insights from the group.

Notes and pointers from family, friends and colleagues acknowledging my work and offering new opportunities followed, giving me the “Wows” to keep moving forward.

One “Wow” even came when I found the nerve to message blogger Playdates on Friday by Whitney Fleming  for some pointers, only to realize that we went to elementary school together.

It was all so thrilling that I wanted to play hooky from work just so I could get my fix. But the reality was that I had to choose between the job that fed my soul and the one that fed my kids.

And the “Wows” suffered most, arriving to me in ebbs rather than flows. The ideas slowed as much as the correspondence and there was only one person to blame.

Me.

Even my best intentions to sit down and put in the time were dammed (or damned) by life’s routines–not surprising when you are raising two kids and have a full-time job.

There are dinners to make, activities that require rides, book reports to complete, homework to be done and snuggles to be had.

At first I thought that life’s interruptions meant that I just wasn’t cut out for writing, or that I just didn’t have the hustle or desire to really pull it off.

But then I realized that some (maybe most) days the hustle just has to be put elsewhere.
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And sometimes getting to the end of the day with a few items checked off the list and without anyone having a meltdown just has to be “Wow” enough.