Making Strides

The one thing that has always held me back in life is confidence. Talking to people, especially of the opposite sex, or trying new and unusual things, even the simplest things like climbing ladders ... all of them have been difficult at times because of my lack of confidence.

Now I admit, it certainly isn't as bad as it used to be. When I was young, I didn't have much at all. Over the years, it's improved greatly thanks to working at a retail level for so long. When you're forced to talk to people you don't know, suddenly any issues you have with people go out the window ... and that's a good thing.

Still, despite that improvement, I still have problems. I shy away at times when confronted with issues that are uncomfortable. At times, that confidence level has had a word or two against my writing, which of course leaves me hanging while attempting to get me going.

So imagine my relief when, in my first attempt to have one of my own creative pieces published ... IT WAS PUBLISHED! Grok magazine, in fact, decided my poem was worthy of a print in its first issue of 2012. And you have no idea how good it feels.

It's one thing to be published, it's another to feel that sense of recognition that, yes, you're good enough to be just that. It's a monkey off my back, and hopefully it's a sign of big things to come. In the meantime, I'm happy. I hope that lasts too.