Today is my sixth anniversary on WordPress. I can’t believe how far I’ve come since sitting down on a particularly benign day, and saying “Why not?” It was a harmless move and thought, and I can say I am BLESSED to have remained friends with several people who first started following me on my original blog. It remains up, but hasn’t been active in a few years because I’ve been here, working, writing, sharing, thinking, and making new friends and better memories.

This is one of my major priorities; writing and sharing things I feel are important to share with all of you. 2018 was an enormous challenge for me, but I am looking ahead and trying to manifest more positivity than ever before. I’m the same person, but I’m growing and I want to be able to share that growth.

I have multiple novels in progress. I am going to be finalizing the final draft for a romance novel soon. I am going to revisit the Dark Urban Fantasy series (eight books, laid out) and see if I can complete the first two in the series. It’s better to be over-prepared as a writer, as opposed to under-prepared, and forced into a 6-8 months completion deadline when you’ve only got 10-15% of book two laid out. Book one is the foundation and every time I read the manuscript, I feel like I’m sitting in a bookstore, immersed in someone else’s characters. When I reach the end and my name is there, it still shocks me. Maybe 2019 will bring me more literature surprises I never imagined possible.

Last Friday, Global Healthy Living Foundation and Fifty State Network called me to do Media Outreach. I returned the call and missed the call back, so I ended up e-mailing my contact there. Let me first say that this position is as a patient advocate. This is still a relatively new field, so not everyone who advocates has gone to law school or has a degree in nursing, etc. Is this something I’d be interested in pursuing from a “Go back to school” perspective? No. I feel like I have an incredibly solid hand on things as a pain patient, and a refreshing perspective. I have a powerful voice I’m not afraid to use, either.

My contact is incredibly impressed with me, but when I received his e-mail reply, I read it twice and was immediately annoyed. It felt like another organization only too happy to take advantage of my contacts, intelligence, knowledge, and business sense. Smart people do NOT like or respect being used, so I haven’t replied. If that’s how it feels, then I am accurate in my assessment. I’m sorry, but if you want to have me consult, assist, or do anything that involves using all of my talents, I expect to be paid for it. I can’t dumb myself down or allow people to take, take, take and leave me unable to grow. In turn, I have decided to reach out to some local advocacy groups, even if I temporarily intern for a while, because I know that all I have to do is impress the right person. I can’t tell you how many times I have impressed someone and gotten into something new, simply by being myself. I wish it were always as simple as that, but it isn’t. I firmly believe the right doors WILL open this time. The ones that don’t might very well be kicked down, but that’s one part of me which often makes an impression on others.

If you search hard enough, opportunities will present themselves. However, I don’t want to advocate full-time. I want to achieve the goals I set for myself. Most of them are centered around writing and the others are centered around breaking out of my comfort zone. Perhaps I’m already halfway there.

I can’t believe this year is near its end. I feel like we were just saying goodbye to 2017. Tempus fugit! Pretty soon, we won’t even be able to talk about cold weather (I’ve been kind of obsessed with the way it has been affecting me.). For me, each year is about hitting goals and making sure I grow as a person. This year I have rid myself of toxic people and energy that was of no service to that growth. Interestingly enough, supportive friends stepped up where flakes were left in the dust, and I’m incredibly grateful and appreciative for the friendships that have been built on true foundations. In friendship, no one wants to be used, either, and I was definitely being used. No more.

Thank you to everyone who reads my work, who clicks LIKE, who clicks FOLLOW, and who shares me with friends, family, etc. Thank you for the comments and e-mails. But most importantly, thank you for taking time out of your day to read my work. The Internet is a vast place, and I feel honored whenever someone new follows me or whenever someone sends me an e-mail and tells me how much something I wrote impacted their life. Those are treasured, precious moments that I keep in my heart each day.

When I sat down to write this, I was already feeling incredibly lost, depressed, overwhelmed, unhappy, and dark. These are normally things I would only discuss with my doctor. He got an earful yesterday, and instead of making me feel bad (Far too many doctors dismiss me and look at me like I’m crazy for being concerned for my own health. That’s a clear sign you need a new doctor!), he told me multiple times “You’re not crazy. You’re not losing your mind. You’re going through a lot of rough things, and we’re going to figure out how to fix that, together.” He was clearly a lion tamer in a past life.). But as the words began to flow tonight, a smile appeared on my face and the negative feelings lifted, even if only temporarily.

There is so much more to my story, to my journey, to my life. More than I probably know. But ultimately, the majority of my gratitude goes out to my readers. You’re all amazing, kind, supportive, and I hope we will continue to laugh together, cry together, and be real for many more years to come.

Thank you all SO much. I’m not much of a hugger, but consider yourselves all hugged tight tonight.

Much love,

copyright 2018 by Lisa Marino & Blackbird Serenity, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. All written work may not be re-posted anywhere without express written consent from the author. This authors’ work and personal photos are protected under United States and International copyright laws. Additional protection is covered under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.