I had the opportunity to read at a local pediatric doctor's office this week. It was my first in-person reading of 2024 and sometimes I forget how much fun it is to read a book I created and be able to share it with others. There was a family in attendance with three kids. The youngest little boy was named Tucker, which was exciting for him to feel like he was a part of the story. His older brother dressed in a T-Rex outfit from head to toe—so we had T-Rex and Tuck in attendance that night! They also had an older sister. Although I missed her name, our conversation at the end of the reading was memorable. She asked me what it was like to write my own book. We talked for a minute or two and she told me how much she enjoys writing. She talked about her favorite book and her and her brother told me how much they love to read. As someone who truly wants reading books to be a big part of every child’s life, it was wonderful to hear how much these siblings love books.

The event didn’t have a huge turnout, but the point of these readings is to impact little readers. I feel like I accomplished that goal this week. I truly appreciate families taking time out of their busy schedules to come to my readings and the joy on everyone’s faces when we recite the positive affirmations at the end. Before that particular family left, the little girl asked me if she could take a selfie with me…she said she wanted to tell all of her friends that she met a real-life author. Little did she know how much it meant to me to be referred to as one. We go through childhood with ambitious dreams and aspirations, but somewhere along the way, we lose sight of what gives us the spark. Whether the spark is a creative one or something else entirely doesn’t matter. Sometimes as I am working on a new project or a new idea, I think to myself, why? Why are you doing all of this? What’s the point? But then I remind myself that it’s important because it’s part of my spark and I don’t want to lose it. And then I have a conversation with a little girl that brought so much joy to both of us and I can feel excited for what is to come. I can stop listening to my internal dialogue asking myself why and instead tell myself, why not?

We usually don’t realize the impact we have on other people in our day-to-day lives, but if I can positively impact one child per reading, it’s worth it to me. I hope 20 years from now I get a message from a woman telling me about her latest book with an old photo included of a much younger-looking me from a reading in a pediatric doctor’s office. What a ripple effect that would be.

I have been reading, A Year of Positive Thinking, by Cyndie Spiegel and it’s one passage a day for the year to help train yourself to view your life more positively. I wanted to share the passage from January 23rd.

‘Be kind—often
Life isn’t always easy, and you have no idea what other folks
are experiencing
Your truth is yours. Leave space for someone else’s too.
Trust in people.
Believe in what you can’t see.
Know that the world is an inherently beautiful place.
Believe that you are exactly as you’re supposed to be.
Trust your journey.
Be a force for good sh*t.
And for the love of all things holy, be kind.’

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, happy reading and GO CHIEFS!