I had to see it for myself...I just could not believe it. I still do not fully believe it.
There it was though...I saw a big pile of them in Little Rock today and...well, I nearly passed out.
I am proud, thrilled, tickled, humbled, honored, but mostly I am stunned that I was asked to write for the December issue of Soiree under their "A Day In Little Rock" column. I have read and loved that column for so long...in fact, it is the main reason I have a subscription to Soiree and the first thing I read each month.
If you would like to read the article, there are two different ways to see it online (both links are below), and you can also still find the hard copy in and around Little Rock during the month of December ~
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| River Market Books & Gifts |
Rita and the wonderful ladies at River Market Books & Gifts had asked me to stop by the shop. So while in Little Rock the past two days, I made time to swing by and say hello (okay and shop a little :) ). I cannot say enough about how wonderful they were today. They had tried to get a note to me, and gave it to me in person today. I waited until I got home tonight to read it, and thank goodness. It brought me to tears.
It is funny how they want to thank me, and yet I am the one who should thank them. Before the story and today, they had never "known" me, yet they have always treated me like a friend every time I ever walked into their store (just like they do everyone). I have wonderful memories from there, and all I did was write about one afternoon I spent in there.
Customer service is not rocket science. We always want to define and label it, but it is something you have to live...Every. Day. It is a lot like Christianity. You can talk about being a good Christian, but if you are not walking the walk....you might as well save your breath because your impact will amount to zip.
I digress. :)
I hope this is the beginning of more published writing for me, but if it is not...if this one time is all there is...I am SO happy and blessed. As I told a friend tonight, I can remember reading "A Day In Little Rock" and thinking how cool it would be to write it one month (or every month :) ~ a girl can dream right?!). This month, today...I got to live that dream. It was SPECTACULAR!
So to Alex, Mollie, LaReina and Rita ~ Thank you! I wish you much more success and keep the magic of your store alive. It is very, very special. :)
I am so glad for dreams. I am so glad to not simply check something off of my bucket list....but I am truly glad to have this feeling. It is a strange sensation....you don't know whether to laugh or cry, but either way there is a BIG grin. :)
I would have NEVER imagined that this day would come. Never. I hope for you that you read this and think about something you have always dreamed of doing, and you are inspired to work towards fulfilling it. I'm telling you...the feeling is priceless. :)
I also want to say thank you to the ones who read this blog, but none more than Wesley. It was he who sat across from me at the beginning of 2011 and said, "You should do another blog." and I had a "Huh?!" look on my face. He continued anyway, "You should do it and just write...for you." Those words were a gift, and there is nothing I will ever be able to say or do to repay him for them. Writing this blog has been tremendously therapeutic. Who knew that, for this talker, writing my words were more effective than speaking them...sometimes. :) I had forgotten how much I loved to write, and if there hadn't been a blog...there would NOT have been the courage to write for publication. Of course publication is thanks to dear, sweet Elizabeth sharing my blogs with "people" letting them know they needed to read my stuff. I will NEVER know what possessed her to believe in me enough to do that...crazy, silly, pretty girl. :)
Dream Big!
That is the lesson for me today. If you are going to dream, make it a BIG dream. :)
Sunshine Dreams to You ~ Today and Every Day! :) Labels: River Market Books and Gifts, Soiree, Wesley
