An apology…and a brief explanation…
Thank you to every single one of you kind souls who continue to visit this little website of mine. I’m sorry. I confess I have neglected it this spring and summer, and I would hate to see myself do the same for the coming fall and winter.
To bring you up to speed, Pop Up Poetry (#PopUpPoetry & #RhetoricalRedhead on other social media platforms) has grown and expanded and taken off in such leaps and bounds which I never dreamed of experiencing in the first year after launching this endeavor. This summer has been a complete blur with gigs and activities and networking and meetings and events and festivals and markets and side jobs and late nights and early mornings and everything in-between. To say the least, the hubs and I are quite ready for a break…for things to slow down a titch. (Oh yeah…and there was that random trip to the ER this summer which threw the proverbial wrench into all the works. Read at your own risk.)
I admit I wasn’t ready for the onslaught of ‘busyness’…perhaps I didn’t think I was good enough to gain any traction in the first few months. (Like any writer, we all have this weird thing with self-esteem and self-worth issues. Fears and self-destructive thinking. We aren’t a depressed lot, but we sure know how to back ourselves into a corner of “well by golly, there’s no way little ol’ ME could do that!”…yes, we are very good at that.) And so I learned my lesson to never doubt my abilities and that the simple act of believing in myself can go a very, very long way.
Before you know it, I’m busking the streets, handing out poems to the locals and passerby, getting involved in the community, collaborating with other creatives and businesses, and even landing a writing gig with our local, independently run newspaper. I handle the arts & entertainment, and food & drink portion of things, as well as manage the events calendar (as if I wasn’t busy enough??). Apparently I like to see how far my limits stretch, because to top it all off, I’m delving into the research stage of an historical fiction novel which has been on my mind for some time. I finally feel like I’m finally “doing it.” I’m doin’ the freelance thing! Look, Ma! No hands!
Of course, there’s plenty more going on, but honestly who cares at this point–I’ve already bored you with the mundane details of my insane summer. It’s okay, I stop listening to myself, too, sometimes. That being said, I wanted to let you all know I am alive and well and kicking and screaming and loving it all. It’s been absolutely bonkers, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I’ve met some wonderful people, and have had some remarkable experiences. Now that things are calming down (and I’ve learned to say “no” when I can’t take on any more), I’m really itching to get back into writing on my blog/website. I wish to continue with short narratives, some Pop Up Poetry stories, reviews of local establishments and activities, and even include some of the articles I write for the local paper (if I deem them interesting enough).
Again, thank you, and bless you for your patience and grace while I figure out how to do whatever it is I am doing. 🙂
Warmest regards,
Jessica
(Just a handful of photos below from my summer adventures. More to come.)
