Be Accountable

Accountability. That is a scary word. Seriously. Life is full of accountability, and I like to beat myself up. I would prefer to just flow along in a rubber tube, ruffling no feathers, quietly existing, and no accountability, but I have to be realistic.

That rubber tube still gets used but not nearly as often as it used to. Ruffling feathers has become my job as a mother as I try to keep my children on that narrow path. I hate you is a compliment. I strive for the “angry” outbursts, the I hate yous, because they make me accountable. As for writing, I am the only one I am accountable to, and I have to admit that while I am finding some completion in my writing, I think I am copping out, too.

You see recently, I made some new writing friends through a writing meme called Master Class. Three others and I were the only ones to link up consistently each week. We became the Fab Four. We have started collaborating on stories. I started the second one, currently waiting for its conclusion. Why is this important?

Because I went to my file and found a story I really wanted to finish and added more to it, edited it, polished it, and used it as a starting point for the other three.

I copped out.

I did the same thing when my friend asked me to start her Story Circle. Instead of writing something new, I dove into my files and wrote more on a piece that has been sitting there for almost two years.

You know what is significant about that? They are baby steps. I will claim them as victories. The stories got used, were written, and will get finished. COMPLETION, baby, yeah!

This month, courage and cherish kind of go hand in hand. Writing goals had no cherish, but I had the courage to collaborate with others, to stick my neck out there and submit a story for a new audience.

The biggest aspect of courage this month was in regards to my family. Life has not been easy of late and I have had to make some hard decisions (I am not ready to disclose). These decisions have taken a lot out of me, but they took courage too. I am proud of myself for being courageous enough to admit that things needed to change. I am proud of myself for being courageous enough to address those areas and stand my ground in ensuring change.

In the process, I am learning to cherish what I have more than ever.

So at the end of the day, at the end of the first month of 2013, I can honestly say that I have made small strides to meeting my goals this year. All of the above is also proving to strengthen my faith. I have stayed more positive, yelled less, loved more, and shared more than ever before.