The Sum of Our Many Parts

I am...

a writer.
a journalist
a hiker.
a mountain biker.
an outdoor enthusiast.
a traveler.
an athlete. 
a singer.
an actress.
a reader.
a dreamer.
a crier.
a laugher.
a jokester.
a control freak. :)
a tree hugger.
a red head like her dad.
a "look alike" of her mom.
a wife.
a friend.
a daughter.
a sister.
a child of God.
an animal lover.
a believer.

I am the sum of all my
many parts...

I am complete and yet ever changing,

ever growing, ever becoming.

I am me.

WHO ARE YOU? Follow the same format and share!

The Definition of A Dream Fulfilled

Being the planner that I am, in high school I started a very detailed list of things I wanted to accomplish before I turned 30. One of those things was to be the next Katie Couric or Diane Sawyer, (my role models throughout high school and college). What can I say? I’ve been known to set my standards pretty high.

As it would be, my experience in broadcast journalism lasted just through my second college internship with a FOX affiliate in Rochester, Minnesota. Come graduation, I’d been told to submit my tapes to the station for a possible job. But as I reviewed my tapes, I kept hearing the words of my mentor from an earlier internship. “You have to love it,” she’d told me. And she did. But did I? When it came down to it, I loved aspects of it. The variety of material, the rush of a late-breaking story, the fast-paced nature of the business. But I realized I didn’t love telling stories through sound bytes and B-roll as much as I did through pen and paper.

Today, I received the nicest email from a woman I interviewed a few months ago for a story that ran in a local women’s interest magazine.

“We would just like to thank you for the wonderful article in the magazine this month. You really captured the story and the essence of our trip.”

Lately, I’ve been wondering if I made the right decision six years ago...or did I give up on my dream to soon out of self-doubt and fear? But that one little sentence, “You really captured the story and the essence of our trip” reconfirmed my belief in my decision.

Merriam-Webster defines a “journalist” as “a person engaged in journalism, especially a writer or editor for a news medium; a writer who aims at a mass audience.”

Huh. Funny, but that sort of sounds like me. I didn’t give up on my dream after all. On the contrary, I’ve been living it since my very first published byline. I just hadn’t noticed my growing collection of clips because I was too busy focusing on whether or not I’d made the right decision.

So what about you? Like me, have you been so focused on the should’ve, would’ve and could’ves of your life to fully embrace and celebrate those many stepping stone momentsbrought you to where you are today? 

Dreams aren’t a one-size only commodity. They come in a range of sizes, shapes and colors, and they aren't required to be flashy or expensive or carry any level of prestige (perceived or real). They are who you are. ake a moment to recognize each and every one for what they are and where they have brought you.

www.bysararae.com

Sometimes They Just Want A Burger

“Some people don’t always want steak. Sometimes they just want a burger.”


My husband has an uncanny knack for knowing just what to say to me...and when to say it. The problem is, at least for my ego, the moment at which he shares his insightful adages is NOT usually the moment my over-achieving self wants to acknowledge the truth behind his words. This moment was no different.


Still, I got it. He was telling me that everything doesn’t have to be perfect all the time—or any of the time for that matter. Sometimes a big, juicy, inexpensive hamburger is just as satisfying as a pricey, perfectly cooked steak. I didn’t want to admit it, but he was right.


What I do admit is that I am a perfectionist. In my head, I expect my life to unfold like the carefully scripted scenes in a movie, for the rooms in my home to look like those photographed in the pages of Real Simple or Better Homes & Gardens magazines. I’m a fan of BIG. I’m a fan of the unusual, the exciting and life’s mountain-top experiences.


But what I’m realizing is that there is a lot more worth noticing—and celebrating—between that first step at the base of the mountain and the view at the top. While on my quest to the summit, did I notice the lush side of the hill painted with wildflowers? Did I stop to sense the sun warming my skin? Did I hear the calls and songs of the birds in the trees?


Not to get too carried away with metaphors and imagery, but what I’m trying to say is that reaching the top of our mountains is really the result of all the smaller steps we’ve taken in between. It’s life’s “stepping stones” that bring us to our life’s milestones.


For years, I’ve put off writing a blog because I felt I didn’t have the “perfect” idea. What on earth could I write that people would want to spend even a minute reading? But lately, I’ve found myself wondering if it’s necessary for a blog to be of filet mignon status in order to be enjoyed. Maybe all readers really want is a blog the equivalent of a plain, ol’ satisfying burger. Something that is relatable...something that celebrates everyday commonness...something that recognizes the tiny successes hidden the little things.


So this is it. A place to share, remember and applaud life’s little joys and simple successes. A place to celebrate the small stuff...because in the end it’s the little stuff that makes up the big stuff.