Feet First

Dee Pardo
Apr 11, 2017
3 min read

If you had asked me two years ago if I wanted to publish a little story that I imagined, I would have easily said "That's a nice idea, but I wouldn't even know where to start." Forward 2 years later, I still feel at a lost. But there was only one thing I could do and that was learn.

Every so often we become comfortable in life; complacent even. For some, that is enough. However, I am far from some. I am always looking for new ways to challenge myself. What is the newest thing that can bring me out of my element? I've learned to bake, cake decorate, knit, and crotchet. I will even include motherhood under this set of personal challenges (because there is always something new to learn and push you to the limit everyday).

But who knew that my enjoyment in writing and my innate gift to gab could be combined as a new experience for me? As an teenager, I wrote poetry as an escape to my experiences. As an extremely extroverted child and adolescent, I was easily teased for having "diarrhea" of the mouth; or having a big mouth. I took what some may feel as a fault and made it work for me.

I have spent many a days reading books from authors such as: Sistah Souljah, Zane, Omar Tyree, Terry McMillian, Queen Penn, M.Malone, Wahida Clark, Deborah Bladon, J.S. Cooper, Hannah Ford, P.T. Michelle and plenty more (trust me this list can go on and on). And the one thing that kept coming into mind was, why couldn't I think of this? Similarly to staying up late and watching those infomercials or As seen on TV commercials and thinking to yourself, how come I didn't think of that? I thought to myself and said I can. I have always had a vivid imagination and I was that geek who purposely looked for writing intensive courses in college. Why couldn't I write what felt? Professors praised me for writing so vividly, but chastised me for writing as though I am talking. But isn't that what story telling is about? Isn't it about finding your way to connect and engage with your audience? I want you to read as though you can hear the conversation in your head. I am writing so you can envision it. I want you to read it and feel it as the character feels it. Writing in this perspective shouldn't be so hard then right? Well...

I quickly learned writing to entertain an audience is not as simple as it may seem. In fact, it scared me so much, that I sat on this novel for 2 YEARS! I quickly learned that this journey is truly a roller coaster of joy, pain, frustration, blood, sweat, and tears. And let me not forget fear and sleep deprivation. At the end of it all, I am humbled that I can share a little piece of me to people. Ariella is the third story of the many I have started. It is also the first that I have completed out of the many.

If it were not for the gift of someone kick staring this for me to jump feet in, who knows for how many more years I would have waited to share Ariella. I am thankful for the influence of the above-mentioned authors who paved the way. I only hope that I can one day reach their levels of accolades and become an influence to someone as they have been for me.

There is a Haitian proverb that says in translation: The little pig asked his mother, "Why is your snout so long?" To which his mother replied, "Oh, my little one you are still coming up."