We’ve sprung into June! I’m a day behind for my monthly series post! Nevertheless, here it is….

I know for sure that only by owning who and what you are can you step into the fullness of life. – Oprah

In May, Oprah knows for sure that

We live in a youth-obsessed culture that is constantly trying to tell us that if we’re not young and glowing and “hot,” we don’t matter.

I am this younger demographic Oprah describes (18-54 year olds). But what I will never know for sure is why and how it is that so many refuse to just “be” the age they are instead of trying to be something they are not. There is a difference between someone wanting to take care of themselves by eating right, working out, using sunscreen and maintaining an overall healthy lifestyle versus deliberately trying to reverse the hands of time.

This exact scenario reminded me of Samantha from Sex and the City 2 where she is 52 trying to rock 20. Why? She is stunning, successful and bold. Her 52 was amazing!

I understand that I am just 28, so writing this may come easier given the circumstances. But healthy, beautiful and bold truly lies within at every stage of life. Oprah comments,

Denial leads to delusion.

Of all the things at 28 I still do not know, I do know that she is absolutely right! Allowing denial of self and not owning who you are and who you have worked so hard to become is truly delusional.

Rock who you are.

And rock it perfectly *perfect* today, tomorrow and for the rest of your life!

April 30th already! I could not be more excited this month for my monthly series post! Why? Because Oprah knows for sure a thing or two about Poetry,

“For me, poetry is the unexpected utterance of the soul. It is where the soul touches the everyday. It is less about words and more about awakening the sense of aliveness we carry within us from birth. To walk quietly till the miracle in everything speaks is poetry, whether we write it down or not. I confess I started out wanting to write great poems, only to be worn by life to wanting to discover true poems, and now in the second half of life, I feel humbled and excited to want to be the poem!”

I appreciate Oprah’s view on poetry this month and that she mentions it and brings it to light as a form of inspiration and aspiration.

One thing you probably don’t know about me is that not only was I part English major, but my emphasis was on creative writing. I have always had a huge passion for creative writing, and while I studied fiction, non fiction and poetry in college, it was the poetry that captivated me most. The truth is that I was even writing poems as early as junior high; once published in high school.

What I do know for sure is that Oprah is exactly right about “feeling humbled and excited and wanting to be the poem.” In college, as part of our final poetry manuscript, we had to write and revise (I swear 10,000 times) a series of poems. No poem speaks more to what Oprah describes (“humbled and excited to want to be the poem”) than the one I wrote about home, growing up and living in the country and a small own.

I am from Country Roads

I am from country roads,
pigtails and overalls and rugged old sweatshirts,
giggles heard for miles,
dogs prance around quicker than the Indy 500.

I am from country roads,
sugary tang of mom’s tepid cookies plague the atmosphere,
dad’s timber blazes in the basement,
a full-size backyard where I see the sunrise and sun fall.

I am from country roads,
whacking mosquitoes while eating on the patio,
performing rain-dances to the moon,
toilet-papering, cow-tipping, four-wheeling.

I am from country roads,
sound of keys clanking to ignite engines,
earsplitting roars overtake the midnight sky,
gravel seeps into my tires; no concrete pavement.

I am from country roads,
stop sign on a dead-end road,
America’s pride blowing ten feet above ground,
whispering winds converse among tress regarding country roads.

I am from Country Roads.

What I will never know for sure is…why I don’t still write? I am constantly writing for my blog and for other blogs, but I have yet to go back to the days when I was motivated to sit down and write poetry. It was such a huge passion. In the blink of an eye, it faded. And I really wonder, why?