(Because Some Moments Take Time to Face)
Signing up for the National Storytelling Competition made me revisit a photograph I’ve never shared before
I blocked off four-hour chunks for book editing. Progress update? Still on round one… with three more to go. Turns out, writing is way easier than editing. Worse? Reading your own thoughts out loud, knowing the world will soon have a front-row seat to your inner monologue.
This week, I revisited the section about the moment I broke my neck—specifically the 22-hour journey through a hurricane as my dad rushed me to emergency surgery. He knew I was on a time clock. I didn’t. He watched his daughter die in real time.
I tell my story all the time, but reading those words again? Tears. Streaming. Down. My. Face.
GRIEF IS FUNNY LIKE THAT
We push forward, but it lingers in the background—waiting to sneak up and hit like a baseball bat.
Then, I read about my return to the Bahamas 12 years after my accident. That trip? A disaster.
Too many emotions. Too many well-intentioned, wildly different people trying to help. Too little space to process it all.
THEN, THERE WAS A MOMENT
I went back to the scene of the “diving crime.” The tiki bar where I spent so many carefree days? Barely there. Just a few pieces of wood, wrapped in fishing net. A shadow of what once was.
I sat there, staring at this place that had been mine. Looking at a photograph of myself, 12 years younger, seconds before my life forever changed.
That kind of moment knocks the wind out of you.
But here’s the thing…
I saw what came after. Seven years of hospital stays. Endless surgeries. Days I didn’t think I’d make it through.
But I did. I really did.
I built a life I’m proud of. I stand by my values. I choose to believe in people—even when I get burned.
AND TODAY, I WANT TO SHARE THIS WITH YOU:
💡 You have the power to change your own narrative.
💡 The decision to move forward is yours.
💡 You can make that choice right now.
If you’re in a tough place, take one tiny moment for yourself. Say—out loud—how you’re feeling. Maybe even in the mirror. (Yeah, it’s weird. Do it anyway.)
For me? Some days, success is just laughing at the absurdity that I still get stuck in doorways clearly designed for ninja squirrels.
Whatever you do—take a moment today to think about something in your life you want to change.
Because the past is just a chapter. You get to decide how the next one goes.
MY NEXT CHAPTER?
Right now? Preparing for the storytelling competition—with joy, pride, and a sense of accomplishment already.