Photo taken by Marta Zumwalt, outside Cambridge, England on Newton road in Harston
It now has been a few months since I let my college know I was not returning to my position. In a way it feels like I’ve come through the fog and can see clear out to the coast. In prior posts I have compared my year of maternity leave as walking the California Oregon Pacific Crest Trail and the Camino de Santiago (the Way of St. James) in Spain. So keeping with the walking theme, I update my year off with this; my walk in the fields of motherhood has led me to become a published writer.
I decided to let go of my work computer and dive into my home MacBook Air and the world of staying home to raise twin daughters. Today, my first ever paid written work went live and could seen by thousands of readers thanks to Twinversity.com. Click here to see what they published: http://twiniversity.com/2014/07/from-1-to-3-supermom-to-superhuman/ There is a link to my blog and my Twitter account, as well as, a small bio about me with a headshot. Something so rare, new and exciting that I never imagined this could happen one year out from having my beautiful twin daughters.
For years I’ve been writing.
At work, I would write program reviews, press releases, and letters of recommendations. At home I would journal and on my blog I would post student affairs stories and checking in. It wasn’t until I stepped away from work to stay home that something happened and I found myself writing more. That part of me that still wanted to offer advice, teach a leadership lesson, or share some insight on twin parenting amazingly found a new home on my blog and through Twitter.
Now you can find me writing during nap time sitting at the bar in our kitchen/dining room, at a local cafe on a Saturday morning or randomly at night. I’ve discovered that with writing, sometimes the topics just come to you while you are doing something else, and you just have to stop and write. Other times, it is similar to writing a research paper and you want to share something worth reading.
What will happen next?
Some days I ask myself that same question. What will happen? When will I return to work full time? If I ask too many questions, I lose focus. So instead, I chose to write. I chose to keep walking in these woods of blogging, Facebook posts, and instant inspiration. I take with me all the experiences I have had. If you think about, we all take our ability to lead, to follow, to teach, to make a difference in peoples lives where ever we might be. You take that with you. It never goes away. It just finds a new way of being.
So, I’m going to keep walking this trail that in some ways is not too far from working on a college campus or in an office building. I now will give advice and insight while you are enjoying your cup of coffee or taking an iPhone break. You will see topics about Student Affairs in Action, Transfer Success tips, teaching and advising college students, along with my own experience of leaning in to motherhood.
Just imagine any trail that you see along the road, or the sidewalk outside your window. We are all doing the work that is needed from us. The trail you walk on today is yours and I know you are leaving your mark for the rest of us to find. My work, the insight needed from me, will be happening as I write, as I laugh with my family, and as I share a blog post with you. Thank you for following along with me.