From the time I learned how to hold my pencil, I’ve always enjoyed writing. I remember dad taking me with him to work a lot of Saturday mornings, even though he didn’t believe farm work was for little girls. But I stayed out of his hair by making mud pies, catching critters, climbing grain bins and sitting in the hay loft of the old barn with the pigeons, writing haikus, poems and stories. To this day, I thank my mom for saving those old papers because it’s fun to look back and see what was on my mind.

If I was mad, or sad like the day in 5th grade when my best friend moved away, I’d sit and write it out. Writing was therapeutic, exercise for my brain, and a way of getting some alone time. My grandmother and I exchanged letters every week when I was in college (the grandmother featured in AgWalk), and still to this day surprises me at least twice a month with letters from home, sometimes even a cucumber seed or two enclosed!

I guess that love of writing has served me well. I’ve written other people’s school papers (yes, I helped them write, they helped me with math!), hundreds of press releases, feature stories and now blog posts. But when you can use your passion for work, it’s a win-win.

Staring at a blank sheet of paper, waiting for inspiration to come flowing out of your pencil, is sometimes the hardest part. And I don’t save text messages or snap chats like I have my stories over the years, so I’ll keep writing.

Off to work on another press release.

Until we walk again …