2012: Everything Happens for a Reason

I totally had an awesome and completely genius resolutions list. It came to me while I was sweeping. I can tell you exactly where I was when I thought about it and what I was wearing. What I can’t tell you? What the hell that list contained!

Welcome to the genius that is my brain. Fortunately, I’ve met enough bloggers and tweeps this year to know that I’m not alone.

I am ridiculously grateful for that. In ways that you cannot imagine. To think that a crazy text to my BFF when I was looking for her to talk me out of the hope of going to Blissdom at the very last moment turned into a plane ticket which turned into Gigi saying maybe I could room with her but she’d have to ask Natalie which turned into me meeting (and this is not the entire list due to the brain situation):

• Erin
• Julie
• Lucrecer
• Tiany
• Tawanna
• Chrysula
• Tonia
• LaShaun who makes awesome personalized bling shirts!

(from Lu to LaShaun, these are my Dancing to Success girls who pray for me and support me and who fill my heart with love. Thank you!)

• Melanie  who led me to Central Florida Bloggers who led me to:
  1. Joscelyn  who led me to:
     1. Myrah
        1. Brian
     2. Yadirawho led me to:
        1. Yanira
        2. Patty
     3. Karina

My Central Florida Latinas convinced me to go to Hispanicize and…I cannot possibly list everyone that led me to!

• Holli who is an AWESOME accountant tax person thingy magig. Seriously, you better call her at the beginning of the year.
• Anne
• Nicole
• Frelle
• The Blog Frog Babes
• The Microsoft Mavens: Kristina, Vanessa and the rest of the gang.

To think, I could be sitting here in a completely different circumstance if I had not taken that leap of faith. If Shell’s Tweet hadn’t made me wonder if I should go to Blissdom. If I hadn’t checked, just to satisfy my curiosity, on flights only to find that they were completely reasonable 48 hours before the beginning of the conference.

Where would I be? I don’t know. And I don’t care.  I’m still a big proponent of “everything happens for a reason”. I was put where I needed to be. And I’m glad for it. The same thing happened at Hispanicize and the same thing happened at BlogHer (thanks to Tonia. See how this works?).

Jai reached out to me after a Tweet about coaching. And wow, I have been reminded about my passion for helping others reach for their dreams.

At BlogHer I met Lauren, who I mic wrangled for, then later threatened to stalk and who gladly gave me permission. Beautiful soul. So glad we met.

I can write that about the majority of you. About how you’ve inspired me. How you’ve encouraged me. How Joscelyn gave me advice and consulted with me as I created Mami Ink Media. How Teresa gave me words of support and courage through her faith in a time of need without even realizing it. After she came up to me at the Niche Mommy Conference.

How when I saw Bren at a mixer at Hispanicize, I fell in love with her heels, her smile and her humble spirit. How Alexandra’s smile won me over at the Stiletto Media party in New York.  How Migdalia’s prayers brought a smile to my face.

On and on and on. This year has been about seeing the connections. About living what I have been preaching for so long. Stepping out on faith and having the path laid before me just as it is meant to be. Hard to do but easy to live.

This year, more than any, has been a reminder of the stronghold that my faith has in my life. Of the fact that, if I am still and know, the possibilities are infinite.

I wish I could tell you that I know exactly what 2013 will bring. Do you understand how hard it is for me, as a trained project manager to NOT be able to answer that? But I’ve come to realize that I am so much more.

This past year has brought great happiness and great challenges. In the midst of me trying to realize my dreams I have had the honor and privilege of being here every day for my child and I would never give that up, in spite of the financial pressures.

I meant to tell you about awesome posts from this past year. About resolutions and goals. But this is what came out. Is it okay?

Thank you for reading what I write. For commenting (I ADORE comments, seriously, you should comment more). For reminding me that we are all the same in spite of so many things that have us thinking we are much more different. I look forward to writing some more in 2013. And I look forward to many more connections.