I started writing when I was twelve years old. My 7th grade English teacher , Ms. ( at the time ) Fogle, gave us an assignment to write our own McGuffe y’s Readers. She noticed that I had a knack for writing , which she nurture d and encouraged . Around that same time I wrote my first poem. Today, at almost 58 years old, I am still writing.

Many things inspire my writing. When Justice Ruther Bader Gunsburg passed away, I wrote a poem in her memory and emailed it to her daughter. Within a few days, while still in mourning for her mother, I received a lovely response. A year and a half ago, after the collapse of the condo in Surfside, Florida, I wrote a poem that I sent to President Biden. A few months later, I received a response . In a manila envelope, was a letter on White House staionery , signed ” Joe Biden.”In this letter, President Biden even shared some poetry with me! I once emailed Judy Blume, and she, too, responded. When Queen Elizabeth II passed away in September, I sent a letter of condolence in which I included a poem I had written. Yesterday in the mail, I received a response, which was a card with the King’s royal cipher on the front. Inside , one side of the vard features a photograph of a young Queen Elizabether with King Charles as a child. The other side has a lovely printed message with the King’s signature at the bottom. I also recently received in the mail a handwritten thank you note from legendary comedienne Carol Burnett for the poem I sent her for her recent 90th birthday.

These are just samples of some of the responses I have received in appreciation of my reaching out with my poetry . Each response I receive fills me with as much as excitement as the one before it.

Writing is a part of who I am. Seeing the way people respond to what I write touches me deep in my heart and soul. That knowledge that my writing makes a difference is what spurs me on to keep writing.

Everyone’s heard the saying , ” Do What Makes You Happy.” Writing makes me happy. So keep writing I will.