In a word, I feel AWESOME!
But I only feel this way because I’ve learned from my not-so-awesome days and have overcome mistakes as well as obstacles placed in my path—and there have been plenty. Every day I continue to move forward. It’s called progress.
I can’t wait to see what the next ten years have in store for me, but if I could go back in time, I’d like to offer a bit of advice to the previous four decades of “me.”
TO THE TEN-YEAR-OLD ME: Read. Read stories. Stories in books. And read for pleasure (not just assignments). Read stories that will transport you into other lives and worlds. If you can’t get “into” a story within the first few chapters, close the book, and find another. Oh, the beauty and brilliance of the public library system. Your favorite “flavor” (genre) of book will be as easy to find as a favorite flavor of ice cream. There’s something for everyone.
I struggled throughout school in remedial reading classes, and at every grade level because I didn’t read well (because, well, I didn’t “pleasure” read). And heaven forbid I should be called on in class to read aloud. It is a less-than awesome--more-like humiliating--experience for the non-reader. I honestly believe that my true education in life didn’t start until I began reading for pleasure. And this didn’t happen for me until I was well into my twenties. Who knew all the doors it would eventually open? They lead to different places for different people, but always in a positive direction.
TO THE TWENTY-YEAR-OLD ME: Slow down. Breathe. Analyze. Relax. Plan. And last but not least, enjoy the moment. There is no rush. I promise that your Happily Ever After will still be down the road tomorrow, but will be so much easier to attain if you take a little more time in planning your future.
I could proceed to name 101 things I rushed in my twenties. And yet that old saying, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, really is true. I can’t go back and change the past, and to be honest, some of my greatest blessings sprung forth in spite of difficulties in my life regarding rushed decisions. We can, however, learn as we go. The author James A. Owen said, “Sometimes a catastrophe is only a course direction.” Catastrophe is a pretty strong word, but if I find myself amidst one, you better believe that I’ll be heading in another direction the next day.
TO THE THIRTY-YEAR-OLD ME: Believe in yourself. Go after that dream. Just do it! This is the perfect stage in life when preparation meets confidence.
I began to recognize my potential in my thirties. I honed my skills in several areas and put them into action. My most significant accomplishment came in my late thirties when I wrote my first full-length manuscript which became the first of eight published novels. This is pretty amazing when you consider the fact that by the time I’d graduated from high school I’d only read maybe three or four full-length novels—all but Jaws (the only title I remember) were required reading from school. I know the ten and even twenty-year-old me never-in-a-million-years might have envisioned the thirty-year-old me as a published author.
TO THE FORTY-YEAR-OLD ME: Be true to yourself because at the end of the day, if you don’t have this, you don’t have anything. Truth has been the universal topic of many. Buddha stated, Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth. With experiences gained in the twenties and thirties truth becomes the natural progression of the forties. The words of Jesus read: And ye shall know the truth, and the truth will make you free (John 8:32). At this stage in my life, I can honestly say that my “truth” found me. For everyone this will be different. A more evolved person may simply notice a sense of peace setting into their life.
And this brings me to today and THE FIFTY-YEAR-OLD ME. All I want in my life today is peace. Due to the fact that I still have five minor kids at home, an external peace is pretty hard to find amongst teenage squabbles and busy schedules. My internal peace, however, is felt in my relationships with those I love, and my understanding of who I am.
Tamra Torero is Wife to Paco, Momma to nine, Grandma of three, Bakery Manager, author of Shayla Witherwood: A Half-Faerie Tale and co-author of a Christmas novel,The Lost Son, with her son, Preston Norton. Aside from achieving total peace and tranquility in her fifties, she would also like to vacation in Hawaii, learn to play the drums, and become a "star" for the sole purpose of competing on Dancing With the Stars.
