No Days Off

Yesterday, I felt out of it and I wasted half my day laying on an air mattress, but my best friend said this, "My challenge for you today is to go out and be inspired. You haven't created anything in a while." Sick and irritated, I pulled myself together and I left the house.

Today, I woke up earlier than I wanted to and tried to force myself back to sleep, but I could not. I stayed home sick, refusing to get out of the bed for anything but fluids and food.  I was awake; feeling gross and bothered. Today could have went one of two ways; I could have laid in the bed all day and pretended that my mind would let me rest, or I could use a day at home to be productive and to accomplish great things.

I decided to accomplish great things and I am proud of all that I have done. Today, I proved to myself that I am stronger than I think and I am a force. I don't think I give myself the credit that I deserve sometimes. Today, in the midst of whatever ailment I have, I got things done. I feel more inspired in this moment than ever. *Pats self on back*

1. Finished creating a documentary...

I am proud to announce that the Rising Above with Kiddos documentary will be released to the public on Monday, June 11, 2018. After a month of planning, a month of teaching and interviewing and three weeks of compiling, praying and editing, I am thrilled to say that it is done. I teamed up with The Farm's Womb to offer a series of art installation classes that for elementary aged students to give them a platform for their voices to be heard. 

We taught about art, of course, but we discussed the implications of bullying, and the positive effects of going green and doing community service. It has been a pleasure to work with Becca Cornwall and our group of outstanding little ones. The program raised over $600 to donate to mission efforts in Haiti. The documentary means a lot to myself and to Becca, but it is something that I can show in Haiti and I can use it to teach about being impactful. I try my hardest to be impactful every day, but I pull my inspiration from special kids like these who do not even know what powerful marks that they will leave on the world. 
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2. Wrote an outstanding letter...

Rising Above with Kiddos required a lot of dedication and commitment. I did a lot of the technical behind the scenes work such as proposals, promotions, parent letters and worksheets and registration. I handled the finances and took care of supply ordering. 
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Becca acted as the visionary who planned step by step how to make each class work. She meticulously planned how we would get snack down to the track and still have time to work, clean, and have desert during our class time. Ms. Lara handled all of the approvals. "Yes, do it. Whatever it is, I say yes." Even though she did not want to do the technical stuff, she did. Ms. Lara created flyers and sign up sheets and wrote in plain form what I write in paragraphs. Chay ordered dinner for us every week and made sure it was delivered on time so that our schedule was never thrown off. The parents, they registered their children, paid the donation fee and never picked up too early or too late. The children, they focused and worked their butts off to accomplish something that they had not before. ​They kept up their enthusiasm and came each week, eager to learn.

So after all of this, I had to write a letter to say thank you to my team. There is no way that I could have done this without them and I am so blessed to have people in my life that support me and my goals. Lara is not just my boss. Chay is not just a lady I work with. Becca is not just another teacher. The children and their parents are not just people on the streets. They are family and I feel their love each day. I am thankful for these relationships each day.
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3. Submit a written piece for publishing review...

I've been blogging for a couple of months now. I started in September, but I didn't begin to write consistently or post real content until January. I had re-focused and decided that this is something I really wanted to do. I was sure at that point. Blogging has given me an opportunity to be creative, to let things pour out of my soul, to be encouraging, and to give my philanthropy work a solid platform.  I am very modest about the things that I do and I do not oftentimes think that people are paying me attention. However, people are watching and reading. People are seeing what I am all about and I am happy that I created this opportunity to share my life and God's work with all of you. It has been an exhilarating ride and I am excited to see where all of this takes me. 
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Today, I decided to take writing one step further. I have been interested in writing a book that documents and shines new light on my journey to becoming a missionary. I have no idea how to write a book or how to get somebody to read it for that matter, but I took a leap of faith today and decided to submit one of my posts to a company for review to publish. I'm not sure if the piece is good enough to publish on a website, but I am determined to work on it and make edits until I get that approval. I watched a lot of Jane the Virgin this week, so I know how it goes. I must be patient, yet diligent in my pursuit. Who knows? Maybe this book thing will happen after all. Stay tuned.

Overall, I had a pretty good day. I still look like crap and I feel how I look, but I am thrilled at all the strides that I have taken today. Remember, you don't get days off when you're building an empire. Work hard and God will bless you. Stay strong. Stay steadfast. Put in work.

I think I deserve a nap,
Nee