“You have brains in your head, you have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.
You’re on your own and you know what you know.
You are the guy who will decide where you’ll go.”
Dr. Seuss, Oh the Places You’ll Go!

What an uplifting, energizing little fluff ball of encouragement this zany ditty is! I just love the way it peps me up when I read it, don’t you? It’s almost impossible not to smile as you take each line in — and despite the ‘guy’ reference, I can’t help but think, ‘Hey, that’s me, Dr. S is talking about! I can make it happen for myself.”

Encouraging words empower: they give you wings. Even if it’s just for a moment, they lift you up and let you fly. And even if you fall to earth soon after, the memory of that moment stays with you. The afterglow can warm your heart when things get cold outside — or in.

All this was inspired by a wonderful comment I received on my blog from a writer named Wendy. She said that she was just launching her writing career and loved my blog and was going to keep visiting. What an incredible gift her comment was! I was floating on air all day. It just felt wonderful to know that this motivational blog for writers was, well… motivating an aspiring writer! I was just so thrilled that Wendy took time from her day to write me and let me know I’d helped her. And I wrote her an email letting her know how much I enjoyed her writing, which is wonderful (www.sadinthecity.com).

That’s the magical thing about encouraging words — when we share them with each other, they grow and prosper — and so do we. That’s why it’s so important to put them out there, to connect with each other, instead of just letting them remain unsaid — or unshared (mmm…I’m not sure that’s a word, but if not, it should be!)

Some nights, like this one, it’s late when I write my post (right now, it’s 12:33 and getting later by the minute). And often I wonder, is anyone going to be reading this? Even my own darling, adorable sister Stephanie doesn’t read my every post. But that’s OK. Because I have some wonderfully loyal readers who often take time to let me know that they’ve enjoyed something I’ve said here. And whenever someone brand new lets me know they’ve found their way to my words — it motivates me to keep going.

So let’s be “encouragement counselors” as my friend and mentor Rob Gilbert is fond of saying. Let’s take the time to give each other a writerly pat on the back. Thank you, Wendy — and thanks all my readers, wherever you are. Write on!