Too Late to Bloom?

 

Too late to bloom? 
This is the full text of my Icebreaker, my first speech in City of Angeles Toastmasters Club.

 

I used to be married, but now I am just in a long distance relationship with my wife in heaven.

To say that I was devastated when my wife left us on Valentine’s Day of 2008 might be an understatement. The thought of continuing my life without the only person who believed in me seemed so hard to do.

But I really did not have time to sulk and cry because I have 3 kids left with me and I promised my wife I will take care of them, especially my daughter, Angel. I had no choice, I had to take the role of both a mother and a father to them.

I was not a perfect father, so I was asking myself, “If I cannot even be a good father to my kids, what made me think I can be a good mother to them?” But as it was laid on my plate, I had to accept it. It’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it.

It was at this time that I rekindled my love for writing.

With the loss of my wife leaving me alone and no one to talk to, especially at nights when the kids are asleep, I turned to blogging as an outlet. I would blog about anything – current events, experiences, reviews, politics, and sports. Anything I can put my 2-cents into. I became known in the blogging circle as The Struggling Blogger.

This blogging thing only succeeded in whetting my appetite to become a published author. Writing online is fine, but I wanted to see my name in prints. It was a dream I had since college days. I nurtured this dream, impossible as it may sound at the time, I never let go of it.

In 2011, I published my first book REFLECTION, a collection of poems I wrote from my teenage years to adulthood. I even had a successful book launching on May 27, 2011 sponsored by the Museo Ning Angeles with no less than the Mayor of Angeles City gracing the occasion.

I published my second book Plethora in 2014, which is a collection of fictional short stories. It was not as “phenomenal” as REFLECTION though, because it was just published online and was only available at Amazon.

Now, before I overwhelm you, I just want to make it clear. The books I mentioned were just self-published, meaning I paid for their publications out of my own pocket. Not a great way for an author to start, but it is one option for a no-name writer like me.

I am still dreaming that one day, my books be will out there – published, financed and distributed by a legitimate publishing company. Only then can I claim myself to be a legitimate published author.

I am working on some books at this time. Actually, I used some lines from those books in this speech. I hope that one of them will find its way into the publishing house. I can only imagine the warm feeling you can get when you walk into a bookstore and finding a book on the shelves with your name on it.

I am one who never let go of a dream, I have proven that before, no matter how distant that dream seems to be. But I am already 47 years old, is there still time to fulfill that dream? Will there still be an opportunity for this budding writer to bloom?

I don’t know about time limits or expiration of dreams. One thing I am sure of is that I will keep on writing whether this dream will come true or not. As for the blooming part, this is what I am telling myself…

Never be in a hurry, you will have your time.
Bloom late if you must, but bloom nonetheless.