Greetings Steemit...Can we talk?

Hello All! Greetings to you from a peaceful place in my spirit.

My name is TuMisha Alao and I am an avid lifer. I believe in trying new things and Steemit seems like the perfect platform to begin my journey as a published author. I have talked about writing more than I have written. I have been scared for so long to awaken myself to my true destiny and so I have finally decided to ¨look fear in the face and laugh!” That is my favorite line from the movie Secretariat.

I am a High School English teacher and have been for the past eighteen years. So, you see I am around the written word on a consistent basis. I use the fact that I teach English as an excuse to not compose this great work in my head...simply because I am constantly assisting others with shaping their words into logical and thought provoking responses to other peopleś works. But, today is a new opportunity for me to strut my stuff and put my schtick on display.

All of these years, I have avoided sharing my natural knack for word play because of the vulnerability attached to someone else reading what I have written and not feeling awed by my creation. I fashion myself as a Shakespeare understudy. I obviously do not possess the same style as he or she (his being is up for question) but I do share his passion for wordsmithing. He was the best in my purview and I challenge myself to become as dedicated to my craft as he.

I am a mother of a fourteen year old son, that is also an artist. He is in a visual arts program at his middle school. I need to set the example for him to seek out his highest potential by recognizing his God given talent and nurturing it in every way. Currently, he wants to be a fireman. He says they have great benefits and make $22,000 a year. I don't discourage his choice of occupation for no other reason than it is an honorable occupation, just like teaching. Also, I know his ideas about what he wants to do with his life will change many times over. So, when he asserts his desire to put out fires, I don't put out his.

Besides being a teacher, I am a former dancer, in the classical sense. I did however, at one time (in college) contemplate taking to the pole, but my lovely mother quietly advised me that stripping might not have very good long-standing consequences. At the time, I wanted to be a lawyer and she felt that line of work may come back to haunt my legal pursuits. I do often wonder if I would have made that $1,000 a day that was promised in that ad at the back of my college newsletter in the summer employment section. Hmmm! For me and I can safely say for many others, college was one of the most debaucherous times in my life and I enjoyed every minute of it. Alas, I did leave and went on to stay in school after all. My graduation date is the year 2030. I still have the proverbial twelve years left of school.

This is just a bit of background and from this point forward, I will share the foreground with you. Ciao for now!