My Love Letter to the Amazing People I’ve Been Blessed to Meet On Medium

There’s so much to say, it’s hard to know where to begin …

You guys are simply awesome.

Writing on Medium alongside you has been a life-changing experience.

The platform has provided a playground of sorts — an opportunity to put my authentic self out there, free and easy. A safe, supportive environment to play with words in as creative ways as my mind can conjure up.

I’m graced to have countless playmates, an ever-expanding pool of fellow life travelers, who play beside me each and every day in kind, loving, and creative ways.

We share our stories — our passions, our trials, and our tribulations.

We comment on each other’s pieces with loving, empathic words. Written straight from the heart.

I cherish you guys and gals. How I wish I could meet each one of you in person. I’m not much for drinking coffee, but I’d love to be sitting across from you over breakfast, lunch, or dinner at my local diner, sipping at my diet coke through a straw.

The mere thought of that brings a smile to my face, a twinkle to my eye, and chokes me up, as evidenced by my emerging tears.

Getting More Specific

I especially appreciate you guys who write authentically and vulnerably about your life experiences and here is why:

• You are all profiles in courage. I admire how you dig deep into exploring what makes you tick. I equally admire how you share yourself so vulnerably via your heartfelt words.
• You are models for me to do likewise.
• I can feel your essence — get to know you on a deep level despite having never met. That, my friend, is a gift.
• I don’t feel alone in my neurosis, in my healing journey, Rather, I feel deeply connected with you.
• I’d bet my last dollar you’re writing as much for the reader’s benefit as for yours. That is why I consider you a fellow traveler. I sense you have my back — that if I were to reach out to you for support, I could count on you to be there for me with kind and nurturing words.

You Have Taught Me Much About Myself

I’ve learned I’m a writer who has a lot to say of value. That I’m able to write words powerful and insightful enough to inspire readers — enough to make a difference in their lives.

It’s not because I’m the most talented writer. It is because I write straight from my heart. I write vulnerably. Other than specific details that are too personal to reveal, I don’t hold anything back in revealing the essence of who I am.

The feedback from all of you has been a tremendous confidence booster.

I’ve learned that rather than my struggles getting in the way of being helpful to others, it’s quite the contrary — they make it a hell of a lot easier.

That’s because they enable me to put myself in the shoes of others who struggle over similar issues. Thus I’m able to find compassionate and even optimistic words that encourage others to forge on — to learn more about themselves, and ultimately relieve their suffering, even if just a bit. Heck — it all adds up with time.

Exciting New Stuff I’m Doing

All that I’ve learned about my ability to connect with the hearts of others on Medium, I’ve carried over to my interactions with people off of the site.

Besides continuing with mentoring a young adult woman from India (via Zoom sessions), I recently began giving presentations on self-growth-related topics.

Just a couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine who is a life coach co-conducted a workshop with me on the topic of working with one’s inner critic.

I was optimistic it would go well because of my ability to connect with others on Medium. Yet, I was a little nervous because giving presentations face-to-face was all new to me.

I’m happy to say the workshop went super well. As I anticipated, the content and style of my writing translated very effectively to verbalizing pretty much the same thoughts to a live audience.

I learned from that experience that successfully communicating on self-growth-related topics is all about being my authentic, caring self — whether it’s on Medium or in face-to-face interactions.

It’s that simple — be myself. Who knew, lol.

In Closing

Once again, I love you all. If this is the first article of mine you’ve read, please feel free to introduce yourself to me via commenting or leaving a personal note. If there are any pieces you’ve written that you’d like me to read, I’d be happy to do so.

Be well,

Art

I recently read this terrific article, written by DR Rawson - The Possibilist. It’s about the beauty of having a loving life partner, in both sickness and health. Thank you, DR, for sharing your story.

I don’t usually tag my fellow writers, but I’ve made this article an exception. The reason being that it’s a very special one for me and even more so that I think most of you will relate.

My apologies to anybody I accidentally omitted.

Alex Skye, Ali Hall, Bebe Nicholson, Bernie Pullen, Bingz Huang, Blake Baldwin, Carmellita, Carole Olsen, Chris Thompson, Dave Karpowicz, DL Nemeril, Donna L Roberts, PhD (Psych Pstuff), Donnette Anglin, Dr. John Swayne, M.D., Dr. Preeti Singh, Elaine Hilides, EllenEastwood, estow76 (Esther), Fatunla Samuel, Gary Buzzard, Gurpreet Dhariwal, Jan Sebastian, Jill Eng, Jo An Fox-Wright Maddox, John Blackwell, Judy Derby, Judy Walker, Lady Dr. Gabriella Korosi, Laurel Sibanda, Leah Lynch, Lee J. Bentch, Leonard Tillerman, Libby Shively McAvoy. Lucia Landini, Lucy Socha, Lu Skerdoo. Marilyn Flower, Mark Krauss, Megan Llorente, Michele Maize, Michelle Scorziello, Nancy Blackman, Natalie, Nicole Dake, Paul Gardner, pockett dessert, Raine Lore, Robert Ralph, Robin Christine Honigsberg, Ruby Lee, Sally Prag, Sahil Patel, Sandra Pawula, Sieran Lane, Sharing Randomly, Suma Narayan, Toya Qualls-Barnette, Umme Salma, Walter Pop Matthews IV, Yana Bostongirl