i say i said

What is it they say?... this is the first day of the rest of my life! ... better late than never!

From the 8th grade on I wanted to be a writer. My 7th grade English teacher, Mrs. Christina Alter, gave me my first taste of writing poetry. She was a POETRY NUT!!! Our class memorized several of her favorite poems (Midnight Ride of Paul Revere is the one I remember the most) and anything by Robert Frost (miles to go before I sleep...). I had a couple of poems that year published in an anthology. They really weren't very good, but I was estatic!

The summer before 8th grade I began to write short stories. They probably weren't that great either, but - hey - you gotta start somewhere! My 8th grade English teacher, Mrs. Mildred Knox, was another great influence on me. After that I don't remember ever NOT writing!

I never pursued writing on a professional basis, but it has always been a huge part of who I am. At one time I put together several things I had written and called the collection "i say i said" and that is where the title of this blog came from. I may never be published in any literature books, but writing has added an aspect to my life that I would not have wanted to live without.