Purpose

For as long as I can remember, I have loved words. As a kid, in all my report cards the consistent note from my teachers was ‘Gloria’s a good student, but she loves to talk ... she talks too much!’ My sisters always say I have the gift of gab! In high school my favourite subject was English and one teacher in particular, Mr. Tryba, made me love words even more because watching him speak was a delight. He articulated every word. When he spoke, it was like music. So fluid and full of passion. It’s no surprise that I also love reading. So far this year I have read twenty-one books and counting. Most of my Amazon.com purchases are books. My kindle is filled with history, mystery and fantasy, with a bit of self-help thrown in for mental health! Last year I started reading autobiographies and that’s a whole other level of awesome. With autobiographies, I like to pair the audio book with the e-book because it’s usually the author reading the audio book. That was the case with Becoming, by Michelle Obama and We’re Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union. I also read biographies by Taraji P. Henson, Tina Turner and one of my favourites that had me both laughing out loud and crying was by Tiffany Haddish. These are all people I admire and hearing their stories in their own voices felt like having a conversation with these people right in my living room. By the end of their stories, I felt like I knew them in a completely different way. My favourite type of story is the psychological thriller. I love a good whodunit, and Dean Koontz is the master of this genre, in my opinion! I’m in the middle of one now called Holy Island by L. J. Ross set on Lindisfarne in the UK, but yesterday I was in need of some inspiration and turned to Oprah! I finished the audio book version of her book The Path Made Clear, Discovering Your Life’s Direction and Purpose, and in it, Oprah along with experts from the worlds of music, movies, literature plus several spiritual leaders talked about knowing what their life’s purpose was even when they were young kids. They were naturally drawn to it. Most of the experts in the book simply followed the path of doing what they loved and the successes (and failures) were just a natural part of the journey. Reading this book made me want to know what’s behind my life’s pursuits. Why am I a singer and songwriter? Why am I releasing my own music? Why am I blogging and podcasting? Why do I present a weekly radio show? I went to bed last night with these questions on my mind, and this morning I had the answer. I want to be heard. So when I was running my mouth in class as a kid, I just wanted to be heard. It seems that my purpose is to communicate be it spoken or sung, and this purpose is fueled by my desire to be heard. I am living my purpose. I believe that life naturally moves in a forward direction, and a clear sense of purpose will guide us on our individual journeys. So keep moving forward, follow your heart and know your purpose.