I Am Compelled

I write because I am compelled to do so.

The public sphere is the blank page, this global medium of choice, because that is where we meet.

I am authentic in my voice, my experience, and my muse.

My writing is reclaiming the voice of that little, scared, skinny girl who was unprotected for years.  I write to right that wrong that was done to her and the thousands of "hers" out there whose voice is threatened or controlled.

Pen to paper, the oracle's tools, are mine because I am directed to do so by powers far greater than me, it is my stage, my ministry - as an esteemed female seminarian reminded me - my place.  It is why I am driven to do so even in the face of opposition.

I write for the ones who have been bullied, the ones who have been sexually abused, the ones who have been in tough marriages, jobs, or friendships.  I write for the ones who raised their children alone and fought to make something of themselves.  It is for the ones who do not have a voice.  I write for the reality of their place and the promise of pen to paper to make us think, remember, and do something.

It is more than a calling or a gift or a profession, it is life and breath to me and I will not stop writing, not stop telling the truth, not stop shining a light on those things that we must confront, will not stop writing.