David Bowie as The Goblin King in Labyrinth. Alan Rickman as Professor Severus Snape in Harry Potter. These are two characters I love. These were two storytellers I admired; they moved people, touched peoples lives, and contributed to this world. Whether the contribution was on a minor scale or a grand scale, they affected us in one way or another.

We too tell stories, in our own way. We talk about our weekends, personal dramas and achievements, our love stories, our adventures… everything! Our stories matter. In the telling, we learn, we entertain, we connect and we grow as human beings. And if you’re like me, you love it so much that you might actually be in the arts as some sort of professional storyteller.

One story that I’m passionate about telling is the one where I took a leap of faith and pursued my bliss as an actress.

In the short time that I’ve been a professional actress, I’ve gotten to tell stories with some accomplished individuals. I’ve gotten to work alongside Arutro Castro (Broad City) who is so genuine and funny and Gina Rodriguez (Jane The Virgin) a fellow Puerto Rican who has accomplished quite a bit in her career.   I’ve also had the honor of working with folks who aren’t quite “names” in the industry (yet) but they’re people I admire for their incredible talent and devotion to the craft of storytelling. Why do I mention this? It’s not that I want to brag. No. I just want to testify that faith and action can make anything a reality. But none of this would be true if I hadn’t allowed myself to explore a dream.

Eat Pray Love is a book that gave me the courage to do just that.  In honor of the memoir’s 10th anniversary, an anthology called Eat Pray Love Made Me Do It is being released.  Why does this matter? Well, within that anthology is an essay that I wrote.

My story.

Is being.

Published.

{ insert quiet sob full of joy right here }

It has taken me months to wrap my head around this and now that I finally get to share it, it seems… surreal.  I cannot even describe this overwhelming amount of gratitude in my heart.  It’s a true blessing to be able to share my story – my crazy story – on such a large scale. Just… wow.

{ I’m crying again. Sorry. }

The story of how everything changed when I began to balance my rational mind with my irrational heart is part of Eat Pray Love Made Me Do It, which will be released on March 29, 2016.

What happens now? I don’t know. I’m actually kind of terrified (in a good way). Because the moment I took another leap of faith and wrote a very personal essay about an experience that changed my life, God made it so that a very lovely (and patient) editor said, “Congratulations! I’m delighted to inform you that your essay has been selected…” a moment that has made me a friggin‘ published author.

See?! Our stories matter. They really do.

There is only one Bowie. There is only one Rickman. There is only one YOU. There is only one ME. Each of our abilities are different. How we see the world and impact the people in our world is as unique as we are. Whether our stories move people on a small scale or a large scale, what matters is that in the telling, we hopefully make the world just a little brighter for someone else.

I hope you’ll celebrate this victory with me and pick up a copy of the book this Spring.  Help me to share an anthology of stories by people who had the courage to really live their lives. Maybe they’re famous. Maybe they’re not. But the message is important nonetheless: whatever dreams are in your heart, they’re truly possible to attain. And when you do, tell your story!

 

 

 

“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” ― Martin Luther King, Jr.

— Posted on January 19, 2016 at 9:31 pm