Years and years ago, when I was a youngling, I learned of a comprehension learning disability, after a series of testing, that set me apart from the others in school. I hated reading. In fact, I willingly did not participate in most reading activities as I should have because the questions were so stressful and overwhelming. My comprehension of the moral of a story was low; lower than the others, and it wasn't something to brag about. I eventually quit asking for help because it was too embarrassing.
High school came around and research papers were the norm. Luckily, I had developed my comprehension abilities more, but it still wasn't at the level I wished it would be. I needed more time to complete my tasks because it took me so long to get to the bottom of something on my own. Deadlines were the death of me, to say the least.
I later graduated, but my desire for journalism grew out of nowhere. Even though I wanted to do nothing but strum a guitar or beat a drum, I also wanted to write, and write more. Eventually, I made the decision to start blogging my travels, but that wasn't enough satisfaction for my desire to develop. I wanted more, and eventually, I got more when I wrote over 300 pages of a creative, fictional novel based on my life.
I moved to Nashville, Tenn. in 2017 after starting my own online magazine, featuring interviews of artists and reviews of singles, albums and performances, as well as biblical devotions. But I moved back to Florida after losing the job I somewhat enjoyed.
I got on board with a cell phone company in Perry, but it didn't work out. Because of my need to make a living, I went to work for a local factory, but after nearly breaking my back in half, I knew I wasn't made for it. I lost what kept me afloat and I was hopeless for an entire month looking for more-than-minimum-wage jobs, but my newly-developed and strong writing ability was still there for me, because it was literally the only thing I excelled at.
Since beginning my career with Greene Publishing, Inc. in October of 2017, not only has my writing miraculously developed, but my comprehension has increased by an extraordinary amount and my ability to meet strict and short deadlines in advance has become a strong suit.
Today, some intellectually-disabled kid who, once, unwillingly couldn't comprehend a thing unless it was repeated more than twice, writes for your newspapers every day.
Recently, I traveled to St. Petersburg with my fantastic, talented co-workers to receive a first-place award in Best Headline and second-place in Breaking News Story from the Florida Press Association. I would have laughed for a solid twenty minutes if you told me I would be doing this five years ago. I love you Madison County. Welcoming me into your community has done more for me personally than anything else.