Intellectually I know that the number of votes, comments, and hits have no direct correlation to the quality of the writing. Good pieces go unnoticed. Badly written pieces sometimes hit all the right buttons. But in my heart I would love to be elected homcoming queen. Caring what others think of you is called sanity.

Many times I have told myself to just quit writing for BC because what I like to write (mostly about adults facing adult problems) isn't readily embraced by BC's general readership. My stories are often meant to be thought provoking, which is why I was so pleased to write for the Gift Challenge and be a part of many inspiring stories.

Almost ten years ago my father passed away suddenly and unexpectedly from a heart attack. On the way back from the funeral I was in my car alone with my mother. Alone time is always a rarity in a family of six siblings. I had just held seminars throughout the Midwest and one of our speakers had talked about how important it was to celebrate life with simple, everyday, charitable fun. He had mentioned that we should never pass by a child selling lemonade without stopping, purchasing some of their wares, and engaging them in a conversation.

I stopped with my mother, who greatly enjoyed the idea of stepping away from her grief to play with those children. We had one of those unique conversations that accompany such a splendid moment. I didn't think much of it until four days later when my sister called. Like so many other couples who spend their life together, my mother couldn't stand the thought of living without dad and her heart gave out, again quite unexpecetedly. That lemonade stand inspired conversation was the last real talk I had with my mom.

I sent that speaker a note of thanks which to this day he often mentions to me. You see, he was beginning to doubt whether or not anyone ever listened to his "rah-rah nonsense".

If you write a story that reaches just one other person, that is an amazing accomplishment. It is my goal, and I hope it is the goal of many others to make quality connections that make a difference in the lives of other people. Not that there's anything wrong with writing fluff, I enjoy writing and reading for escapism. But if your story doesn't win you a tiara and a dance with the high school hunk du jour don't despair, perhaps you've made a huge difference in someone's life.

Jill