It's National Get Up Day - Sandra Orchard

Today is National #GetUpDay, founded in 2017 as a reminder to Get Up when we stumble. After all we never know when our efforts to seek a goal or overcome an obstacle will encourage another to do the same.

Of course, my grandson is my GetUpDay hero . . .

But since you know me best as a writer, I thought I’d share a few “GetUpDay” stories from my writing journey.

I began writing my first novel, after a back injury seriously restricted my ability to continue many of the activities that had been occupying my time. I loved that story writing expanded my horizons and gave me new challenges to meet.

Of course I encountered numerous disappointments and setbacks along the way to my first publishing contract, but with each one, I learned a little more. For example, an early version of what later became Deep Cover once finished dead last in a contest I entered.

However, after following the judge’s suggestions and those of a few trusted friends, I transformed it into my first contracted novel. Fast forward ten years, now I’m working on my 22nd contracted novel, with two more waiting to be written after it.

So . . . if writing is your passion and dream, I encourage you to Get Up and Keep Going. And remember that your perceived destination isn’t the only place where you and your writing can touch lives.

Not far into my writing journey, I realized that even if I was never published, persevering was not for naught. God opened doors for me to minister to others through my writing long before I ever signed a contract. Some were people I likely would never have met if I wasn’t part of a writer’s group. The most important people were my own children.

My children saw me reveling in learning new things. They saw me risk being criticized and crushed by putting my work “out there”. They saw my frustration with negative feedback and my determination to learn from my mistakes. They shared in the excitement of editor requests and the disappointment of rejections.

They saw me rewrite the same story again and again until it was as good as I could possibly make it. And then rewrite it again when I’d learned more.

They learned that pursuing your dreams is hard work. They learned there is joy and purpose in the journey, and that God uses your obedience each step of the way to not only grow you, but to encourage and teach and inspire those around you. They learned that it’s okay to fail.

And they learned to dare to dream.

I hope today is the beginning of an exciting and challenging new journey for you, whatever that journey might be. My spare time and energy these days is spent learning as much as I can about the human body and applying the knowledge to regaining lost mobility and range of motion.

It’s been mind blowing to me to realize how different muscles have taken over the job of others to compensate for weaknesses. Retraining the proper muscles to do the jobs their meant to do is hard work. There are days I feel as unstable as my littlest grandchildren learning to take their first steps!

But I persevere, hopeful that eventually I’ll be able to do more than ever pain free.

Your Turn: What are you Getting Up to do? Please share your GetUpDay stories of past or present experiences in the comments as an inspiration to others.