"One day or Day one? You decide."

One day or day one? You decide. 

 The last time I really remember having something I really loved or wanted to do with my life was back in high school. That love was dance. I wanted to be a dance choreographer like Fatima Robinson. Create dances and forms of expression for artists and music groups. See my choreography in music videos and up on stages at award shows. My plan was to go to school for Dance. (And Creative Writing. My second passion. I write all kinds of things. Blogs, lyrics, poems, stories... and hopefully- one day, a novel. But I'll get to that later.) But back in 2002, All I really had aspirations for was dance. But apparently,  the universe had different plans for me.

Finishing high school at nearly 4 months pregnant definitely changed my tune a little bit.  After getting accepted into my dream school, I had to make the tough decision that the full college experience and a dancers lifestyle was not exactly how I wanted to raise my child. So I put on my big girl panties and chose to mom it up. And I went hard on that momming shit. What can I say? I'm a natural! I never realized it until looking back on it now,  but being a mom was my real calling in life. I love it. I love my kids. I even loved being pregnant. (All the food. No care in the world about diets or exercise.  The joy in those days.... So good. Lol) And I am good at it. Unfortunately,  you don't get paid to be a mom. You can't make a living and survive in this country, in this society, or in this world by being a mom. (Which in reality it should be the highest paid position in the world. But that's a topic for another day. Lol.)

So as a teen mom,  I did what any person does. I found jobs to make ends meat. Try something new.  Don't like it? Quit. Like it? Stay a while until you find something that pays more. Pay the bills. Clothe your kids. Endless cycle, am I right? The one thing I could never shake was this empty part of me I just was never able to fill. A void of passion. That feeling of being passionate about something was completely missing. 

One day,  6 years ago,  I decided that day was going to be my big "Day 1". That was the day I made a decision to start my journey to find that passion I was missing. That was the day I decided to finally go to college. A single mom,  2 kids, a full time job and taking care of your sick mother while trying to go to school? Definitely not a walk in the park. But I finally felt a spark within me. Something igniting now that I was finally starting to pursue something I was passionate about. Writing. 

After 6 years, 2 degrees and one more to go,  there is something I have learned along the way. You have to wake up every single day with the mindset that each day is your 'Day One'. Dreams may change along the way, as you continue to develop and grow, and while you have to start somewhere, you have to remember not to stop. Each day- start. Start stage 1, stage 2, stage 3, start over. Make every day your day one and keep going. Because every day is one more step closer to your dreams and goals. 

I've had a few days that were "day one" of different stages. A new day one for a different goal or a different plan. But every day I wake up I choose for it to be day one of something. A day of growth and forward motion to find my passion and to grasp it with my own two hands. A day to continue my writing, to elevate myself in my passion and to be happy doing what I love to do. It's a feeling that took me nearly 18 years to feel again. And I'm not going to let that feeling go away. 

So, what about you?

Is today your one day or day one? 

I've decided.  Have you?

- Tiffany Dawn