By: Traci Neal
I did manual labor jobs for 15 years. My original dream was to be a professional poet. I wanted to travel like Maya Angelou did and be famous. Still, my pride caused life to shift gears and I began to think poetry was not a stable career. I turned to teaching and tried to become a certified elementary school teacher in South Carolina. But I failed the Praxis II Exam not once, but ten times. It took me ten years to pass the exam. During those years, I got other jobs. After all, I had bills to pay. I took on manual labor jobs to survive. Servant roles such as a book shelver, maid, child care floater, cashier, daycare worker, and an instructional aide. Most of my jobs, I cleaned public toilets. You can imagine the smell of public bathrooms. Often it was unbearable. I hated my life for a while. I hated being in those jobs initially because I wanted to do great things, expected great things for myself. But having these jobs taught me that no one needs a great name to do great things and that every job is important, From the person who cleans the toilet to the CEO of a company.
Almost ready to give up on my teaching certification, I decided to go for my real dream. I realized I could keep writing poetry even while trying to get the certification. This time, I had a new mindset and a new outlook. My gift of poetry was not for me. It was meant to help others, to inspire people to not lose hope and to keep moving forward. Just as I was doing.
Today I am living my dream! I am a professional poet. I find innovative ways to share my poetry with others. I am a voice to the voiceless. I feel the pain of others. I know what it took for me to come out of my pride and I want to encourage others that the only person stopping you from achieving great things is YOU!. Remove doubt. Change your mindset. Go for your dreams.
- Pressure •
Life is pressure.
No other thing can measure the freedom that comes from
God’s only treasure.
People believe the universe surrounds its pleasure.
Out of all creation, no human has created whole nature.
The pressure to be like society has no real identity.
It’s what we see.
Our world has expanded toward immortality.
Our hearts have fractured from stress,
But we have to press.
There is how we find our inner happiness.
We must live.
We may give a better day to someone else’s life.
They need to find their way.
Take a step back. Stop trying to attack.
Let’s learn to carry each other’s sacks.
Be sure to pressure love, joy, sharing, and caring.
I’m daring us to stand out, shout, and stop
letting the world fill us with self-doubt.
I will endure until time finds the cure
to heal a nation that doesn’t desire to be pure.
I’m opening up the gate to reveal a brighter fate.
There is too much hate, but it’s not too late.
We can change and rearrange. Press toward success.
I say, “Yes.”
Traci Neal is a Youth Author, Professional Christian Poet, and Certified Youth Speaker. Featured in The New York Times and 2nd place winner-2021 Taking It Global Poetry Slam (Toronto, Canada). Her book, “Lynn Learns Lessons: Courage To Forgive” is nominated for 2021 Readers Choice with TCK Publishing. Been a radio guest for 22 radio shows including iHeart & VoiceAmerica Empowerment. Find more of her work at www.tracinealspeakerpoet.com or Email info@tracinealspeakerpoet.com