I started my blog in July of 2012 in response to some younger friends showing me that I, Ann Moses, appeared on some 60 pages when doing a Google search.
What? When? How?
I was overwhelmed, because up until that moment I had no idea that anyone knew who I was 40 years after leaving Tiger Beat.
For the past four years I’ve delighted in hearing from some of those long-lost Tiger Beat readers and in the process, I’ve made some amazing friendships, albeit long-distance friendships in most cases.
One of my favorite letters came at a time in my life when it was a better pick-me-up than coffee and a better take-me-away than a glass of Chardonnay. I was going through an episodic depression. I was just beginning to work my way back to my normal, happy self when I was called upon to be a caregiver for a close family member. That alone had me leaving my depression behind as I filled my days with their needs rather than my own. It was a life lesson I will cherish and it made me a better person. But during that time, it was unlike anything I had ever experienced – it was not like taking care of my husband as his loving wife, not like taking care of my sons as they grew – it was a constant battle to give everything I had to provide my loved one the best care and at the same time it was an internal battle, constantly questioning myself “am I doing the best I can?” The self-doubt was overwhelming.
My sunshine letter came on September 12th:
Hi Ann,
Carol Davis in 7th grade.
I’m thinking about the Monkees today on their 50th anniversary, and it prompted me to pull out the postcard you sent me in July of 1968. I was 13 years old then, an aspiring writer, and I sent you a Monkees story I’d written.
I never really expected an answer, but you sent a postcard saying that you thought I had talent and encouraging me to keep writing.
I was (and still am) very shy, and up to that point no one had ever told me they thought I was a good writer. Your note — coming from someone all of us tweeners thought of as our cool “big sister” — meant so much!
I did keep writing. I’m not a huge success, but it gives me a lot of joy, and I have a few loyal fans. All these years later, your note still means a lot to me, because you reached out to a little girl you didn’t know and told her, “You can do this.”
Thanks, Ann. You made a difference.
With lots of affection from one of your many “little sisters,”
My postcard to Carol from 1968.
Carol
“You made a difference,” was the magic potion I needed to snap me out of my negative thoughts and it was a incredible reminder of the power each of us has to do good things and be there for others. It seems small, sending a post card to a fan who had written me, but oh, I had no idea that I might influence another person’s life.
Carol Davis and I began to correspond. While she says “I’m not a huge success,” I beg to differ. After working as a secretary for 38 years, she self-published her first book and today she is a successful author. Please check out her Amazon page:
https://www.amazon.com/Carol-Davis/e/B001HMQK40
And her author page: https://caroldavisauthor.com
Along with writing my blog for four years, I have become an avid reader since I inherited my husband’s Kindle five years ago. My favorite genre is Contemporary Romance, so I had to buy Carol’s “Something Simple” and “Something Complicated,” Book 1 and Book 2 telling a wonderful story of romance, new places and sometimes kooky characters, the kookiest being the heroine’s pet bird, Winston. Carol’s story made me laugh, took me to new places, and was tender love story. I’m anxiously awaiting Book 3, the ending to her enticing trilogy.
Carol Davis in 2015 – taking a little break from writing.
I admit, my reading faves are rather narrow – although I occasionally read a celebrity bio or a title I can’t resist like “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail”by Cheryl Strayed – so it will be up to you, my today readers, that can choose to check out Carol’s other titles in Sci-Fi, Paranormal Romance, and many more.
To you, Carol, I just want you to know how much your reaching out to me has meant in my life – your turn to make a difference!
Good times. . .Ann Moses reporting about “back in the day.”
BTW – that has been my sign-off since July 2012, so does that mean the Monkees named their most recent hit album “Good Times” after my blog sign-off?
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Carol is a friend of mine and she posted this on FB. She is a wonderful person, still shy but I think that her words have reached so many people in so many ways. Writing is a way for her to express herself when verbal words may fail. She is of course, all grown up, confident in her ability to write and passionate about it. She and I met through writing and we are best of friends. This letter, both yours and hers, and your continued friendship through the years have proved to me that simple words, kindness and reaching out to a child can do more to their self esteem and their confidence than almost anything else. Kudos to you for taking the time years ago to encourage a little girl who loved the Monkees. It puts a smile on my face.
Thanks for sharing this. What a wonderful tribute to one of my favorite authors. Carol Davis is awesome! And your message is one we need to hear more often. It’s the little things we do each day, the little kindnesses that seem insignificant, that often have the most impact and make the lives of those around is a little better.
Loved this blog entry. Ann, all of us writers can give so much to the world with our powers of communication. I am told all the time that my writing has touched, affected, inspired, etc., and though I too am a modest success of a writer and journalist, that keeps me going. So sorry that you are going through a rough patch, and I could say the same as I have been care-taking and I was flooded out of my home. It’s been a struggle for a while, and I haven’t written much lately, but my blogs on the floods in Houston have helped so many people as I am told so often.
You gave so much to all us through the years when we were living vicariously through you and your reports on our idols. You encouraged so many to take pen to paper, not just Carol and myself.
I am so glad to have found you via the Internet!
Take care of you, Arlene
Ran across this blog article. It’s so nice to see how fellow authors became – well authors! It seems none of us are really much different. We all loved to write and all it took was encouragement from one person. Carol was lucky to have found you (mine was my 11th grade creative writing teacher).
Thanks for inspiring Ann (I came in late in your career at TB- having lived in South America as a teen-I missed out on so much)
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