It’s Motivational Monday!

Hi everyone,

I hope you all had an amazing weekend and are ready to start this week. Don’t worry, only 3 more Monday’s until Christmas!

I went into this school year thinking it would be a breeze. Wake up call, Senior year is difficult and time consuming. So, any time I have free time to see my friends I make the most of it.

Yesterday, I was able to spend the whole day with my best friend Dani, a South Florida based writer who happens to have a very motivational story. I figured, what better way for her to share her inspiring tale than through an interview for Motivational Monday!

Dani moved to Florida from Colombia when she was nine years old, not knowing a word of English. Kids made fun of her, thinking she wasn’t intelligent due to this language barrier and criticized her for the way she looked. It wasn’t until Dani started learning English that she understood how cruel these students were being.

Instead of letting these students’ harsh words get the best of her, she poured her energy into writing and learned she had a true gift.

As I got older, I realized I had found this true gift, and this huge safe place for me in writing, and so all that anger, I just let it out onto paper and now I am a Gold Key winner in Scholastic, and I have been published in journals and I am hoping to study dramatic writing in New York.

Dani is a huge inspiration to me. Struggling with a learning disability that hinders me from successful writing, I am always proud to brag about her, a girl who has become a truly gifted writer, despite not knowing English only 9 years ago.

Check out the video below to watch the entire interview I conducted with this exceptional girl.

I am very fortunate to have a friend like Dani. She keeps me grounded, makes me laugh and always has my back. You can learn more about Dani by following her on Instagram @kvonnebutt and by reading her writing samples on her blog,  A Traveling Spring.

http://becauseitsspring.tumblr.com/

I hope Dani’s story was able to motivate all of you to break down barriers whether they be physical or emotional. She didn’t let a language barrier hold her back from success. Neither should you.

Happy Monday everyone!

~Char ❤