Grateful for the People in My Life–Why I Need You

So, just recently I had a birthday. It was one of those birthdays where you mostly just go throughout the day like normal. (Don’t worry. The weekend was an entirely different story. We had a blast.) But this year, it was a pretty good birthday, even though nothing spectacular happened that day. What was it that made it so good? All the people in my life.
The highlight of my day was reading all the birthday greetings people sent over Facebook. Some of them were really simple, but it at least made me feel cared about. I took it as an opportunity to reconnect with some people who I had kind of fallen out of touch with, and it was really nice. It made me remember what made each of those people such a special part of my life, and yes, each one of them had been in some way. This birthday especially, I realized how valuable the people and relationships in my life are. Getting gifts can be nice, and I can definitely use everything I got, but the people who gave them to me are what I value the most, even over the gifts.

That is why, this Thanksgiving, I am grateful for the people in my life. The older I get, the more I realize how valuable they are. Even within my stories, more than the plot, the theme, or the setting, it is almost always the characters who have the greatest impact on me as a person. It is the people in the book. Some people think writers like solitude. Many writers are thought of as introverted. But for me, I realize now more than ever, that I need people. I wouldn’t be able to do what I do and be what I am without people. Here are the biggest reasons that writers need people and relationships.
1- Support. Sometimes writing is a lonely life. Sometimes it is hard having so much going on in your head and having nobody there to share it with. Sure, you may share it with the world eventually, but it seems like there is so much between where you are and that futuristic point. It really helps to have somebody get excited with you, or encourage you when you get discouraged. It really helps to have at least one person who you know will read your stuff even if nobody else does.
2- Inspiration. This is more than just patterning characters after your friends and acquaintances (though that can be helpful too). This is about the people that will be a positive influence just by being around them. They keep you feeling positive by their example. If you don’t have friends like this, look for some, because it makes a difference. It’s been said by many successful people—you reflect the people you associate the most with. Good, positive people in your life are very important, even if you never talk about writing together. You need all the positive vibes you can get.
3- Catalysts. Everybody I associate with has changed me in some way or another. They might not be big ways, but each person has made an impact in my life somehow. They have given me, if nothing else, the opportunity to change. Some people may have been difficult, but they gave me the opportunity to change for the better. People can be bad influences as well, but you still have a choice, and if you choose to resist the bad, you become stronger for it. You can still become better. In the end, even more than school, books, and other programs, other people are what have precipitated the most growth in my life. They have moved me to grow and become better.
4- Audience. Without readers, what would be the purpose of writers? It is true that I write primarily because I love it, but I also really hope that someday, somehow, somebody will read my writing and benefit from it. They will find joy in it as I have. They will gain a new perspective on something in their life. They will be inspired to create. Any one, or even all those things would make me very happy. None of them would be possible if nobody ever read what I write. We need other people to read our stuff.
This is a list of reasons I need people as a writer. There are probably even more reasons I need people beyond my role as a writer, but since this blog is supposed to focus on my writing life and works, I will not turn this into a novel by writing them all out. But, this week as we celebrate Thanksgiving in the United States, I just want to say, thank you to everybody who has influenced my life. I would not be the person I am today without you. Perhaps I have only met you briefly, or shared one or two experiences with you. Perhaps I have never actually met you in person. It hardly matters. If you are reading this post, you have been in important influence in some way. Thank you. Thank you for being a part of my life.
Do these reasons apply to you? Why are you grateful for the people in your life?