The most important story of your life.

What I wore: Skirt, Express. Top, Victoria's Secret. Sandals, Payless. 

In one of my writing workshops, a teacher (and a fabulous one, at that)

once explained fiction writing by asking us,
"If your character was given the chance to tell ONE story - the most important story of their life thus far - what story would they share? If the story you're writing isn't the most defining moment 
of your character's life, what makes it worth telling?"

 Her advice is always lingering in the back of my mind as I write, 

and this week I started thinking about it in terms of my own life story.

What would I consider my most important story at this point?

What do I think is my biggest accomplishment?

Would my life story make a decent read? 

I'm not really sure I could answer those questions. 

In high school, winning a state championship in pole vaulting was a big accomplishment (and I still consider it to be one) because it's probably the thing I've worked the hardest to achieve.
Marrying Ryan is obviously a huge part of my life story, but I don't know if it's so much a story in itself as it is a beautiful backdrop to the story of my life, if that makes any sense at all.

If I had to tell one story, and one story only, I have absolutely no idea what story I would share.

And I'm not sure what to think about that, except to think that maybe it means

my best story has yet to happen. 

Maybe my best story will be about changing the lives of my creative writing students.

Maybe it'll be about becoming a best-selling novelist (let's all cross our fingers for this one).

Maybe it will be something I can't even fathom yet.
When I first start writing a new story, I always know exactly how
the story begins and exactly how it will end.
In fact, with both novels I've finished, I wrote the beginning, the end
and then filled in the middle to take my characters from start to finish.
But in my own life, I think I thoroughly enjoy working toward an unknown ending.
And someday, years from now, when I look back at my past,
maybe I'll be able to write about the story that most defined my own life.

Do you know yours yet?