Try something new!

I am many things but I wouldn't say bold is high on the list. After being quarantined with my family since March 2020, I mustered up the nerve to live more purposefully. Like many of you, all of the uncertainty of the year gave me a newfound appreciation for the things we often take for granted. I spent more time with my kids, personalizing my home, focused on how I was showing up in my marriage, and in other relationships that are really important to me.

My family has always been entertaining but as the year unfolded I watched them react and adapt to a rapidly changing world and I couldn't stop watching. Just like any great sitcom, we learned valuable lessons through comedic moments that made me look for a hidden camera and through heavy moments that challenged the very conscious of this nation. It all made me start journaling again.

I quickly realized I was developing a point of view that needed a platform different from the one I had as a business leader and diversity champion in corporate America. So instead of continuing to shake my head, either in strong agreement or disgust, I decided to be audacious enough to write and publish books without formal training in either. I decided to become part of an emerging new normal in literature that values authentic representation for all readers. I then decided to take advantage of an opportunity to step away from a 23 year career in financial services to focus on trying something new.

I hope as we publish content you all connect to the characters, the messages, the images, and the authors and see a part of yourselves in each work. I've really been overwhelmed by the well wishes when I share on social media platforms. So how else can you support the vision? Purchase your copy of my debut children's book "Hey Mama!" (especially if you know a creative kid who finds their way into messy situations), leave a review of "Hey Mama!" on Amazon, sign up here for Rice Love Tree updates to keep up with us, and most important do something bold today! The world is anxiously awaiting your mark!