My Name is Grissel and this is my journey…

My story

Growing up there were so many things that were uncertain. There were so many nights when I would lay down on my drive way looking up at the stars wondering what life would look like in the future. I was never very good at sports, but arts…that was my happy place. I would spend countless hours, drawing, painting, and writing. For every school play or talent show I was first to sign up. I was fascinated by learning and trying new things.

But life wasn’t alway easy, in fact it was quite hard. Behind that girl who loved to dance, act, and sing was a girl who was truly struggling. It was like being stuck between the life I wanted and the life I had. I lived every moment like a race. The end goal? To grow up, move out and begin to live the life I always dreamed of. Oh, how wrong I was.

Once I graduated college I did what most people do. I found a corporate job with good pay, benefits, and loads of stress. I began my climb up the corporate ladder reaching job titles and incentives I never thought possible. Most people would say I had made it. And while I was grateful for everything I had I still felt sad and empty.

I wondered if the little girl laying on the drive way looking at the stars would be happy with the life I had created for her. But even more I wondered how I would look back at my life one day when I was gray and old. Would I be satisfied with the story I had created for myself? Would I have regrets of never having been truly present in the moment? And from uncertainty and confusion Wands and Wonderland was born. A memoir of my pursuit of a more purposeful, fulfilling and happy life.