Crying Ahead But Still Behind

I just jumped ahead on a book I am working on (and still behind on) and wrote the "Acknowledgments" section because I was feeling very thankful for some people in my life. By the end of it, I was a blubbering mess and my youngest looked at me like I was crazy. I couldn't help it, I've met some amazing folks since I started publishing. And I also came to realize how much little things from my childhood would affect me now. Like my great-grandmother telling me stories about living during the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl (I drew from some of those stories when I was writing PMD and PML). And then there was my grandmother spending hours discussing books with me, tearing apart plots and scenes and imaging living the life in the book. And my grandfather letting me tag along with him and the other farmers/ranchers when I was little, treating me like just another ranch hand. I feed cattle in the heat of the day and met the sunrise on the back of a horse. I stood around with old cowboys and listened to their tall tales, soaking in everything I could about their way of life. Each moment and memory affected me. Each second having an impact on my life. Not only did it make me what I am today but it also made me what I write today. So I'll cry when I write acknowledgments (even when I'm not done with the book) and blubber like a fool when I finally write "The End" because I've got a lot to be thankful about and many people that gave me the memories I needed to do what I wanted - write.