If You Tell Me, I Can Fly!  

I Can Fly!

As a child, I was repeatedly reminded that I wasn’t good enough, smart enough, or pretty enough. I was just not enough. Sometimes, I wondered how my life might have been different if someone had told me I could fly!

To help sort my feelings out, I wrote and wrote until finally, I had a story meant to remind the reader that they can fly and remind adults to tell their children they believe in them. After publishing the book, I realized I had good self-esteem and began wondering how or when I broke free from not being enough.

Preparing for a trip back to my childhood home in Rockford, Illinois, I suddenly realized my sixth-grade teacher, Mr. Larson, had planted the seeds of self-worth deep into my soul. Someone had told me! I don’t remember the words, but the message has stayed with me and grown through the years.

A week later, sitting in Mr. Larson’s living room with a signed copy of my book, I thanked him for changing the course of my life. And I don’t doubt for a minute that I was only one of many children whose lives he influenced.

This is a book to help you share the message, “I believe in you and your dreams, and I am here to support you.” With the weight of the world on our growing children, we need to tell them, until they believe, “You Can Fly!”

I wrote the book using flying as a metaphor for success, so my target audience is from fourth grade, when they learn about metaphors, to adults. It has been gifted for graduations, for cancer patients, for children with disabilities, to teens needing a boost… Interestingly, people buy this for kindergarten students and have their teachers write inspirational messages in the book throughout their school years, which then becomes a memorable graduation present.

This seven-time state, national, and international award-winning book’s pages are graced with beautiful watercolor animals and mountain scenes. In the back of the book, you will find bios for both author and illustrator, a page of scientific facts about the animals in the book, and a simple three-step goal-setting process for any age.

The reading level is low and simple, with only 200 words, but the message is powerful!

Believe, and you will fly to amazing places!

Ms. Sharon