An unexpected honor!
I was on a 6:00 AM flight from El Paso to Phoenix wondering, should I check my email? My body, brain, spirit, and mobile phone battery were completely drained. The battery indicator showed a sliver of red and I knew I had just enough power to call for a ride upon landing. Hunkered down somewhere by a wing seat, my head leaning on a window looking out at the pink sun-kissed mountains. I held my phone in my hand the way a child holds their favorite snugly, out of habit, and tempted to peek for messages.
Grandma Rose has gone to be with Jesus and it’s only been a few days since we buried her. My sister and I were still reeling from the stress of helping our aging parents navigate life for the last several months traveling tag-team style between El Paso and Phoenix. I had a constant lump in my throat always feeling as if I would break down in tears any time I opened my mouth to speak.
“Always moving forward like a little machine” my husband would tell me “you’re really good at compartmentalizing”. The life of an entrepreneur is interestingly wonderful and entirely chaotic. But maintaining focus during the difficult time required a special kind of discipline.
I peeked at my phone again. Check email with what little charge I have left?
Congratulations and Welcome to the Salesforce MVP Program!
It was at the top of my inbox an email from Holly Firestone. Seeing who it was from, I only read the subject but didn’t open the message.
Oh no! I thought. What do I do? Not a normal reaction, I know. I was in a fog of grief so worry set in, how would I ever be able to do or give more?
All this stuff swam around in my head. Conversations, feelings, memories of the preceding days.
Things had finally started settling into a cadence with the parents. I planned a weekend of diversion and Salesforce with the new El Paso, TX Administrators Group. Deepa Patel was moving from Austin to Denver and we had coordinated a visit. Upon her arrival to El Paso, instead of laughter, Deepa drove up to me falling into her arms in tears.
I needed some rest and didn’t open the email until the plane landed. There was just enough juice to read the email and check my socials. My phone blew up with well wishes and congratulations.
My Salesforce story is long and meanders the way an arroyo winds through the desert as rain pours from the sky soaking the earth. Giving life to the saguaro and cholla grow, critters have a place to find shade and the ecosystem is altogether as it should be - like the Salesforce Ohana.
I stumbled onto something amazing. Uncovering the Platform then finding this small yet passionate group of Salesforce aficionados in the summer of 2009. Which by 2014 was the Phoenix User Group and had exploded into a community of three separate groups each blossoming into its own distinct personality and focus.
Gratitude was fortunately very easy. Being recognized for exceptional contributions to the Trailblazer Community was an honor and a privilege. Being given the opportunity to participate in the Salesforce MVP Program I feel as though I am sitting on the shoulders of giants.
