Creating A Legacy Through Writing

JOINING ME in this journey is...

TERESA GAUDINEZ-MARTINEZ

 "A mother by emotion, a writer by profession, and a blogger by intention. Teresa or Teresay as she is called in the online community is a researcher and web content writer since 2005. Before settling into writing, her work experience was founded on the banking, advertising, and cooperative industries. She is a regular contributor to various SplashPress Media Blogs."

Tere's handwriting 

Her handwriting is a calligraphy that defines her innate skill... 

Experts say that penmanship harbors more than the power of self-expression and bears the unique imprint of ones personality. Handwriting reveals hundreds of elements of the person's "personality and character" which includes glimpses into the subconscious mind, intellect, energy, fears, motivations, imagination, integrity, aptitudes, etc. There are over 100 individual traits revealed and an unlimited number of combinations.

Her gifted talent brought her in the world she never dreamed of... She even recalled an incident in her past that somehow foresee her future...

"When one of my college professors at the University of SantoTomas jokingly said to me that I will have a great future in writing, it wasn't at all related to the kind of writing I am doing now as a content writer and blogger. It actually pertained to my handwriting which is almost similar to calligraphy borne out of my early training with the Paulinian penmanship.  At about the same time that I have completed my penmanship subjects at St. Paul’s College Manila, the grade school department was transferred to Pasig and so I transferred to St. Scholastica’sCollege Manila.

However, the Paulinian penmanship remained and it became the reason why I was consistently elected as the class secretary from Grade 4 to 4th Year College. For many years, my handwriting became my only claim to “writing”. Even while employed and already engaged in business, my handwriting was my mark and it distinguished me from the rest."

These old photos may describe her as a pretty young student from primary school to secondary up to college. Anyone could hardly guess how this promising Commerce graduate can dominate the blogosphere world through her excellent writing skills.

Her not-so old school photos

It's not her penmanship that introduced her to the online community but another unexpected realization of being an inborn writer as well.

"I never saw myself as a writer. I never thought I fit the image of one. Thus when I came face to face with my first real writing opportunity, I was incredulous at what I was about to do. I had to make a reality check several times trying to determine if I have become too ambitious for my own good. 

The confidence came much later after several years of working as a content writer. It still took six years to summon enough courage just to take over a blog called “Just Passing Thru” opened by my husband two years earlier. He never got to write for it except for the Privacy Policy which has also been changed since. At about this time, my writing tasks were shifting from regular content writing to blogging."

With her strong belief that her passion for this art of putting words in print will take her to another avenue of opportunity, that is... digital marketing.

"Thinking about it now, everything just seemed to fall into the place to clear the way for my writing path. My eldest daughter’s job included tasks related to digital marketing and so we decided to introduce “Teresay”. It became our practice ground for everything we wanted to try about blogging and two other blogs followed: “La Vida Milagrosa” and “A LetterWriter”. With my daughter attending to the technical side of all my blogs, I had the the freedom to concentrate on writing which I have already learned to love."

Savoring every word of her favorite quote... somehow quenched my innermost. 

"I am way past the age of believing that I can live forever. I have always been fascinated with legacies and this led me to thinking what kind of legacy I can leave to my own children. It is clear to me now that my writings through my blogs will serve that purpose for me."

Her favorite quote by Chuck Palahniuk

For Tere... Faith, Family, and Education are what she considers utmost important in her life. She believes that:

"Whatever strength I possess at this time comes from these three which I consider the very foundation of who I am as a person and as a writer. Faith serves as my anchor in life. Family gives me the reason to persevere. Continuous Education in whatever form supplies me with the capability to reinvent myself to adapt to prevailing conditions. 

My decisions are based on three strong beliefs as well. Our faith, regardless of what it is, defines our lives to a large degree. In the human level, family is the most important thus we never give up on family. Lastly, I believe that continuous education is the main key to achieving life goals and objectives. The moment we stop learning, we stop growing."

The family that brought her up
(with her parents and siblings)

The family that she brought up
(with her husband, children and grandchildren)

She became a grandmother at a young age... Actually her eldest grandchild is older than her two other kids. 

This passage has been sent on Mother's Day... Coming straight from the heart of her eldest daughter Eliziel Daphne and I quote:

“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.” 

Thank you for being there all the time. Happy Mother's Day Mama!"

I'm truly privileged to feature Ms. Tere and I want to take this opportune time to extend my deepest gratitude to her in joining me in this journey by unselfishly sharing her purpose driven life.