About

Samantha Cruz is an Children’s Book Author and lifestyle blogger based in Saint Augustine, Florida.

SOMEONE ONCE ASKED ME, “WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE?”

I was 20 and in crisis mode. I had moved away from home, was bouncing between many college degrees unable to make up my mind, and was looking for guidance. After thinking for a few minutes about this question, I became distraught. I couldn’t answer it and my state of mind rapidly deteriorated. I started to unwind. I was speechless with confusion and felt helpless. I had placed so much stock in this one question, a question that we are asked even from the time we are toddlers. I could feel the panic setting in as I fought with myself for an answer. I was, unknowingly, looking to find my worth in doing, but the problem was that I didn’t know what to do. What was I willing to commit to studying in college? What career path was I going to pursue?

And then the question came again. “No, what do you want to be?” Then, I began to sob. Through my tears and shallow breathing I re-framed my thinking- I suddenly understood the question differently. “I want to be kind,” I mumbled, looking down at my fidgeting hands. Then, enveloped in a smile, the response came: Be that.

That moment caused the most important paradigm shift of my life and I have remained in a state of evolution ever since.

I have become a huge fan of gray area. Most things are not as binary as they seem, and people are rarely as simple as they seem. My life journey is about finding peace for myself and grace for others in a world that expects people, who are inherently dynamic, to be static.

I am just another human who loves traveling, whole living, and telling stories. So, I’m going to sit down and share some kindness.