First Posted: 5/13/2014
The comfort zone is a place most everyone likes to reside in, one of minimal anxiety and an easy stride through life – and Tammy Kubasko decided in 2013 that she wanted nothing to do with it.
The Pittston Township resident shares her story in “My Gift to You: The Comfort Zone,” the first in a three-book self-help and inspirational series. She will be on hand at the Osterhout Free Library during the Third Friday Art Walk in Wilkes-Barre to tell her story.
“When I share my story, it’s in the hope of inspiring others to never stop believing in their dreams and the power within to make them come true, to awaken their purpose, passion, and power within,” Kubasko said.
It was 2011 when her view of her 13-year career in the semiconductor industry began to change.
“In my opinion, I reached a peak of achievement, and at that point, I think I really realized I was starting to outgrow my job,” she said.
Kubasko was also unsatisfied with aspects of her personal life, so she decided to glaze over it all by throwing herself into her work, hoping somewhere along the line something would break and things would change. Her faith soon began to waver
“It felt hopeless, like my prayers were going to an answering machine with no return call.”
Suddenly, the smallest of signs to keep the faith popped up in the form of her stumbling upon Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent’s book “Heaven Is for Real.” Weeks later, Kubasko came in contact via mutual friend with a 6-year-old girl who was fighting for her life and, being a mother of two, she knew she had to help. She sent an anonymous monetary donation to the girl’s family, enclosed in a copy of “Heaven Is for Real,” and that’s when things began to change rapidly.
Kubasko had been following a public figure she has nicknamed Steel in her book, visiting his webpage since 2007 as a source of inspiration. She soon began to see details of her life, things she both shared on Facebook and wrote about in her off-line journal, appear subtly in Steel’s daily writings. His words inspired her to take her first huge step out of the comfort zone and share her writings publicly.
“When I was a kid, my diary was invaded and I said I would never journal again, so it’s really incredible to me that I’ve now published my journal,” she said.
Since then she has immersed herself in a journey that includes pushing her limits, trusting that God would guide her on her way – and she found that once she let go of her fears, this way of living was much easier than expected.
“I have continued to discover so much magic in my life; my eyes have been opened. The mystery of faith is the way that God answers our prayers, if you’re just willing to keep an open mind and an open heart.”
Through this journey, Kubasko has found others that share in the same way of thinking and has seen the power of having the right people surrounding you.
“If I were in this alone, I probably wouldn’t have crossed the finish line,” she said. “Your heart is the magnet for attracting blessings into your path. The people who have crossed my path, their story is connected and it has truly opened my eyes to the fact that every person, place, and message that crosses your path is an answer to you, for you. Whatever you think, whatever you are creating, you are creating it from within: first with your thoughts, second with your actions. The more positive you become within, the stronger the magnet.”
Through her faith each day, Kubasko discovers a little something about herself and about the world around her, a world which now seems to have righted itself – though it was certainly not an overnight occurrence.
“Some people think that faith is like a magic wand and that they could sit on their couch and wait for it to come to them; that’s not what it is,” she said. “Faith is like a farmer who plants a seed in hope and faith he will reap the harvest, and you truly do reap what you sow.”
