Fill in the Blanks

A friend just emailed me in a panic, because she has to come up with a written profile of her mother.

I spent a long time as a news reporter, so I still have a stock of imaginary, fill-in-the-blank story templates in my head. (That’s one reason I write fast.)

Here’s what I sent her. Feel free to adapt it when you need to profile someone, too.

X is known far and wide for her X, her X, and her X … but behind the scenes, she’s also X.

At long last, it’s time for some well-deserved recognition.

X began as ….

Before long, she learned/discovered ….

Along the way, she has worked tirelessly to …

It hasn’t been easy. She’s overcome a number of obstacles, including …

Through it all, the X-year-old mother of X has maintained an unstoppable sense of humor/boundless good cheer/optimism/etc. …

Her family and friends say/describe her as …

She persists/perseveres — even when she admits that it would have been easier simply to …

“It’s worth it,” she says, “because [insert humorous and uplifting/possibly made-up quote here].”