Sit down. I need to tell you my story. It may take a while.

For most of my career, writing has been a critical part of my day-to-day work. It started with press releases, white papers and op eds. Over the years, I added storytelling to the mix, and that’s really what I prefer.

Over the years, I’ve written nonfiction stories about highly successful schools in Alabama. I’ve written profiles of moms and dads for magazine cover stories, stories about children with special needs and profiles of the men and women who work tirelessly to promote philanthropy in my community. Today, my professional writing revolves around stories of sick children who are getting better thanks to the generous support of donors all over the state.

So, yes. I’m a writer. My career has given me a platform to write other people’s stories. And I have to say, I do it pretty well. But I’ve never had the guts to write my own.

Okay, that’s not entirely true. I’ve tried. I had a blog when I was the editor of Little Rock Family. I told cute little stories about my family, our travels, my favorite things to do, wear, see, and read.

But dear LORD that blog was boring because the voice wasn’t ME. Instead, it was the perfect public version of me. The “me” who went on TV and radio every week to tell parents exactly what to do to entertain their children. The “me” who had all the answers for planning the perfect birthday party. The “me” who smiled and laughed and wrote what I thought everyone wanted to read.

I felt like a sham.

I played around with a more “real” version of me on my personal blog. I documented my grief when my children’s school closed and my world was turned upside down. I shared my concerns when my child had a tough season in baseball. I delved into my love of music with a little project called 30 Days on Shuffle. And I hinted at what was really going on behind the scenes of my life in a post called “Bright, Shiny, New.”

When I sent that post to a trusted friend to read, he responded by saying something to the effect of, “You stopped writing just when it got interesting. What’s really going on here? I want to know WHY this town is no longer bright, shiny and new for you.”

Aw, hell. My friend was urging me to be authentic. But I couldn’t do it. The truth was too painful. Too raw. Too imperfect. Too scary.  So I stopped writing for myself. That was almost four years ago.

Last summer, my marriage was ending after years of struggle on both sides. Searching for wisdom, stability, change, sustenance, I found Brene Brown, a shame researcher and story teller. I did a book study on “Daring Greatly” and just came undone (in a good way!). As I read about vulnerability, numbing, armor, living above the line, minding the gap … something inside me shifted dramatically.

At the same time I was reading “Daring Greatly,” I found Momastery.com. Like so many others, I devoured every post, drawing strength from this new-found realization that I wasn’t alone in my shaming and blaming and numbing and armor-wearing.

I started taking off the armor of perfection, choosing to speak my truth and sharing my thoughts and feelings about my journey with some close friends. I didn’t shy away from admitting my mistakes. One by one, these women I would look and me and whisper, “I feel that, too. I worry about that, too. Yes. Me, too.”

I started to realize that I can own my story – every ugly chapter, every beautiful chapter — because so many other people have similar stories. It’s not just me. I don’t have to hide anymore.

In the first chapter of “Carry on Warrior,” Glennon Melton writes, “If, anywhere in your soul, you feel the desire to write, please write. Write as a gift to yourself and others. Everyone has a story to tell. Writing is not about creating tidy paragraphs that sound lovely or choosing the ‘right’ words. It’s just about noticing who you are and noticing life and sharing what you notice. When you write your truth, it is a love offering to the world because it helps us feel braver and less along.”

When I read those lines, I got tears in my eyes. And I thought, “Well, okay. Let’s do it.”

So here I am. I’m ready to tell my own story. I’m ready to be seen. Hence the name of this blog.

My best friend when I was a freshman in high school was a senior named Mary Melissa Cobb. Everyone called her “M” for short. She coined the phrase, “MCobbNeatO.”

It basically meant “in disguise as someone super cool and fun.”  She’d pick me up for an adventure and we’d put on our white-framed sunglasses, smile broadly and shout, “Shhhh! We’re MCobbNeatO!” Then we’d head off to make mischief of some sort.

I hadn’t thought about MCobbNeatO in a long time. Then one night the story popped in my head as I was brainstorming names for this blog. I wanted the name it to reflect me and my desire to be seen. I’m ready to be authentic, dammit. Unfiltered. Unwritten. Unhinged. (All those blog names were taken, btw)

And it struck me: I could go jenncobbnito. JennCobb was my nickname in high school and college. I still have friends who call me that. It felt right.

I have to confess, I went a little Jerry McGuire. I decided this would be a manifesto! Instead of going undercover, I’d come out into the open! Instead of going incognito, I’d go jenncobbnito!

It’s not perfect, but neither am I.

So, this is where we start … with me stepping into the light. With me taking off the armor of perfection and resisting the urge to run away when things get messy and painful. With me writing about who I’ve been, who I am, and the kind of person I hope to be. With me sharing with you what I notice about life.

I’m going to piss some people off. But for the first time in forever, I know it’s not my job to make everyone comfortable anymore.

Most of my truth these days isn’t pretty. But more and more, it’s becoming so. Parts of it are pretty damn funny. Lots of it is still unwritten – and that’s exciting.

Here we go.