Tag Archives: books

Boundaries of the Self

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On this eve eve of our country’s birth, I am pondering where we are. I am pondering the terms of what our sense of self has become. Have our representatives lost their minds or are they just becoming what they always were, mindless drones to an oligarch who doesn’t care about representing all of the people all of the time? Are they so isolated to the realities of the world because they never explored beyond their sheltered life of luxury? Or do they simply not care anymore now that they’ve gotten their more than fair share of the wealth. Have their lives been so protected that they haven’t seen the suffering they are now causing to others who didn’t grow up in the world of prestige and protection? Where has their dignity and justice gone? Why is money more important than the lives of those less fortunate?

I grew up with poverty always knocking at our door. We didn’t want to admit that, but we struggled as kids. And yet, my family always did the right thing and gave as much as we could to others who were less fortunate than us. We didn’t think of ourselves as poor people. What little we had we shared with others in our same situation and they did the same. We didn’t have luxuries and it was uncomfortable to be around those who had more even though we all tried to fit in, especially when they were mean and horrible to those less fortunate. Our sense of self grew as a result of this idea that we could do better if we all worked together, both rich and poor alike. Our parents taught us to do better and go beyond our humble means. They taught us to reach out and become ambitious doers, people of action, but not necessarily craving to be noticed. But if we were noticed, make sure it was for actions that led to saving the planet, saving a community, saving the people, and saving our relationships with each other.

David Gessner asked of us: “Do any of us ever get beyond the boundaries of the selves we start with? Can we really make ourselves into more than we are? Or do we always bump against the borders of self and snap back to the default settings that we were programmed for in the first place?” [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 157). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition.]

Gessner also quoted Wallace Stegner about this subject: “In Crossing to Safety, the Stegnerian narrator writes that ‘When I hear the contemporary disparagement of ambition and the work ethic, I bristle.’ But: ‘Unconsidered, merely indulged, ambition becomes a vice; it can turn a man into a machine that knows nothing but how to run. Considered, it can be something else—pathway to the stars, maybe.’ Ambition can lead to the stars, or at least to that greater broadening, to magnanimity, to largeness. But it still has its more primitive roots in the craving to be noticed, to be known, to have one’s name recognized.” [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 147). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition.]

Finally, Gessner stated about this subject: “Neither Stegner nor Abbey were immune from the hunger for renown. Both wanted their work to be remembered. They would not, it seems to me, have frowned at the notion of my writing this book so many years after their deaths. It is oblivion, of course, that we make our names against. Nothingness that spurs us to be something. And what is worse than being ignored? To a proud person, it is as if our existence is not acknowledged. We are nobody.” [Gessner, David. All The Wild That Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner, and the American West (p. 152). W. W. Norton & Company. Kindle Edition.]

So as we go into the 250th birthday of our country, let’s agree to do something good during this time of injustice. Let’s agree to get out of our comfortable existence and write people who may have more money than us and can fight these old cronies to make a difference. Let’s agree to donate to good causes and continue to fight the good fight against those who simply don’t care. Let’s bump, and even break out of our barriers of the self, and create something beautiful before we die. This weekend, I am giving to the Emergency Family Assistance Association (EFAA) out of Boulder, Colorado. They are working tirelessly to have local support for nutritious food for families in need. With cutbacks to Medicaid and SNAP, our support helps them make their goals. And The Leffingwell Foundation is matching any amount of your donations to EFAA, up to $100,00.00. How awesome is that? https://www.efaa.org/donate/funds/

Give what you can and help out the folks in our community.

And don’t forget to give to your local PBS and NPR! I just signed up for Rocky Mountain PBS passport and am loving the programs on their app! $60 a year gets great entertainment and you don’t have to pay those bigger companies! I am turning into more of a geek than I am now with learning about the past. I am loving the period detective shows!

So give whatever you can, and love the ones who are around you. I love you all and celebrate the good things about our country this weekend, continue to fight against those strange black clad secret police, and attempt to shut out the violence for a little longer by caring for everyone.

I CAN

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I recently re-visited my son’s elementary “I Can” can and reminisced on how easy it was to remember what his thoughts were about accomplishments he made at that early an age. They seem so tiny compared to today’s standards, and yet they helped him become the person he is today. Back then, he had the world at his fingertips and nothing seemed impossible. I truly believed then he would do amazing things as an adult. Today, he is getting there, fully adulting, and owning his life. I hope all of the children from his classes will achieve greatness as well and strive for a better society.

As the storm rages outside, I have been furiously writing today to get to the end of this trilogy. I wanted to share Caitlin’s musings about life and her can do attitude. Here is an excerpt from Book III of the Caitlin Ferguson mysteries I am currently writing:
“Joseph Campbell spoke of a Heroes Journey in his work, Power of the Myth. His words affected those who were fighting against the government at the time when she [Caitlin] was away. She was glad she missed all that drama. Heroes went on adventures in search of truth, and those that stayed behind understood the costs of leaving. People stayed put because they felt safe. She reflected on how much her family lost because they feared her disappearance and perhaps even her death. But the journey allowed her to relinquish her past version of herself.”

“She spoke out in the past, but now was the time for action. Words cannot solve what is to come. No one was shirking away or hiding from this. She would be there for this future generation even though there would always be events beyond her control. In a way, this finality liberated her. Yes, people have died, but she could help those who lived – create their future. If she lived through this last earthly battle, she could stay here and create a better society for the children.”

“Nope. Her time to die was not now, in this moment. She had to keep her strength for her daughter, granddaughter and grandson, and the rest of the children. Their generation would change the world. If her travels taught her anything, it was all about the sharing of wisdom from the old ones. They taught her patience and consistency. They taught her how to look for patterns from the simplest of actions (e.g., follow the money) to the larger over-arching picture through their stories of what this world, and the people who lived here, would become and how it could be saved.”

Caitlin will go towards the gathering storm and wage the war that needs waging and help her family and friends survive. I continue to strive to become her, working hard to always do the right thing.

Can we say that about ourselves? Can we all have that I can attitude and make the changes in our lives and others to create a better society? Go forward from this day with kind hearts and active minds. Go forward and strive for good things. Be kind to everyone you meet every day. Give your hearts and minds to create a better world.

I truly love you all this stormy night and send out good vibrations and hugs!

Do We Change for the Better as We Age?

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I’d like to think that for every year we are alive on this planet, we all become the wise person that we have looked up to and attempted to emulate over our elder years. I’d like to think that we all grow and begin to see the world from a better perspective. I’d like to think that we become more of a human being, like the wise grandfather elder spoke about in the old movie, Little Big Man. (A must-see movie! Add it to your bucket list!)

Grandfather, Old Lodge Skins spoke to his son, Jack Crabb—or Little Big Man, about the war with white men. Little Big Man asked if Grandfather—Old Lodge Skins, hated the white man now (after warring with people like General Custer and his army).
“Jack Crabb: Do you hate them? Do you hate the White man now?
Old Lodge Skins: Do you see this fine thing? Do you admire the humanity of it? Because the human beings, my son, they believe everything is alive. Not only man and animals. But also water, earth, stone. And also the things from them… like that hair. The man from whom this hair came, he’s bald on the other side, because I now own his scalp! That is the way things are. But the white man, they believe EVERYTHING is dead. Stone, earth, animals. And people! Even their own people! If things keep trying to live, white man will rub them out. That is the difference.”

After the war scene, Jack spoke with his grandfather once again about death and the fate of Human Beings (what his grandfather called his people):
“Jack Crabb: Grandfather, I am glad to see you.
Old Lodge Skins: Glad to see you too, my son. My heart soars like a hawk. Do you want to eat? I won’t eat with you because I’m gonna’ die soon.
Jack Crabb: Die, grandfather?
Old Lodge Skins: Yes, my son. I want to die in my own land, where Human Beings are buried in the sky.
Jack Crabb: Well, why do you want to die, grandfather?
Old Lodge Skins: Because there is no other way to deal with the White Man, my son. Whatever else you can say about them, it must be admitted: you cannot get rid of them.
Jack Crabb: No, I suppose not, grandfather.
Old Lodge Skins: There is an endless supply of White Man. But there always has been a limited number of Human Beings. We won today… we won’t win tomorrow.”

The message for me was clear: There are so many of us that don’t care about all the little things and the original people on earth that have been here long before we got here. There are many things we need to learn to survive in a world where evil people get the upper hand. And there are many things that are going to die and disappear in our lifetime, no matter what we do, because there are so many people who don’t want to respect the wise elders, or become one and do the right thing. All I am saying tonight to everyone who are still drinking the Kool-Aid:
Just….. Be better!

I send out love and happiness to all those who still care to do the right thing. And for those who don’t, Just Be Better!

Writers are Brave

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Or: New thoughts are bold and scary. Anne Lamott once said about her father: “Writing taught my father to pay attention; my father in turn taught other people to pay attention and then to write down their thoughts and observations.” Lamott’s father was a writer, and had students that were inmates in San Quenton prison who took part in a  creative-writing program. He taught his students and his daughter by example. He asked his students to put a little bit down on paper every day, and to constantly read great books (and poetry).

I know how important math and sciences are and am grateful for the education my child and I have had in our lives. But sometimes I think society has forgotten the fact that creativity in the form of writing and reading has helped us in the past. I wonder if the reason that we don’t encourage others to engage in the simple act of reading is because the people around us begin to change. They expand their thinking because they are more enlightened on a subject and aren’t afraid to discuss it. A subject may change their lives and they may drift away from you because you may not want to follow the thread of this new idea and life in general.

If we don’t read, we don’t want others in our inner circle to change. We are stuck in some reality that actually doesn’t work but if others leave us we feel threatened by them. Reading (and writing) helps us evolve and become who we are today.

Bold stories make us ponder all of the history writers have written about, and philosophize about deep subjects which leads us to become incredible critical thinkers. When young people tell me they don’t like to read, I am saddened to think how much they have missed in their lives. I am saddened to think of all the incredible stories that have been told in the past and are currently being told today. They are missing out on how humans have evolved (and devolved of late) from past understandings of how the world and society as a whole works.

I was really dismayed when I looked at what all of us, especially women, have gone through to be allowed to learn and especially ponder life’s greatest mysteries by asking intelligent questions. Reading and writing have been essential in my life and I hope I have passed on these life-changing thoughts to my child. I hope to pass on the importance of turning off that constant scrolling and pick up a book (or audiobook) to discover life’s mysteries both past and present. Be a brave reader and get curious!

Here’s a kicker from my past:  My mother would constantly tell me not to read under the covers with a flashlight late at night because it would ruin my eyes. And when I said I wanted to emulate Madame Curie, who worked through a problem night and day and didn’t even take a bath, she stated, “Well, you have to bathe!” And I muttered under my breath, as all teenagers do, “Wow! That’s what you got out of that?”

And finally, to a quote Emily Dickinson: “Women were not encouraged to read because men feared it would joggle their minds.”

I encourage everyone to read my favorite book on writing of all times to gain perspective on us writers:   Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott

I love you all and hope you are having fun creating a magnificent garden in your back yard. Summer is upon us!

Sound Bites – Make it Happen

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Or: STAND UP and FIGHT for BRAVE REPORTING, AUTHORS with HEART, and HUMANITARIANISM!

For every hateful rant that comes out of the mouth of, ohhhh let’s say …that ignorance is bliss person Representative MTG. (you know who I’m talking about) regarding public television, let’s ask news reporters who are repeating her comments follow-up with fact-checked rebuttals. Let the truth shine through with new sound bites. Let the follow-up become positive and exuberant statements from all supporters who understand the incredible benefits of public television. Tell unbiased news reporters about the heroic lifelines small broadcasting stations have in each of their little towns. Remind them how sometimes public television is the only station that gives news to those in distress after disasters. Tell the world the benefits of positive and encouraging reporting on PBS and NPR that we all want to listen to instead of heartbreaking and ugly reporting on that biased station our illustrious leader loves.

For every idiotic comment on social media that comes out of that guy in office and his Best Buddy (you know who I’m talking about), about important agencies that really matter to us, let’s all start slamming back rebuttals and remind him how wrong he is. Let’s all make positive comebacks to his ridiculous tirade about the benefits of all the things that they dislike… like ohhhh let’s say… the Department of Education, USAid, Social Security and Medicaid,  FAA, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, FEMA, IRS, Dept. of Treasury, National Institute of Health, NOAA, and the Treasury Department, to name a few.
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/elon-musks-government-dismantling-fight-stop/story?id=118576033

Let’s remind that Amazon mega billionaire that we support him because we love the convenience of buying and selling online with him. Let’s remind him that he should give some of his money to all of these worthy causes like his ex-wife does. Let’s remind him that he should give of himself freely with no strings attached. Let’s remind him what a massive boycott could do to him like what is happening to the Best Buddy. If we all stand together as a people, we can make positive change.

And give! Give, give, and give a tiny portion of your income, no matter how little you have, to those in need, those representatives and senators who are fighting against this oppression, and those in the media who want to stand up and speak the truth. Create your own movement for generating action for a sane and loving world!

I decided to pick one cause a month and give some of the money back in my part-time job to those in need. This is the money I am making after I have retired. I started in March and so far, I have donated to World Central Kitchen and Rocky Mountain PBS. I plan on doing much more in the days to come. We can all do the same if we don’t eat out at every lunch or have that extra cup of coffee at our favorite drive thru. Every little bit counts right now to keep the momentum to combat what is going on.

And now, I am re-vamping a tradition that I had in the past, to give to others in a way that can create a better community of knowledge and understanding. I used to be the person who gave books as presents every Christmas to my friends and co-workers. I had a large group of associates and friends and I loved the old Chinook Bookstore in Colorado Springs (alas it is no more). It was a place of friendship and warmth. I spent a lot of time there browsing and buying books. I took them home and devoured them, relishing the pure enjoyment of learning something new or reading the next in a series of fantastic fiction. My research took me places that I’ve never been and I hoped to visit someday.

Today, I am aiming to start that back. I recently ordered and gave the book How to Raise a Citizen to a friend who is helping young people learn to survive in the world. He and his high school friend started an after-school program, going back to their neighborhood to help them. They have been given an opportunity to engage the youth in positive ways. They carved out a place for them through the help of the City where they lived. These kids can now have a place where they feel safe, play basketball, have a snack, do homework, and read. These young entrepreneurs are helping create opportunities for the teenagers. They have contacted local businesses and industry to partner with them that will help these kids in the future. They have had backpack and food drives, and will be holding events for education as well as job fairs. It’s programs like these that I want to support. He is on Instagram and it is called Generational Opportunities. We should work to let this happen all over in those little neighborhoods that need the most help. We can all make this happen in our communities.

So when you find a book that moves your heart and soul, give it to someone and encourage them to read it and pass it on. Although I haven’t found the perfect bookstore like the Chinook, I visit the ones in the small towns everywhere I go in my travels. I order a lot of books online, but I want to continue buying and reading interesting books and support these small bookstores. I want to pass them on to co-workers and friends. I encourage you to start your own movement like this. Who knows? Maybe we’ll be able to return to intelligent conversation and kind acts on a daily basis!

******

And to the person who hit my car and drove off today, shame on you! I would have left a note and paid for the damage if I had done this to your car. Karma will catch up with you in the end. I am sad that you are the person that you are. There are too many selfish people like you in the world! Your life circumstances should not be the excuse to do mean and terrible things to others. I will try to forgive you, but it’s hard.

For the rest of you, I love you all and happy reading tonight.

Edward Abbey-One of My Heroes

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“To the intelligent man or woman, life appears infinitely mysterious. But the stupid have an answer for every question.”—Edward Abbey

“Our modern industrial economy takes a mountain covered with trees, lakes, running streams and transforms it into a mountain of junk, garbage, slime pits, and debris.”—Edward Abbey

“The one thing … that is truly ugly is the climate of hate and intimidation, created by a noisy few, which makes the decent majority reluctant to air in public their views on anything controversial. … Where all pretend to be thinking alike, it’s likely that no one is thinking at all.”—Edward Abbey

“Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit.”—Edward Abbey

“Why is it that the destruction of something created by humans is called vandalism, yet the destruction of something created by God is called development?”—Edward Abbey
https://www.azquotes.com/author/10-Edward_Abbey

Edward Abbey (born January 29, 1927, Indiana, Pennsylvania, U.S.—died March 14, 1989, near Tucson, Arizona) was an American writer whose works, set primarily in the southwestern United States, reflect an uncompromising environmentalist philosophy. Abbey’s novel The Monkey Wrench Gang (1975) recounts the exploits of a band of guerrilla environmentalists; both it and Desert Solitaire became handbooks of the environmental movement. The strain of cynicism that runs through much of Abbey’s writing is leavened by a bracing prose style and mischievous wit. His advice was unorthodox: “This is what you shall do: Love the earth and sun and animals. Stand up for the stupid and crazy. Take your hat off to no man.” And: “Anarchism is not a romantic fable but the hardheaded realization, based on five thousand years of experience, that we cannot entrust the management of our lives to kings, priests, politicians, generals, and county commissioners.” https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edward-Abbey

I encourage you to read his works, particularly The Monkey Wrench Gang and Hayduke Lives! These two books, along with his earlier work, Desert Solitaire inspired me to move out here. I visited and walked many of the paths he took when they weren’t National Parks. And now we have to engage in our own warfare, and create a grassroots effort to save all of these pathways before they are destroyed. Fight to keep Rangers employed. Keep fighting Abbey’s fight and save our backyards from destruction!

I love you all on this night and hope you will keep reading, keep writing, keep having enlightening conversations, and keep asking questions!

Living the Dream and Feeling Complete

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I started the day with a wonderful visit to the VNA footcare at the Rec Center. They helped me tremendously with trimming nails and checking out what is going on with my poor aching feet! I learned something new and the visit was paid for by my insurance! I encourage you to talk to those lovely nurses employed by the state and working with your local counties. They really fill a need and help us old folks! And prices are very reasonable if your insurance doesn’t cover it. I’m going back in 3 months! Take care of your feet and they will take care of you!

Today was also a day of researching, writing, and planning my finale in the book. The words flowed. I researched old gaming books of my husband’s (Shadowrun rocks!). And I found some excellent books on history, particularly amazing battle scenes. What a wonderful world at your fingertips! It’s finally coming together. Over the hump and excited to finish the storyline. There may be one more, but who knows? It depends on where I’m at after this!

So my swirling brain is getting it all together, but I just want to say one thing to someone I helped downtown this week: She came in with her check to pay her water bill and was complaining about the process. She gave me a check and I entered the information and that was that. While that process still works for now, it will eventually change. Checks are slowly becoming obsolete with Venmo and other apps to pay someone electronically. It’s inevitable that things will change.

So…I told her she could pay it online and I would help her walk through it if she would like me to help her set it up. She got a little snarky and said she didn’t trust computers. She also proudly stated that she didn’t even have a computer! I was sad that elders don’t understand or want to learn a different process. I have been paying online for over 27 years now and I have never had a problem with it. I have never been breached by the system. I was also sad that so many of us my age and older don’t want to be uncomfortable, which is what you feel when you learn new things. I just told her I have a computer, smart phone, and TV and it was easy to do once you learn it! But, alas, she didn’t want to hear my opinion (I have many, don’t you know?)

There are many things that I don’t always understand when it comes to new programs or software, or even the new publishing methods on my computer. I have to read instructions a few times, or go to a different site with a better explanation in order to work on something new. And sometimes I have to ask the family who are smarter than me on these things to help me out. But to dismiss a new way of learning and reading is a bit sad, don’t you think? Besides, the backlighting is terrific for reading! And there are infinite resources, better than the library (and I loved, loved, loved the library when I was young).

So, I urge all of you to expand your horizons and learn new things every day. Read, read, and read some more. Learn something new every day that you are on this planet. That’s how your brain will stay healthy. Enough said.

I love you all and hope you will keep up with your children and grandchildren!

Is Returning to the Gilded Age Worth It?

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Gilded Age: A period of gross materialism and blatant political corruption in U.S. history during the 1870s that gave rise to important novels of social and political criticism. The period takes its name from the earliest of these, The Gilded Age (1873), written by Mark Twain in collaboration with Charles Dudley Warner. The novel gives a vivid and accurate description of Washington, D.C., and is peopled with caricatures of many leading figures of the day, including greedy industrialists and corrupt politicians.—From Encyclopedia Britannica

That guy in office seems to think he is part of this movement, when he is just a buffoon acting out for television. He envisions himself as a savior, and sadly enough, people still believe in him. They believe he will bring about a new Industrial Revolution, but he is lacking in the ability to understand that he is no President McKinley (who, by the way was assassinated in office). This belief in the robber barons won’t solve our problems. And his billionaire friends don’t want to bring back industry to the U.S. because they don’t want to re-invest their money or pay a decent wage to their workers. They simply want to stay separate from the rest of the world, and look down from their ivory castles. There is no thought to the dignity of others, especially immigrants and their current foreign employees.

And as for all those red states in the south and the mid-west who are farmers and craftsman, I ask you: “How does it feel now?” He is turning on you as well. When will you figure this out that he is not for the little guys who toil in the sun and soil. He has never had to work. I am sad to see that you still don’t get it.

We gardeners are all getting out in force and making little places in our back yards to feed ourselves. Wouldn’t it be lovely to see local small farms and CSAs thrive this summer? Wouldn’t it be lovely to see that we can work together to provide food for everyone, one neighborhood at a time? Something to think about.

Finally, it is a sad thing when over 60% of the military, police and fire voted for that guy in office. I was proud to be a part of law enforcement back in the day, as well as being a proud democrat. Now, I am having a hard time sympathizing with them. The federal cuts to programs and services, and especially veterans’ services should be a wake-up call. What did you guys think was going to happen? I feel for all of those who did their duty, and are now in need of protection and services, but somehow it is a dilemma that could have been fixed if you voted a different way. The Biden administration increased services to help veterans, as well as give money to programs to aid law enforcement and fire departments, and these were promptly slashed within this new administration.

So I am calling for everyone to listen to what Senator Elissa Slotkin said when she asked us to not TUNE OUT. In her speech, she said, “It’s easy to be exhausted, but America needs you now more than ever….If previous generations had not fought for democracy, where would we be today?”— Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin

I am asking that you all read more about our triumphs and failures and learn from the past. Support those who will listen to the people, and do the right thing. Keep demanding town meetings. Keep working towards a better voter turnout. Keep educating the new voters so they are better informed. Have conversations with your local mayors about what else we can do in our little towns. Question those representatives who are being ridiculous. Tell them how you feel about what they are saying. Tell them that they are spreading lies about what is really happening. Somehow the truth will rise up and maybe the cult can be broken.

I send out love to all tonight in hopes for a better tomorrow.

Two More Things

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1.         Today, friends and media asked us to participate in a NO-SPEND DAY to protest the shenanigans happening in you know, where. See the USA article posted today on the Economic Blackout-Boycott
We were asked to boycott all the big corporations, but… here’s the thing: “When asked which presidential candidate would have the greatest impact on the small business sector, 54% of small-business owners named Trump, while only 22% chose Harris, according to BizBuySell’s quarterly Insight Report, released at the end of October.” This is from an  article posted a few months ago titled: “Small-Business Owners Voted for Trump. They Won’t Get Everything On Their Wish List.”

Soooo…. They voted for that guy in office, and now they are facing the consequences due to tariffs, etc. Was this reasoning because they didn’t want to pay for things like … let’s say…decent wages and healthcare for their employees? Hmmm….so I’m not shopping at anyone’s place of business today. (Come on people! Why did you think this guy would help you?) … JUST SAYIN’.

2.         I want to repeat what I said last night about instructing your children and yourselves about government. Please read Dr. Lindsey Cormack’s book How to Raise a Citizen. She encourages you to have those difficult conversations in a contentious time. She stated that “As I often tell my students, politics is going to happen to us whether we like it or not, so we might as well understand how the system works.” WOW!

So lots to think about today. I will try and get back to you later on a more positive note! Now I am back to never-neverland writing my book! I send love out to all of you, no matter who you are!

Creating the Story of Your Life

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Today I was thinking about all the people who tell me: “Here is an idea for a book!” or “Here’s a great title for a book!” I smile politely (sometimes through gritted teeth) and say to them: “Thank you, but I have more ideas than I can possibly write about in my lifetime. I encourage you to write about your ideas!” And: “I am looking forward to seeing your book that you’ve written with this title!” Amazing…. So, if you are in the mood to give advice to authors, please think before you speak. The art of creating is not as easy as you think it is, and dedication to finishing any project is a life-long endeavor.

Here are some of my weird beginnings of late. So many ideas for so many tales that haven’t been told. I’d love to hear how your story goes with these beginnings!

  • These contributions to the dangerous and fascinating subject of ….
  • With the door shut…..
  • As a junkie craves a fix, ….
  • Walking around the rooms differ so completely, like growing up in a fairy tale. One room has a southwestern theme, so many Indian prints, and southwestern woven fabrics on the futon. One room has leather couches and Japanese calligraphy. And of course there is the baby’s room with Winnie the Pooh. This house won’t make Decorations Quarterly, but it is very lived in and full of love. (Walking around the house one day when Kiddo was little)….
  • Flies do indeed have internal clocks….
  • It happened one day, almost by accident….
  • In the ways only cats were given….
  • I’d had a series of unfortunate jobs….
  • The walls of my memory divide the thorns from the roses….
  • You realize, of course, he’s going to turn 14 someday and rebel against all of your religious patter….

We all have stories to tell and we desire to be heard. Stories don’t have to be tragic or angry diatribes. They can be magical; tales we told our children. They can be mysterious, scientific or science fiction. They can be soulful. They can be beautiful memories that might seem common to the individual. But to the people who read them, they can inspire a new generation of storytellers.

There are only so many days to put it out there in our lifetimes. Wouldn’t it be great if we wrote these beautiful thoughts down every day that we live to pass on for generations?

I love you all on this beautiful day and hope you write about your wonderful dreams of how we should live in the world.