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"February 29, 2020"    "Prompt: Happy Leap Day. Write about something that occurs every 4 years."It has occurred to me that if leap year occurs every four years and this is the year it occurs on. then leap year occurs with election year. What a coincidence because the Lord knows we Americans take a big leap with election year! We often leap out of one problem and right into a bigger one but we leap. Prompt: "Many schools have cut funding for art and music programs. Do you think it’s important to bring these electives back, and what are your ideas to get your community involved?"My high school was St. Mary's High School in St. Mary's WV. The band program there is strong despite funding cuts because of a group called "Band boosters" who do all types of fundraisers for the band.     |
| "February 28, 2020" Prompt: "Tell us about something that felt HUGE in the moment, but later turned out to be not such a big deal." I've had a lot of things be like that. The most disappointing one was my associate degree. It was hyped up to get me a job and make me a fortune but turned out to be basically worthless. The accreditation was screwy and most colleges won't accept it. I was disappointed. I learned a lot at the college and it set the pattern for my RBA. I was fortunate enough to find a college initially that had been affiliated with them and thus accepted most of the credits. I was then able to obtain my RBA and am now working toward my master's degree. In fact I am suppose to mail off the rest of my application package to the school today. I spoke with the dean of the Social Work Program about a month ago and gave her a run down of my qualifications. She said many of my qualifications would put me right at the top of the selection list so essentially the application process is a formality. I will be attending Marshall University again next fall. This time I will be a graduate student. I have a strong love for the helping professions as can be exemplified by the fact that I work every day as a volunteer in a helping position. I am the Community Care Ministries Secretary for the Salvation Army which is a fancy way of saying "community chaplain". I do nursing home and prison ministry in the community but I also directly serve homeless individuals, addicts, and socially disadvantaged people in the Huntington Corps Social Services Office. I love social work and everything to do with it and no I do not believe I committed suicide in a former life. I also love history and may apply to become a history major in graduate school as well. I haven't decided yet because it requires a separate application and fee. I did excellent in all of my undergraduate history classes however and that was my undergraduate minor. I also minored in Liberal Studies. Prompt: "What contests on WDC appeal to you? Do you believe contests would get more people involved if our blogging group held contests?"I was involved in the Writer's Cramp for a while but it began to feel like a popularity contest more than a writing challenge. The same people won every day. Then I started breaking it up a little bit. I usually just go to the contests page and see what's on it. As far as holding a contest on Blog City, I have wanted a "Blogger of the week" contest for a long time. I believe it would attract a few more bloggers. I try to be faithful but sometimes my schedule interferes. Anyway I think a contest would be just the ticket. I would participate like I do with BCoF. I would certainly encourage you to start a weekly contest on Blog City. I would try to participate as much as my schedule would allow. When I am working I have a lot of idle time as our clients come in spurts. We're either extremely busy or doing nothing. During the down times I am usually on WDC and that is often when I do my blog. Usually mornings are my best time. Some mornings I grab an extra hour of sleep, but I usually always have time to blog at some point during the day unless I am completely buried with work. Yes, I encourage you to start a contest and count on me to be a participant. |
| "February 27, 2020" Prompt: "What are you wearing today? Share your outfit and tell us about your personal style." Today I am wearing a Marshall University polo shirt and a pair of slacks. Typically I wear my Salvation Army uniform though. It consists of a white button down shirt with blue epaulettes with an big S on them, navy blue pants, black socks, and black boots. I wear my uniform most of the time because in God's army you are never "off duty". I don't consider the Salvation Army to be a regular army of people or a church. I consider it to be God's Army and all Christians are members of it. I'm not wearing my uniform today because it is being laundered. White shirts and stains don't go well together and I am using hydrogen peroxide to remove a small chocolate or blood stain from one shirt and a small unidentified stain from two others. I have a total of five uniform shirts but they are all dirty. I also have a converted USAF trench coat with Salvation Army epaulettes and a Salvation Army hat to complete the ensemble. I don't know how many people I have had come up to me and shake my hand saying "Thank you for your service.' I usually explain that I am not in the military but rather in the Salvation Army. They all respond the same. "Isn't that service? You guys do wonderful work." We do that work because we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us and feel compelled to meet people at their point of need. I love serving in the Salvation Army and will continue wearing my uniform. Right now my corps is shut down due to illnesses. I still intend to go on with business as usual and wear my uniform. I just bought two pairs of new slacks yesterday and a new shirt for my uniform, bringing my total up to six shirts, 12 pairs of pants, dozens of pairs of black socks, and two pairs of black boots. If you see me out of uniform it will probably be laundry day! I plan to buy at least three more shirts so that I never have to be out of uniform. I take my uniform very seriously. If anybody has any plain black or plain navy blue ties they are willing to part with let me know. They are the finishing touches for my ensemble and they are the hardest part of the uniform to keep clean. I have five ties and one of them has stuff on it. I'm going to try hand washing it today to clean it up. I learned a long time ago not to put them in the washer, even in a laundry bag, as they unravel. I can't afford that! I'm in God's Army and want to look my best! On the rare days that I do not wear my Salvation Army uniform, I will be found wearing something from Marshall University. I am an alumnus from Marshall University having graduated from there on December 13, 2019 with a Regents Bachelor of Arts. An RBA is a degree offered by many state universities for people who do not want to declare a major. It was perfect for me as I already had over 90 hours of psychology and dependency (addiction) skills classes behind me. I transferred to Marshall from another university and to declare a psychology major at Marshall I would have had to have waited a long time to put in the residency hours required. The RBA required no such hours and I was able to graduate much quicker. I am proud to be an alumnus from Marshall, even though the football team lost the championship this year. I was formerly a WVU fan but upon attending Marshall I fell in love with the school. I do whatever I can to show my support and when I am not in uniform, I wear Marshall gear. However you will generally catch me in uniform. I am a Christian first and foremost. To me that means wearing my uniform. As a soldier in the Salvation Army I signed a covenant, which I consider to be between Jesus and I. That covenant dictates how I am to behave and to believe. Then I took an oath to obey the officers appointed above me. That makes me a soldier 24/7 and as such I will usually be found in uniform. "Prompt: Who is your favorite poet?"Do you mean who besides myself? lol In all honesty, my favorite poet is Robert Frost. I remember being in fourth grade, when I first began taking grammar classes and literature classes. The teacher recited Robert Frost's "Snowy Evening in the Deep Woods" and I fell in love with poetry and with that poem. I have since read a lot of poetry, including works by Robert Frost, and none has impressed me like "Snowy Evening in the Deep Woods." The only one that has ever come close to evoking that same high was "The Path Less Traveled" also by Robert Frost and "Face Our Destiny", written by myself. "Face Our Destiny" just seemed to come to me as if spoken by the voice of God Himself. It's message, not the rhythm were immaculate and when I cold read it several weeks after I wrote it I was floored by it. I didn't know I had such poetry in my brain. I don't remember exactly how it all goes but I will attempt to remember it and recite it now. "Face our Destiny When all our skies seem cloudy And all our clouds are gray Let us always remember That God will provide a way. There will be storms in our path Yet there is a reason for everything When we find the road is difficult Maybe we should stop questioning. Our paths spread out before us The road that we must take When we learn to face our path Then progress we will make!" That is not an exact recitation and I do not have a copy of it here to give you the exact version, but that is real close. What floored me was the message in the poem. I needed to here it at the time as I was struggling. I thought at the time that it was depression and bi-polar disorder, as I had many of the symptoms. However my doctor recently changed that diagnosis in light of new research. It was both bi-polar I disorder and a condition known as pseudobulbar affect, which causes mood swings and inappropriate outbursts of emotion. Sometimes I laugh for no reason at very inappropriate times. I may have an outburst of anger when I should be happy. Basically it screws the emotions all up and has to do with traumatic brain injury. I had my skull fractured once and the condition is a result. Medications treat it along with a lot of self-taught behavior modification and I seem to be okay today. It was just that I was having a pity pot on the day I cold read "Face Our Destiny" and it hit me like a base ball bat! I needed the swift kick and basically gave myself one. It was just a poem lying in a stack of papers on my desk and I read it. Afterwards I asked my wife who had written it. She told me that I had written it about two weeks earlier and read it to her then. Due to my head injury I had not remembered doing so. I have since started dating and signing my works. |
| {entry: Prompt: “And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” ― Sylvia Plath I agree with Plath. Everything in life is interconnected and can become a topic of a story or poem. The point is that you have to have the courage to take a risk. I take risks everyday with my writing. Just by throwing some of that junk out there I am taking a risk. On the other hand I like writing and experimenting with new forms although I am not good at most of them. I just make attempts and attempts are what life is all about. "Prompt: "It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart." Rainer Maria Rilke Use this quote in your Blog entry today."The earth is a child. It is God's child. God is the Creator of the universe and everything in it. People can believe that the universe popped out of the nothingness of a singularity all they want to, but I believe the truth. I can't prove the universe was created any more than they can prove it popped out of a singularity, but in my heart I know the truth. The problem with the hypothesis that the universe popped out of a singularity is that a singularity is the final result of a collapsed star, indicating there had to be a star to begin with. Where did that star come from? |
| "February 25, 2020" "Day 2657: February 25, 2020 Prompt: "What makes your heart sing loudest? What makes your heart beat strongest?" This is prompt #4 from Here Are The 50 Best Journaling Prompts You Will Ever Read Or Need by Jeremy Golldberg." The thing that makes my heart beat fastest is not a thing at all. It is a Person. He goes by many names but I know Him as Jesus, God, and Holy Spirit. He makes my heart beat. In fact He is my heart beat. I am so pleased with this prompt today because I planned on ducking out of work, but this prompt reminded me of what I am working for. I don't work for me. I work for Jesus. I will report to work later today or go in tomorrow refreshed and with a renewed outlook to get me through the lulls. I get times as a person with bi-polar disorder that I get a little flat and don't feel like going into work. I had some stuff to do here at home today so taking some time off to do it helped. However my attitude was headed south on me. My spirits were going down and this prompt helped. I'm fired up again and ready to conquer the world for my Savior. Prompt: “For most of human history, ‘literature,’ both fiction and poetry, has been narrated, not written—heard, not read. So fairy tales, folk tales, stories from the oral tradition, are all of them the most vital connection we have with the imaginations of the ordinary men and women whose labor created our world.”~ Angela CarterAs a child, we experienced stories orally initially. What was your favorite story from your childhood? As an adult do you listen to audio books with the same excitement?" I remember when I was a child, my dad use to tell stories about his childhood. I doubt that they were true but they may well have been. I would sit and listen for hours, though I don't remember any of the stories. I do know that I knew early in life that I was to be a writer. My dad knew it too and tried to encourage it. He tried very hard to get some of my early stuff published and I believe a piece or two was published in the local paper. I had a fan club all through school and those students would sit entire periods and listen to me recite poetry or read stories. I was impressed. |
| "February 24, 2020" DAY 2656: February 24, 2022 "Prompt: A deadline is negative inspiration. Still, it's better than no inspiration at all.” ― Rita Mae Brown Write about a deadline." I always hated deadlines but I see the as a necessary evil. Without deadlines I would probably have never gotten anything I published done on schedule. I would have procrastinated and it would still be waiting. Deadlines give writers goals to reach, even though we hate them more than appreciate them. I always hated deadlines because I felt cramped and rushed but they are actually the spur that kept me going. When I became the owner and editor of my own magazine (now closed) I understood the purpose of deadlines. Deadlines kept me on schedule. I came to have a brand new appreciation for them from an administrative point of view. As much as we hate them they serve a purpose. Prompt: “It's so hard to forget pain, but it's even harder to remember sweetness. We have no scar to show for happiness. We learn so little from peace." ― Chuck Palahniuk What are your thoughts? Do you agree with Palahnuik's assessment that we learn so little from peace?"I would have to agree with this statement. I have often said that humans are like plants in that "we grow best when we're in deep poop." Therefore I have to agree with his statement. After all, which do we remember better: sadness and hardship or laughter and gaity? Sadness and hardship of course! |
| "February 22, 2020" "Prompt: "All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence." Martin Luther King, Jr. Use this quote to inspire your blog entry" I agree with Reverend King. My Bible tells me that whatever I do I should do to the glory of God. Colossians 3:17 says "Whatever you do in word or deed, do it in the name of Jesus." If I am going to do something in the name of Jesus I am going to do it right. It makes no difference if I am writing a speech or scrubbing a toilet, I want it done properly because I am doing it in the name of Jesus and to the glory of God. King is absolutely spot on with his observation. pROMPT: “We’re past the age of heroes and hero kings. … Most of our lives are basically mundane and dull, and it’s up to the writer to find ways to make them interesting.” —John Updike, WDWhat are your thoughts? Do you agree that our lives are mundane and dull?" I think this statement is one that was made in ignorance. As a history minor at the undergraduate level I learned that the age so many long to go back to was an age when women were treated like property. It was an age of barbarians and intolerable human rights violations. It was an age during which wars were fought by targeting entire cities and blockading them until they starved into submission. No! It was not a "golden age" as many like to call it. As much as we have problems now, humanity has come a long ways since then. Image #2187984 over display limit. -?- |
| "February 21, 2020" Image #1997652 over display limit. -?- Prompt: "What does it mean to you to empower women?" You certainly know how to pick a topic that could set of a powder keg don't you? Here goes: Empowering women means giving them the freedom they need to live rich, fulfilling lives, Many women I know are under the thumbs of their husbands and the husbands act kike their wives are less than human. They treat them as incapable and set them up for failure. They won't give them room ti=o grow as human beings. Sure mistakes will be made. Mistakes are part of learning. Allow a woman to grow and she will be set for life. What really irritates me is when a man acts like he owns a woman or acts like she is a little child or helpless. I have saw that happen a lot. My second wife was treated like a child. She was virtually helpless when we first met. I taught her to cook, to clean, to do most of the elementary stuff. I had to balance the checkbook and make the financial decisions because she had been taught that it was "the man's place" to do all that. I surprised her once by handing her the finances and basically asking "What do we do with this mess?" The sink or swim method is learning the hard way but she learned. I taught her a lot and would love to hear her complain today about having to be responsible. She passed in 2016. At least I know she was a Christian when she passed. {image:1971183-33% Prompt: "Describe your ideal friend. Do you live up to this description in your friendships?" I could have sworn this was yesterday's prompt because I just saw my response to this on yesterday's blog entry. Anyway, my ideal friend is Jesus Christ or anybody who is Christ-like. I say this because Christ-like people don't sugar coat things for me. They just tell me the way it is. Yes, it may make me angry in the beginning but after I think about it a while I will admit it if they are correct. Some people are just plain liars and jerks, but I have found that even they can be honest if I allow them to be. Growth comes when one is able to take criticism, whether it is constructive or just plain rude. You must be able to accept it, choose the parts you agree with and ignore the rest. My biggest problem is that I have a huge heart. In fact, my co-workers tell me they are proud of me if I call somebody out on their crap. I need to quit wearing my heart on my sleeve as much as I do. Love should compel me to be completely honest with people, even when I know it will "offend" them. To be completely honest, I wish more people had offended me in my lifetime! {image:2098718-33} Image #2118746 over display limit. -?- Image #2147967 over display limit. -?- Image #2187503 over display limit. -?- Image #2187984 over display limit. -?- |
| {entry: Image #1971183 over display limit. -?- Image #1997652 over display limit. -?- Prompt: "Tell us a mysterious story. Or write a review of your favorite mystery book or movie." A mystery to me would be to wonder why Jesus Christ loved and loves me so. I mean I am a sinner. I was always a sinner and as long as I remain in this flesh I will be a sinner. Despite the fact that I am a sinner who is hopelessly ensnared in sin Jesus loves me and saved me. I don't understand that because I know Jesus cannot stand sin. He loves me in spite of my sin and that means I love others in spite of the fact that they are sinners. My son hurts me all the time because he ignores my calls and is always busy when I talk to him. I know he is young and uncomfortable just being quiet together. I forgive him in spite of his sin because I love him just as I love everybody else. I know that it is difficult to fathom loving a person you have never met, but it is easy to do when you are a Christian. Love grows in Christians and even when you know people are doing you wrong you can only forgive them and pray for them. I know the world is an evil place but there is not one human being on this planet that I would not lay down my life for because Jesus laid down His life for me. Image #1971183 over display limit. -?- "Prompt: Aspire- To hope to achieve something in one's hopes or ambitions. What things have you aspired in?" I don't believe the proper grammar is "aspire in". I believe it is "aspire to." I aspire to become a recovery coach/addictions counselor. I need two more years of college to have my MSW and another five or so to have my Ph. D. in psychology. That is my ultimate aspiration. Image #2098718 over display limit. -?- Image #2118746 over display limit. -?- Image #2147967 over display limit. -?- Image #2187503 over display limit. -?- Image #2187984 over display limit. -?- |
| "February 19, 2020" Image #1997652 over display limit. -?- Prompt: "Use these words to discuss in your blog: foundation, seriously, natural, speak, green, and tulip." Without the foundation of Jesus Christ in my life, I hate to think what my life would be like. I have lived the life of a sinner and I seriously doubt I would still be alive or free if it had continued. I think Christianity is the natural choice for me. I speak from experience as I have explored every other faith. I found they were all green saplings compared with the true faith. Jesus is the tulip in my life. I don't know where I would be without Jesus in my life, but I know it would not be pretty. I was a horrible human being before I was saved. I was angry all the time and hated most people. It was not a pleasant sight and I cringe to think about it. Image #1971183 over display limit. -?- "Prompt: Write about something with a heartfelt attitude."Read my entry for BCoF today! Image #2098718 over display limit. -?- Image #2118746 over display limit. -?- Image #2147967 over display limit. -?- Image #2187503 over display limit. -?- Image #2187984 over display limit. -?- |
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