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 |   Theses are my thoughts and ramblings as I forge my way through this thing they call life. |
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These are my thoughts and ramblings as I forge my way through this thing they call Life. I blog with these groups:     "Blogging Circle of Friends "  [E] 
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Blog City - Day 2156 Have you ever asked someone what their favorite poem is? It's not as easy as you would think for them to name an author and a poem with the reason why. One of mine is Marge Piercy's The Moon is Always Female. I was trying to understand women in general. Please recommend a couple to us and why. Right off the top of my head, I would have to say Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44272/the-road-not-taken I love the imagery of two paths and a yellow wood. I can see it in my minds eye. Both beautiful. Both full of possibility and wonder. I like the aspect of the physical as well as the metaphorical aspect of picking a way to go, knowing that in the choosing, you may not come back to chose again. The way you go marks your life's path. I also ran across a poet just recently that I quite like - Langston Hughes. His voice is true and clear. He makes me think and remember that we each have an experience worthy of being told. Mine is no better or worse than his, just different and that difference makes this world more diverse and expansive. We need to learn to appreciate what each of us brings to the table. Keep open minds and hearts. Learn from each other. Theme For English B by Langston Hughes. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47880/theme-for-english-b Another poet I had the pleasure of hearing read her work last fall at the Kingston Writer's Festival is Abena Beloved Green. Hearing her speak her poems, seeing her strong, supportive entourage of family, and reading her words myself - over and over, I was moved by her keen eye and strong voice. I highly recommend her book of poetry - The Way We Hold On. Today I read 'Slow and Steady' and found myself smiling at her words and how much they pertain to our times. Here is an excerpt from that poem: The sloth is the keeper of the lost art of living in the moment. Being slothful should mean having mastered stillness and intention; possessing impeccable control. The sloth is unfazed by the propaganda, The sloth never lines up for the rat race. The next time someone tells me I am being slothful, I will say, "Thank you. I try." This is a link to another poem. I love listening to her strong voice... enjoy. https://abenagreen.ca/blog/2018/06/03/stretch-marks-spoken-word-poetry/ |
Blog City - Day 2149 Prompt: What books are on your summer reading list? I am trying to read books I currently own and have not gotten to over the years. I am currently reading a non-fiction memoir called Lean Out by Tara Henley and I am loving her style. She wrote this book as a response to her own frantic lifestyle pace that was giving her heart palpitations from anxiety. She withdrew from a life too fast paced and needed to reconnect with the important things of life - human connection. I find it interesting to read during this pandemic, as what she has to say, speaks to all of us, in a way. Something big has had to happen to make us reassess our lives and see what is important. As I look out around me I see families walking, people biking, life has slowed down. If we stop to consider the good that can come out of this situation we will see the silver lining - the one that has us reaching out to others and embracing humanity... even if we can't physically hug each other and need to keep six feet apart. I did break down and order four books through Amazon.ca... one of these I am currently reading is May Day by Jess Lourey. I found this author when researching dream writer's retreats I would love to go to. One is in the Gladstone Library in Wales. Imagine staying in a library for a whole week while exploring your own writing. Ahh, heaven. Jessica Lourey is an American author who leads writing retreats abroad - one in the Gladstone Library and another in a castle an hour outside of Paris (another interesting place to visit). I figured I would read some of her work and see what kind of writer she is.... so far I am not fully impressed, but I am keeping an open mind. May Day is a Mira James Mystery (apparently there are 12 of them; one for each month of the year). I also bought another of hers - The Catalaine Book of Secrets. It delves into witches and such. It sounds really good. She strikes me as an interesting person. Here is a Ted Talk she gave: Rewrite Your Life is another book of hers I am waiting to have delivered. Okay so not all my reading is from books I currently own, but many on my list are. Since the pandemic I have only bought... hmmm, okay 9 books. Three of them were when I bought 2 for my mother for Mother's Day. I couldn't pass up buying books for me too! So of the 9, 7 were for me. I have gone through my book shelves and found books I didn't realize I had... and have put away ones to donate (usually hard cover beasts I refuse to bother with, but were given as gifts). I have passed some on to my mother to read. To list them all here would be way too long, but my plan is to move through them. Many are books bought at writer's festivals - they are signed copies. Ones I will keep even after they have been read. Anything not signed I will pass on.... unless I really like them - this would be anything by Jill Shalvis. Though the more I read of it, the more I think I will keep Lean Out as well. Henley's style is fresh and she is Canadian. Another book I finished was Building Your Best Writing Life by Kristen Kieffer. She also has a website called Well-Storied that I like to visit occasionally So in a nutshell, I will say - I will be reading some romance (which is easy, mindless and fun), I will be reading some new authors and a few non-fiction and writing reference books over the course of my summer. I may even read some teaching books to balance off my life of reading. I wish everyone a wonderful summer of reading, writing and reviewing. |
Blog City - Day 2147 Prompt: A wall clock subtly reminds whoever reads it to stay in the moment. What does “to stay in the moment” mean to you, and how easy or difficult is it to stay in the moment? Staying the moment means being mindful, centered, and present. It means stopping to take in a breath, a full breath and letting it out slowly as you focus on the feeling of filling up and letting it go. It means looking up from our devices and seeing what's around us. The world really is a wonderful place if you pay attention. Focusing on the actual people around us. It drives me insane when someone is on their phone, while the person they are with sits idly by waiting for them to finish whatever was so urgent it took them away. The more stressed I am, the more difficult it is to stay in the moment. Thoughts race as our heart catapult, all to keep up to some kind of expectation or deadline. It is at these times when it is more beneficial to stop and just take a moment to recenter than push on. Taking a moment and breathing deeply gives us a chance to get ourselves in the right place to get things accomplished. It may seem counterproductive to stop when the world is whizzing by, but it actually helps to refocus us and calm us so we can handle the chaos that may be coming our way. It helps us put things into perspective. Since last fall, I have been incorporating meditation into my life. I find it is helpful. I feel calmer. Able to take things on. Not so anxious or scattered. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT May 30th Congratulations on making it to the last day of the competition! What was your favorite prompt from the last month? What was the most rewarding aspect of participating in the competition? What did you learn? It is the last day. Wow. I can't believe May is almost done. Time to pick my favourite prompt and reflect on the past month. I enjoyed the virtual traveling because I got to know my fellow bloggers a bit better in terms of where they live and I got to take a virtual trip that involved a little traveling over the internet. That entry was as good to write as it was to read other people's entries. I also loved writing the the poems on May 8. The prompt for that date was "I used to believe..." I used to believe I was invincible I used to believe life would go on I used to believe that I could do anything I used to believe life was my oyster But then life happened.. Now I believe life is fleeting Now I believe you must cherish what you have Now I believe love and gratitude abide Now I believe in following my bliss Because life is too short to waste. I also appreciate the prompts when I was facing the blank page each day. Having a starting point got the creative juices flowing for the day. Some days I needed that kick in the pants to keep me showing up. I keep thinking that I will take the next month off and so far I have blogged each month of this year so far. Thanks for being here and providing grist for the mill. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT May 29th When I was little, I dreamed of living in a treehouse surrounded by a pool with a spiral staircase going up the middle of the trunk. *Tree* In your second to last entry of the month, write about your dream home. Describe the rooms in your fantasy house and any unique characteristics. Be creative! I love the description of your dream house. For me I would like a dream house by a lake. The sound of loons and nature abounding. A wall of windows on either side of a huge stone fireplace. Letting in the light of day and a dark background in the evening when the fire blooms to life. I would love a library with floor to ceiling shelves, maybe even a second floor with a spiral staircase that lets you get up to the second floor of the library - that runs around the lip of the room but leaving the center open to view all the books. The second floor would have a little nook to sit and read. The main floor of the library would have my office and leading out of double doors is a deck so that I can work inside or outside depending on my mood. The master bedroom would also have another set of these double doors and a deck where I can sit out with my morning coffee. This bedroom would be up on the second floor. The house would be carved into the landscape. Lake views and forest views allowing nature to never be too far away. This dream home is within the beauty of Muskoka. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT May 28th Help me fill the Challenge War Chest with new prompts! In your entry today, write at least three prompts to be used in future rounds of the 30DBC. Then, write the rest of your entry using one of your own prompts. Time to refill the well. Today I am reading Build Your Best Writing Life by Kristen Kieffer and I am working on defining my creative identity. One of her chapters asks: Who are you as a Writer? To help you work on defining this consider these three questions: What kind of stories do you want to tell? Who are you writing for? And What defines your personal writing style and voice? This could probably be more than one prompt or all three, but I will let you decide how to break it down. For me, I spent my day working it out. What did I come up with... well, in a nutshell: I write upmarket woman's fiction with a redemptive quality that features misguided women who, when faced with the cracks of their current life situation, find confidence and a sense of love and belonging when they shed their past in search of their true place in the world. I also write inspiring poetry and blogs that explore the wonders and bits of life that uplift me. I write upmarket women's fiction for people who enjoy lighthearted and humourous character-driven stories where romance and a sense of belonging are favoured as they grapple with finding a new normal after their world has been turned upside down. Not sure which of these I like, but one of them will make it to my website in the very near future. The poetry and blog comment I may leave as is.... unless anyone feels inclined to comment. Feedback is always helpful so long as its constructive and I find my friends here on WDC are quite helpful that way. For a couple of other prompts: Who are the writers you admire? Why? What have they taught you about writing? Do you see yourself as a meditative person or tightly wound? Type A or Type B? |
| 30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT May 27th If your life were a song, 1) what genre would it be, 2) who would sing it, and 3) would it be a hit? First thought that jumped into my head- Doris Day - Que Sera Sera. But that is before my time - 1956. But if I take the time to think things over I would be inclined to thing something more Jann Arden and Good Mother. It would be a hit in certain circles - the ones that matter, but not a over the top kind of thing. I could also go with her You Don't Know Me. But Jessica Andrew's Who I Am (Rosemary's Granddaughter) always gets me. I would chose this one! This also the them of Sue Thomas FBEye It's county, not my most favourite of genres, but I find they often speak from the heart and that is who I am. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT May 26th Complete the following sentence: When I’m in the mood to celebrate, nothing can stop me from ___________. When I'm in the mood to celebrate, nothing can stop me from smiling and wanting to share my joy with others. I know this blog should be longer and should develop this idea, but completing the sentence prompts are not always my most favourite. I look forward to reading what others have said. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT May 25th What is the most useless skill you have? The most valuable? I have the ability to hold on to random trivia. That is pretty useless. I don't know enough to win at Jeopardy or Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, but I know enough to be able randomly drop in a weird fact every so often. As for valuable.... I would say being able to write and figure things out by putting my thoughts on paper. Some people can verbally spar, I cannot, but if I have time to write things down I think I can manage to put my jumbled thoughts in an order that makes a bit more sense than if I just let my tongue loose. Verbal diarrhea is never pretty. But a poem is art. |
30 Day Blogging Challenge PROMPT May 24th Write about something awkward or embarrassing that happened in public - it can be something that happened to you, or something you witnessed happen to somebody else. How did they react? A while back I was on a trip to Niagara Falls and while walking up the big hill I could see a person dressed up as a Martian across the street. The friend I was with and I watched as this Martian / person would stand very still and then move suddenly scaring the crap out of unsuspecting people who were walking by. Well, it was rather funny to see the reactions of people, but what I found even funnier is when I walked past the Martian. I knew he would move and yet when he did I flipped out too! It was more funny than embarrassing, but the fact that I knew the Martian would move and then still managed to freak out was the funny / embarrassing part. My friend thought it was hilarious. |
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