Blog @ Work

Ripple in the dawn. It’s early in the morning and I am alone after one week of being together. It’s all quiet and peaceful. I have to adjust a little because they have been wonderful days, those last days of my holiday. I am getting used to having my love around me and in the house. Today is a new exception, although he is coming here again this afternoon. I already miss him. Happily, there are pebbles of memories and ripples in the dawn to bridge the time from now till then. I am counting the hours. Things have changed so dramatically over a short period of 7 weeks it’s unbelievable. The main thing is we’ve met, and we are no longer alone. There is somebody in this life for me. I feel that very deeply.

The journey ahead. We walk the path of Life. Life’s big paint brush is showing us this path and we are able to walk on it. Sometimes we make little detours, but if you are lucky you will get on the main road again very soon. Walking this path is what you are meant to do in life. It’s not so much a path from A to B as it is the journey itself that is important. It gives the opportunity to enjoy the scenery, learn your lessons and meet others on that same road towards your destination. It can be fun, it can be challenging, but it always is worth your while.

The man on the IPhone, walking. It reminds me of M., my boyfriend, who recently bought another IPhone, because he lost his old one on a bench in the park. We communicate a lot through his Apple smartphone, so it was imperative he should buy a new one very quickly. And he did. Next week, he is going to walk a long distance footpath on his own without me. I like walking, but 35 kilometers a day? Too much for me and since I have a big blister as of yesterday, I encourage him to go alone as planned. He will be walking, walking and walking. We will be in touch!

The girl with the magnifying stone. Where will she look at, what will she enlarge? I think she is going to look at her feet. There is one big blister underneath her right foot. It is hurting. She looks at it with the stone and it becomes huge! The pain increases accordingly. She has a dilemma. Can she walk with that blister or does she have to stay put for the day? It will depend…on her and her companion. Perhaps they both decide to do something different for this lovely Wednesday. Because walking the miles as planned with a hurting foot is no fun. It will ruin the spirit of the week.

Graduation Day. My 8-month program Rising Stars 2016-2017 is finished this month and graduation day is June 28th. I am really excited that I could take part in this excellent program, due to the magnificent work of GabriellaR45 and Hannah ♫♥♫ . I also owe my sponsor Acme because of her relentless support and encouragement. It was awesome to participate and write all those assignments in these months. I learned a lot and stepped out of my comfort zone many times. It will be a great honor to graduate.

Two under the moon. “I love you’, he said. “Me too”, she said. They both were, very much in love. And over the moon. Under the moon, both of them. Two moon to be true. Moonish; moonstruck!

The cat and the guppy in the bowl. “Hey, you there! What’s the matter with you”, hissed the cat to the guppy. “Why are you under water? You are getting all wet”. “I like it this way”, the guppy replied. “And by the way, if I don’t swim in the water I die”.

The only house on the planet, a sanctuary! As of today, I have a two weeks holiday period. So I am not sure to finish the month for 30-Day Image Prompt. But my house will be that only house on the little planet for a few days. We’ve chosen my place as a hide-out, the home base to stay for our daily walking and hiking trips. We are planning to walk long distance footpaths in my country. With a little day-backpack, we will explore Dutch Nature at its finest. I am so thrilled since it’s been two years since my last holiday. And, for those who haven’t read my blogs, I am very much in love so it’s great to be in the presence of my newly found lover. I think it will be radio silence for a short period, but then again, maybe I find time in the wee hours of the morning… See you around.

Buildings in the morning light. It’s the morning of the last day before the holiday starts. It’s 6 a.m. and the streets are nearly empty. A quiet time, a time for reflection as I walk through the streets towards the tram stop. There are some birds chirping, and a man is still lying on the park bench, asleep, or so he is pretending. When I pass he suddenly wakes up and starts talking to me. Obviously, he wants to have a conversation, with somebody, with anybody, and I am right there. So I sit next to him and listen to his story of how he one day had to go to the toilet for a big one. In the train, the toilets were closed due to the early hour. He was visiting Amsterdam for festivities on the street. So, the toilet door was closed, he had the need, nothing else to be done than to relieve himself just then and there. “It was awful”, he claimed pathetically, ‘I never felt so ashamed in my whole life”. But the deed was done, and by leaving the train he felt the wet substance through his trousers. He felt everybody was looking at him. “It’s all in the head”, he says, and smiles. “I met some nice people who took me in to clean myself up a little bit. I stayed for 24 hours feasting, drinking, and joining the gang. Everybody was so nice to me, although they knew I had pooped in my pants. But they didn’t mind, I had the most wonderful day that day”. “John”, he says, “that’s me…John, if you gotta go, you gotto go”. I listened to his words, smiled and stood up; it was time for me to move on. “I am sitting here, every day”, he said. “Maybe we will see each other again, someday”. I watched him go in the early morning light, wandering off.

I was a former Theoretical psychologist, now I am a writer. A Theoretical psychologist is someone with a university degree who teaches at University, is doing research on social psychology subjects, like identity, and is generally the philosopher among the psychologists. A lot of writing essays and articles is involved as well. The step to becoming a writer is an easy one. This writer writes poetry and short stories and is part of a writer’s community. Every day she sits in front of the computer to write, to think and to contemplate. Furthermore, it’s important to stay in the flow of writing. Continuity on a daily basis is very important. Publishing is among the possibilities of this writer of which I am very content.

When I decide to change the floor boards in the living room an awful smell is suddenly present. I look underneath and in the space, under the floor, I see the corpses of two persons. I can’t make out their sex or how old they are since decay has set in terribly. I immediately phone the police. They discover the horrendous remains of in total two persons and a canine. After careful research, they discover it's Mr. and Mrs. Goodwearthy, age 57 and 58, and their dog Whoof. Former residents of the house. As it turns out the horror writer who purchased the house from them has killed them in a killing spree and has written a book about it. He made a lot of money on this bestseller “What remains”. They apprehended him within hours after the deadly discovery and he is sentenced to life in prison. Since it’s all been part of the history of my house I think I am going to write about it too. I already have a title: What remains deadly will stay deadly. Looking forward to writing it.

Strong female with a bow. This picture immediately reminded me of the female character Shani in the story "Affections of the Heart"  [18+] by SB Musing . “Shani was a woman who lived her own life, till she met a young boy and a mysterious man. As their journey finishes, Shani finds herself a part of the military.” It’s a great novel and I would recommend everybody to read it. The chapters are easy to read, the pace is excellent and the writing style very admirable. In short: a must-read.

I believe in the law of love in life. Since I am in love I am quieter, calmer and more satisfied with my life. I am enjoying things to the fullest. It is a great state to be in, and I hope it will stay and not disappear.

The best childhood memories make us realize that we were laying the foundations for the rest of our lives. Our childhood is so very important for building strength, courage, and the way we interact with each other.

I give you: water, fire, a flower and a feather. In one word: I give you enthusiasm. I love it when people are enthusiastic and have a passion for something. It’s contagious and it makes me very happy when I encounter enthusiasm in myself or somebody else. It is a great gift to receive. Passion answers to water, fire, a flower and a feather. It is golden!

I have a somewhat difficult relationship with food. It is a comfort, a prize, and daily ritual. I have to be very careful what I put in my mouth because I have diabetes, type II. So I try to eat low carb and lots of vegetables. But today I was very happy, coming from my first interview with my guitar coach. I treated myself on chips with mayonnaise and a chocolate drink on a terrace in the sun. As long as I don’t do that every week I am in the clear, I hope. It was just one of those lovely days!

In the Netherlands, the flag (red, white, blue) is not that important. Only white supremacists use the flag to focus on us versus them. That’s why using the flag outside the national holidays is a bit ‘not done’ in our circles. A totally different situation than for example in the USA.

My late Uncle Frits was a hero. He died at the age of twenty-one while serving in the Dutch army in 1961 in New Guinee. The irony was that he stepped on a landmine while leaving the country because the war was over and he could leave and go home. He never made it!

My mother was pregnant with me at the time. She mourned during her pregnancy. The story goes that my grandfather’s hair turned white when he heard the terrible news. The whole family, my grandfather, my grandmother and ten kids were in shock.

Years and years later, actually a few years back, we, as the family, got word from the Dutch government that they wanted to honor Frits posthumously still. On a sunny afternoon, we met with a few army people in the garden of my aunt and uncle and there were a speech and a plaquette to honor him. Although it was a bit late, according to everyone, it still was a special day in memory of that young man that served his country.

The plaquette was taking turns in the different households of the family members. My father and his wife had this memento also a few months inside their home. It was very special.

I never knew my Uncle Frits, of course, I wasn’t even born, but his death has influenced my birth in a way. My mother was very sad when she was pregnant. I think that sadness has been the undertone of our troublesome relationship during my childhood. My brother, who was born a year and a half after me, was called Frits. To honor my uncle and my grandfather who also went by that name.

We are an Indo-European family, of my mother’s side. That means we cherish our heritage and the country of Indonesia dearly. The memory of Uncle Frits and his death will remain part of our family history forever.

Uncle John’s band was called Bruno Rocco and it was his favorite of all times. He listened to their music every morning before breakfast. It made his day he claimed and he had a good feeling that persisted the whole day. The singer-songwriter was Bruno, a Dutch guy from Rotterdam, the base guitarist's name was Martin, and then there were a second electric guitar player and the drummer, who was a genius according to some. The four of them played two songs: “The Ride” and “When Your Time Comes”. Uncle John said they were very, very good musicians and the lyrics were great. He could sing along by heart, and so he did every morning. I became a fan too because I visited Uncle John every fortnight. The band became a steady ritual during our time together. When Uncle John passed away, we played the song “When Your Time Comes” by Bruno Rocco and his band at his funeral. It brought tears to my eyes.

No, I have to answer this prompt with a negative. There are no ghosts in my life or that of anybody I know. I don’t think I believe in ghosts, to be frank.

Light through the keyhole. When I was little, about 12 years old, I was religious. My parents raised me as a Catholic. Although we always had arguments to fight over during our trip back and forth on Sunday to mass, I believed in God till my 14th birthday, or there about. During that time I had one semi-religious encounter, or so I believed at the time.

It was one day that I was standing in the hallway on the second floor of our house and I wanted to enter my own room. So I touched the doorknob and pushed the door open. I tried anyway because the door would not open and I couldn’t enter. It took me a few minutes and several tries before I could open my door to my bedroom. I immediately then thought it was the Holy Spirit who was in my room, preventing me for some reason to enter. The door was open, there was nobody inside the room and there was no window open that could provide for a draft or anything. There just was a force that was prohibiting me from entering my room. As a child, I always thought it was the Holy Spirit preventing me from entering. Why I thought that is still a mystery because that’s something I cannot remember. But this small experience always stayed with me in the corner of my mind. How the Holy Spirit visited one Sunday afternoon!

Rescue from floating away. I am a bit of a day-dreamer. Fantasy and reality got mixed up sometimes. Normally, when I fell in love before, in my early teens, my twenties and thirties, when I fell in love my mind got in overload, I was beyond myself.

This time, in my prime, the man I fell in love with is my life line. He is holding me back to the ground. Everything fits now, my mind is quiet, my heart is full of splendor and my body is at ease. No strange phenomena to deal with, everything is just as it should be. I am so very thrilled that finally, all the puzzle pieces fit together without losing myself in the process. I have to thank my lover for this and myself of course, for not reacting like a young adult. Because of this, I am able to just go about with my normal day-to-day business and being in love at the same time. It feels wonderful and steady at the same time. I am thrilled and excited but my mind is at ease. Wonderful!

Till April I wasn’t sure what my purpose in life was other than being the best writer I could ever be. But on a personal level, I wasn’t sure what my goal in life was. Till I met the love of my life, and now I know. I am going to explore what love is and how to love my soulmate for the rest of my days. It sounds a bit pathetic and corny perhaps, but there is no other way of describing this newly found love. I am so very thrilled and excited about him, about myself, and the way suddenly my life has changed overnight. We found each other, we are no longer alone. This is something I deeply experience and it makes me totally happy.

Humanism is a philosophy of life that puts the human being in the center and not God. It holds on to ethics, reason, and righteousness. Autonomy and developing the self are at the core of this philosophy.

I saw a miniature man hanging out of a bottle. He was tiny, only a few inches tall. How he got there I am not sure, I couldn’t ask him because his voice was too soft for my big ears. So I made him a doll’s house he could live in. And every day I fetched him some bread crumbs with jam to eat, and some coffee to drink. I looked after him. He was the little mouse in my house, the man from the bottle. We lived quietly together, not minding each other’s business. For 12 weeks he was in my house. Then suddenly one night he was gone. I suspect my dog ate him, by accident. I was sad for a little while and searched the place, but no little man turned up. It was like in a dream and he never existed. But the memory stayed.

My addiction to Writing.com is enormous. I have written 24/7 for a whole year now. That’s a whole lot of hours into writing, reviewing and taking part in various activities. I am totally hooked and I have built my life around this website. In the very early morning (sometimes as early as 5.30 a.m.) I start my computer. It’s been a great year, but this weekend it’s time for my first holiday period in 12 months. I am not sure if it will be WdC free at all, but it will be WdC limited. I am shaking already…will I enjoy myself off the site? Let’s find out, shall we?

I love walking with my dog. But my newly found love loves hiking long distance footpaths! In my younger years I did the same, but recently it’s all been minimalistic. So now we walk a lot together! And I love it. Next week we have plans for a holiday together, we are going to walk day trips. 20-25 kilometers per day (4-5 hours), because I will take my dog with me. I already had a few blisters from our first walk together in the sun but also in the rain. I had the wrong footwear then. I left my hiking shoes at home. Stupid me! Yesterday, we went to a theme park and walked there for a few hours. Again I didn’t bring my hiking shoes and I got painful feet today. So next time I am going to listen to good advice and walk on my hiking shoes. They are there to hike, aren’t they? I went to the library today to fetch another book on walking day trips in the Netherlands. There are a lot of them around, so we won’t have any trouble finding good foot paths for us to walk. May the weather be pleasant, and our spirits high. I am looking forward to this…

The girl high up on the edge, looking at birds playing is me…! She doesn’t know or feel it’s so very dangerous where she is sitting. She might fall a horrible death, but she is unaware, she is enjoying herself, the view, and the birds too much. This girl has a guardian angel watching over her, in the form of three pigeons. They are protecting her from any danger or harm. Nothing bad is happening, all is well, all is good. I love the way this girl is all innocent-like and trusting. Life is one big adventure to her, a safe environment in which she can be and play and watch and learn to her heart’s content. One day, when she grows up, things will be slightly different, but not today. Today she is looking at the skyline, seeing the city unfolding beneath her feet. Dreaming of a life in freedom, with friends like the birds she is seeing. She is happy, she is sitting right where she wants to be sitting…high up on the edge, watching the pigeons play.

Today I am going to a theme fairytales park "The Efteling" for the whole day. No time for "Blogging Circle of Friends Prompt Forum"  [E] and "Blog City Prompt Forum"  [E]. Sorry guys, I am going to have some fun in real time today!

Laughing is good for you! I always turn my head if somebody is laughing wholeheartedly out loud. It is such a good spirited expression of freedom, I love it. Personally, I don’t laugh much, but when I do, I feel so good and free and happy, the spirit is lifting and there is an immediate bond with the person(s) that make you laugh.

In my town, there is this spiritual Osho center of the former Guru Baghwan. You probably have heard of him. He had these disciples (sannyasins) who were wearing red/orange all the time. He was famous for his dozens of limousines. I read a lot of his books when I was young and he was still alive. Anyway, in this spiritual center, they have laughing therapy sessions. They are with a few people and laugh all the time. It brings a lot of emotions to the surface. Perhaps I will attend someday; I heard it is good for the soul.

I think that is true. Everybody has secrets in one form or the other. Things you don’t want or need to share with others. Your dark side is there for personal use and contemplation only. It is rather innocent. But secrets are there to be kept secrets. No need to reveal them.

I agree with this quote. No need to rush life, there is, hopefully, plenty of time to enjoy the ride. When you try to live in the moment, every second is valuable and part of the journey. Wonders are there to be savored, breath in, breath out and feel the joy of life. When I am in nature I always relax more and I am able to be consciously aware of the journey I am in. I blend in with the moment and that’s a gift. I call it my Zen moments. Unfortunately, it’s not possible to live like that all the time. Sometimes you need to rush because of deadlines, or because life is demanding this of you. But when I am at my best, I am in the flow of the moment. No rush, no stress!

Why a ring of salt may protect you? It is used as a cleansing therapy: to get rid of negative energy because salt has an absorbent property. It can suck out the physical and heavy energy. For spiritual purification.
If you believe in it, you can spread salt in every room you visit, for example in your hotel room on holiday. It is easily sucked up again by the hoover so the hotel cleaning ladies probably won’t mind. It’s best to tell them when you are leaving though, otherwise, you will be responsible yourself for adding negative energy and you won’t want that, now would you?!

I wished there were more love, faith, and courage in this world; it would certainly be a better place. There were 4 terrorist attacks in 4 weeks. In London, twice, in Jakarta and in Kabul. It makes me sad and a bit somber about where we are going as a human race. I am very much afraid there will be more people to mourn the next period. This is not over, yet, it will not go away. On the other hand, I will not let my daily life take over by fear and resentment. I am in a very positive flow these days and trouble doesn’t affect me that much because of it. With a lot of love, faith in a good outcome and the courage to carry on life as usual, I hope we are on the right track.

There is more to life than the visible. There is also the invisible like the forces of the universe that are very much present in the here and now. I am a member of a Facebook group called the fifth dimension in practice. They believe in wonders, angels and five dimensions of consciousness. There is more to life than what meets the eye. I think there is a lot of truth in it.