Coming Back for a Limited Time Only

The title of this post is somewhat misrepresentative–I am not coming back for a limited time only–I just thought that might get you interested in reading this post. As a journalist I know the importance of a headline, but I also know the importance of honesty–so to be more accurate — I am coming back on a more limited and day-to-day basis. Maybe I will even come up with a schedule (stranger things have happened–but for now I am leaving things a bit loosey-goosey, as opposed to henny penny.)

My so called “sabbatical” is just not working for me–I miss this lovely cyber world too much to leave it–but I am returning on a basis not quite as rigid as the one I had set myself up for lately. I think the poem a day in April exhausted my creativity in that I liked some of my poems, but some were produced under a certain amount of self-directed duress just to keep up with the challenge, and were not totally satisfying. I now know what it is like to hit “publish” and not be happy with what I produced.

Blogging Heroes (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I have discovered a fellow Canadian blogger, David Kanigan of Lead. Learn. Live.  just recently, and his words resonated with me on why he blogged. He has adopted Seth Godin’s reason for blogging as his own. He says:

Why Blog?  I think Seth Godin captured my inspiration for blogging when he was asked why he blogged.  He said “if you are blogging for other people you are going to be disappointed…even if no one would read it, I would still blog…this is a great chance for me to clear my thoughts and put them into the world, what an opportunity.” ~ David Kanigan

My second inspiration for the day comes from another fellow and favorite Canadian of mine,  Le Clown,  whose post today served to make me feel less guilty about sometimes not fulfilling responsibilities in a timely fashion (or sometimes at all). He quoted an online friend of his who said:  “NEVER feel guilty if you don’t have time to do something. [...] Life is WAY too short to waste any time on people who make you feel guilty.”

So, I am back. And though sometimes I may hit Publish when I am not sure I should, I am going to take Seth’s statement to heart and take the opportunity this blog affords in getting my thoughts out into the world, with the addition of dropping a little guilt along the way. (Don’t pick it up if you see it on the side of the road!)

Bliss is doing what feels right.  Not posting did not feel right to me. What about you?

 

Had to Share

Part of what I am doing during my “sabbatical”–(what a lovely word for break from one thing to concentrate on another) is research, reading, and catching up on my other responsibilities. In my research or eternal quest for knowledge and inspiration, I came across this passage in the book, “Several short sentences about writing” by Verlyn Klinkenborg. On page 14 he wrote:

“A writer’s real work is the endless winnowing of sentences,

The relentless exploration of possibilities,

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The effort, over and over again, to see in what you started out to say

The possibility of saying something you didn’t know you could.”

So many times when I write I find myself coming to a realization that I had not consciously come to until the words worked their way from my brain to my fingers to the page. Do you ever find that by winnowing your sentences, getting rid of the parts that do not serve your writing,  you naturally come upon something new?

Bliss is in the magic of discovery. What do you think?

Thinking Out Loud

I am inspired today

Idea Barnstar (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

with a new idea.

An idea

that if it takes form

would plug me into the outside world ~

A world of creative thought

Of possibility

Of people with like ideas

Who understand that philosophy

Is merely approachable ideas with values and beliefs.

But I cannot reveal it–

It is too soon.

Inspiration and new ideas lead to bliss, even bliss unrevealed. Do you have a new idea that produces bliss?

~ DESIRED THINGS ~

1976 edition of The Desiderata of Happiness poetry collection (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I am not sure the universe is unfolding as it should, but I find this prose poem comforting, and I need to be comforted today.  Last night I attended a Christmas Party for my Writers’ Group and one of the members took the time to write this piece of inspiration on a sheet of paper in printing reminiscent of calligraphy and frame it. It now sits on my desk where I can see it and read it at will. I cannot form any more words about the horrific events that took place yesterday and the story that continues to unfold. I hope that this will provide a little refuge, inspiration, and yes, hope for all of us:

                              Desiderata: Desired Things

Go placidly amidst the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its shams, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful.

Strive to be happy. ~ Max Ehrman ~ written in 1927

I do not want to be trite; I do not want to deny that an unspeakable thing has happened; I do not want to live in denial. I do know that we have to go on; we have to set aside our trivial worries and realize what is really important. And we need to find some peace. While we may not be able to be cheerful or happy right now–we need to “nurture strength of spirit” to shield us.

I have no idea how the people who have to deal with this first hand will do it, but I do know that we can lend a hand in showing them that we care. Here is the address to the school provided by Robin Coyle. Write some words of compassion, address the envelope, and send it to: Sandy Hook Elementary School, 12 Dickenson Drive, Newtown, CT 06482. We can do something.

Peaceful and Calm (Photo credit: Striking Photography by Bo Insogna)

Always Christmas

(Photo credit: paparutzi)

“…if you can keep it today, why not always?”  ~ Henry Van Dyke

Better than observing Christmas, is the “keeping of Christmas”. Or so says Henry van Dyke, American author, educator, and clergyman.

van Dyke was a bit of a religious guy, being a clergyman and all and he really had  a way with words. They are the words of a formally well educated man of his era (late 1800′s), but his message is clear. In his essay called “Keeping Christmas”  he gives us a recipe of sorts for not only keeping Christmas in our hearts but in being proactive about it.  He asks:

“Are you willing to forget what you have done for other people and to remember what other people have done for you;

to ignore what the world owes you and to think what you owe to the world;

to put your rights in the background and your duties in the middle distance and your chances to do a little more than your duty in the foreground;

to see that your fellow men (and women) are just as real as you are, and try to look behind their faces to their hearts, hungry for joy;

to own that probably the only good reason for your existence is not what you are going to get out of life, but what you are going to give to life;

to close the book of complaints again the management of the universe and look around you for a place where you can sow a few seeds of happiness—are you willing to do these things even for a day? Then you can keep Christmas.”

Henry van Dyke (1852-1933), a modernist who pushed for revisions to the Westminster Confession of Faith, 1900-1910. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

And he adds:  “If you can keep Christmas for a day, then why not always?”

Do you try to keep Christmas “always”?

~ A Poohism To Get You Through Your Day ~

 

“When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you think of Things, you find that sometimes a Thing that seemed  Thingish inside  you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.” ~ A. A. Milne

Winnie the Pooh (Photo credit: JayPLee)

 This quote is known  as a “Poohism” and is part and parcel of the wisdom and philosophy of Winnie the Pooh, from the series of books created by A.A. Milne for his son.

Children are very wise. They understand the complicated statements made by their favourite characters. They know that Pooh is smart despite the fact that he is always saying that he is a Bear of Very Little Brain. And they know that sometimes something they are thinking inside their brains becomes something very different when it sees the light of day.

When I first read this statement I did not necessarily think of it as something positive. Sometimes when we reveal what is inside of us to other people they think we are rather odd; or the way we express ourselves does not magically trip off our tongue quite the way we imagined. But  sometimes giving those thoughts a voice can help disperse them, especially if they are thoughts of fear or revelations of angst.

Doodle You (Photo credit: neonbubble)

There is a sensitive blogger, summerteifi, who doodles her thoughts and by doing so gets them out in the open. Her advice is this:

“Express yourself, embrace creativity to help release these fears, pain and worry. Once out on paper, they soften and feel distant and become reassured by the motherly parenting parts of yourself. And if they don’t, keep doodling, keep sharing, keep expressing and never stop knowing this too shall pass.”

So how do you get your Thingish things out in the open?

      

~ Tour of My House In Words ~

Cover of sheet music for “Home Sweet Home”. Words by H.R. Bishop & John Howard Payne, music by   H.R. Bishop, Chicago: McKinley Music Co.1914 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

I have a sign that says “Dreams…do come true” casually propped up on a bookshelf in my office. On the bulletin board over my desk is a handwritten note that says ~ “Everything you want is just outside of your comfort zone.” It is attributed to Robert Allen–I do not know who Robert Allen is, but I like what he said.

Over the doorway of the staircase that leads to our second floor is a quilted homespun sign with this message: “A clean house is the sign of a life misspent.” Suffice to say that I have not misspent my life, at least in the clean house category.

Above the door leading from the kitchen to the dining room is another sign. It demands in bold letters ~ “Give Me the Coffee and No One Gets Hurt.”

Upstairs in the bathroom is yet another sign. It is one that my husband chose and says: “Changing the toilet paper does not cause brain damage”. He loves this sign. No one pays any attention to it though.

Tucked into my bookshelf in my bedroom is another note–printed this time in black ink. The words are those of Ralph Waldo Emerson.  I read it almost every night before I go to bed–it says:

“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day: you shall begin it well and serenely….”

So much for a tour of my house. Do you have any signs hanging in your home or handwritten notes tucked away?

~ Inspiration ~

Mark Twain (Photo credit: iansand)

Inspiration from the blog world is easy to come by. Here are two I happened upon in the last few days:

Robert of 101 Books:

“Substitute “damn” every time you’re inclined to write “very”; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.” –Mark Twain

I am guilty, guilty, guilty of overusing very. I find it a very good word, which I like to use verily. I believe I will take Mr. Twain’s advice, if not literally, at least in my editing process.

Nancy at Life Takes Over said this in response to a comment I made on her blog.:

I read a poster this morning that said: “No one can go back and change a bad beginning; but anyone can start now and create a successful ending.”

I love that we all have the chance to make our endings our own~and we are not held captive by bad beginnings.

Do you have a word that you overuse; or do you believe that “All’s well that ends well”?

Name That Shakespeare Play! (Photo credit: Tracy Lee)

~ ALL IS WELL ~

(Photo credit: maraker)

Bloggers make good muses! I am getting so inspired by other bloggers and what they provide on their blogs that it is hard not to use them as my muses.

Today on Misifusa’s Blog, (presenceofpresence) she offered her readers a short video featuring Louise Hay, the great inspirational and motivational author and speaker. This lovely lady is 86 and carries with her all kinds of wisdom—but today her words particularly hit home. She was being interviewed and gave some advice on how to deal with problems when they raise their ugly heads.

Louise Hay in London , April 2008, (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ms. Hay says that when she is confronted by a problem, first she says “All is well” then follows it up with: “Everything is working out for my highest good. Out of this situation only good will come, and I am safe.”

She says that uttering these words “quiets your inner turmoil down enough to give the universe time to give us a solution.” Now, you can define universe however you want. For me it is a combination of getting my wherewithal together, combined with a little faith and hope.

The last question she was asked in the interview was:  “Where do you go from here?”

She said: “I don’t know. Life will bring it to me.”

And that is how it goes—life provides us with the next step—all we have to do is believe that “All is well.”

Zest and Gusto

Dandelion Wine (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“Not to write, for many of us, is to die.” ~ Ray Bradbury

I am not really a science fiction fan, but Ray Bradbury was not just a science fiction writer. I am not proud of the fact that I am not a science fiction fan; it is just that my imagination is sometimes not pliable enough to stretch that far.  I mourn the loss this week of this prolific writer, whom I laud as a brave and creative soul.

In my much read paperback copy of  Bradbury’s “Zen in the Art of Writing”, he stated, “I have learned, on my journeys, that if I let a day go by without writing, I grow uneasy. Two days and I am in tremor. Three and I suspect lunacy. Four and I might as well be a hog, suffering the flux in a wallow. An hour’s writing is tonic. I’m on my feet, running in circles, and yelling for a clean pair of spats.”

The first chapter in his book is called the “Joy of Writing” and the first words in that first chapter are these: “Zest. Gusto. How rarely one hears these words used. How rarely do we see people living, or for that matter, creating by them.” His advice to writers—look to your zest, see to your gusto.

His book was fifty years in the making, his advice both wise and practical. He says that he is no “yogi, feeding on kumquats, grapenuts and almonds…beneath a banyan tree”, but presents the truths that worked for him. As a writer, I am naturally drawn to his book on writing, his advice a feast, his prose dessert for the soul.

In memory of Bradbury, pick up a book or two of his and relish his zest, enjoy his gusto. I have a friend who reads “Dandelion Wine” as a spring ritual every April. I may just follow suit.

Mr. Bradbury, I say thank you.  And good night.

Photo of Ray Bradbury. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)