Onward and Upward~Or At Least Onward

English: Southern Upland Way Onward and upward (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I am out of the 200 word a day groove and at a loss for a new challenge, so I shall return to one of my original challenges, and give you a few more dribs and drabs from The Writer’s Devotional by Amy Peters.

I am no longer going to synopsize the weeks (she breaks the book down into 52 weeks with 7 “lessons” a week), but instead I will  find  a kernel of wisdom to share from each of the 52 weeks.  Without further ado, my first kernel of wisdom:

“Writing is a way of talking without being interrupted.” ~ Jules Renard

This gem of a quotation fits me to a ‘T’. So many times I have been in a group and someone will say “Let’s go around the circle and have everyone tell us their plans for Christmas” or “let’s share what we plan to do for the rest of our lives” or “why don’t we all give a short dissertation on world peace.”

I am exaggerating a bit here to make a point. But whenever I hear one of these “let’s share” proposals, I want to skulk out of the room until everyone is done sharing. I sit nervously awaiting my turn—trying to form some thoughts that will sound interesting, or at least not insane. Many times I will fluff off my turn, and say “ditto” to what the person before me has said, even though I will not be taking a ski vacation, building a boat, or saving the world, one African country at a time.

I seem to be able to express myself so much better in the written word than the spoken. And because I am not fleet of foot when it comes to speaking, I get interrupted a lot and never really seem to finish a thought.

As a columnist for a small town paper, I come across as friendly and approachable, and sometimes witty (or witless—whichever you prefer), but when people stop me in the grocery store thinking that I have the same persona as my writing style, I often think they are disappointed, and walk away thinking that I am not quite who they thought I would be.

When you write, there is no fear of interruption, or saying something stupid off the top of your head. If you make a fool of yourself in writing, at least it has been spell checked!

Quote for the Day ~ July 31, 2012

 

English: Leonard Cohen (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Here is a great quote to  wind up the sunny month of July. My sister sent it to me, and said she had read an article about perfectionism and how it can be a burden that “keeps us from taking flight”.

The quote says it eloquently and poetically. It is from the song Anthem by Leonard Cohen, one of Canada’s national treasures:

~  “There is a crack in everything, that is how the light gets in.”  ~

 

Day 25 ~ 200 Words

This is the last entry of my 200 word challenge. I may miss it. I may not.

I Remember When I Was Young (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I cannot remember my student number. Little wonder, as it has been over three decades since I last used it. But for years I knew it. It was my student identification at university. Though it was just a number, it was my number.

I seem to have forgotten whole portions of my life. It is like grades two and three did not happen. And it is as if I was never young. Or maybe, truth be told, I never grew up.

I seem to be forgetting more and more things these days. I remember when I was dating my husband 32 years ago, a woman I came into contact with quite frequently could never seem to remember my name. I was insulted at the thought that  I was not memorable. Now, I am that woman. I am about her age now, and I have forgiven her.

Sometimes we notice things that we attribute to age that perhaps we have done all our lives. Maybe I never really was good at remembering certain things.

Another Day – Another Quote

Día del Libro (Photo credit: clspeace)

 

This is my very favourite quote of all time!

“I never know what I think about

Something until I’ve read what

I’ve written on.” ~ William Faulkner

Day 24 ~ 200 Words

A.A. Milne (Photo credit: tatiana.nyanko)

 Used this in one of my Quotes of the Day and it was quite popular, so thought I would expand on it a little ~

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

The above quote is known in some parts 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 complicated statements 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 do not understand us. But I got another reading on the statement from someone (Brigitte) with a different perspective. She saw this as a positive statement – that sometimes when we show our fears to others, they help disperse the fear or bad feeling and it no longer becomes troublesome. I like the second perspective.

Quote{s} of the Day # 5

English: Studies in Classic American Literature (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

Three for Sunday, July 29, 2012:

“The memoir is literally the shape you give to the past, but how might an understanding of the past shape the future?”  ~  Laura Kalkakian, The Memoir Club: a novel

“Life is like an impromptu recipe~you make the best out of what ingredients you have on hand.” ~ Laura Kalkakian, American Cookery: a novel

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life… It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.”  ~ Melody Beattie, an American author

Day 23 ~ 200 Words

Words Cloud 02/01-08/02 2009 (Photo credit: GRwitters)

I embarked on a 200  words a day challenge on July 5^th. Here are some things I have learned from the experience:

1. Never ask a question you do not want answered.

2. You can say a lot in 200 words.

3. Sometimes you cannot say enough in 200 words.

4. Most of my new posts will be no longer than 500 – 600 words; some of my previous posts have been 750-800 words and I think that may be a bit long.

5. Writing philosophical posts do not get the most hits or likes, but do garner some of the most interesting comments.

6. I wanted to say so much more in some of my 200 word posts.

7. Sometimes I wanted to say less.

8. I found myself expanding on some of the posts in my answers to the commenters because I could not say everything about the subject in 200 words.

9. I liked the challenge most days.

10. A couple of days I did not like the challenge – sort of like life.

11. I notice that number 3, number 6, and number 8 are saying the same thing in different words.

12. Only two more 200 word challenges left!

Words, words and words (Photo credit: Arslan)

Quote of the Day # 4

Disney’s adaptation of Stephen Slesinger, Inc.’s Winnie-the-Pooh (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In the mood for an A. A. Milne  Poohism? Have you ever felt like this:

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

Day 22 ~ 200 Words

The Las Vegas Strip World of Coca-Cola museum in 2003 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I was too tired to cook tonight, so we ordered two pizzas and cheesy bread and a bottle of Coke. I am waiting for it to be delivered and suffering buyer’s remorse as we speak. The amount of groceries I could have purchased with the money I am wasting on pizza I suppose is not substantial, but it is not a particularly healthy meal.

I have a weakness for Coca Cola and deny myself this elixir most of the time because I know it is not all that good for me—too much sugar–and I read somewhere that it has some mystery ingredients. But pizza just would not be pizza without a Coke or a beer. And I have no beer here except for some Steam Whistle (my youngest son’s favourite) which I find harsh on my ever so delicate palate.

I was supposed to get groceries today, but by the time I got around to it, a storm that was brewing finally down poured and there was lightning and thunder—okay– so I am making excuses…

In summary: TGIF, or as I read in a nephew’s tweet “Thank Buddha It’s Friday”. In celebration I am going to enjoy my transgressions.

Quote{s} of the Day ~ # 3

Symptoms of Inner Peace (Photo credit: gumption)

My favourites from Saskia Davis’s12 Symptoms of Inner Peace:

1.  An increasing tendency to let things happen rather than make them happen.

3.  A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others.

4.  A loss of interest in judging other people.

5.  A loss of interest in judging self.

7.  A loss of ability to worry.

8.  Frequent overwhelming episodes of appreciation.

And we Smile smile Smile (Photo credit: Thai Jasmine (Smile..smile…Smile..))

10. Frequent bouts of smiling.