Dr. Maya Angelou—A Tribute
On May 28th we lost a woman to God who changed our writing world. Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Ann Johnson in St. Louis, MO.
Read MoreWhen Life is Easy and Freeing
Have you ever felt something was so right it flowed out of you with little effort like water flows out of a faucet? Maybe you wrote something, talked with a friend who needed support, ran two miles, hugged a child, or made a fabulous dinner? Joan Baez said: “It seems to me that those songs that have been any good, I have nothing much to do with the writing of them. The words have just crawled down my sleeve and come out on the page.” http://tinyurl.com/bxyt4n There are days most of us feel accomplished at what we do, but how do we build the frequency of those days so we consistently feel we have value and worth? Maybe the answer lies within believing in ourselves each day, one day at a time as the old cliché goes. Are there tricks and tips to guide this...
Read MoreFred Warren, A Speculative Fiction Author to Follow
I’ve found a new speculative fiction author—Fred Warren—to follow, well…at least new for me. He has three books published by Splashdown, and short stories in one of their compilation works, plus many magazine publications. It’s rare for me to read all the works by any given author, which goes to show I really like his writing. In Odd Little Miracles Warren fascinates the reader with short stories that contain unpredictable twists. The second short story, An Eternal, Unbroken Chain, is about space aliens appearing in a desolate Iowa field. The twist is a real gotcha. Our Lady of Chagrin captures the healing of a bad spiritual force. It definitely makes you ponder our world a little differently. One of his stories, Rubes, gives a nod to Zenna Henderson...
Read MoreSlowing Down into Simplicity
Our culture in America dislikes the ordinary, instead people want fresh, exciting lives filled with bling. As Americans we count the events of our lives in the extraordinary—milestone days like our birthday, our first day of school, graduation days, our first job, and many other such days which stand out. We can’t wait for the daily grind of our job to be over. We impatiently finish the laundry, the dinner dishes, mowing the yard, or whatever so we can leave the drudgery and do something exciting. Take John and Sara… “I’m tired of running. We’re always going somewhere to do something. Can’t we just stay home?” Sara complained. “What! And get bored?” John answered as he changed into casual wear for the evening. “You’ll enjoy yourself when you get there.” “We might...
Read MoreSeptember 11th, 2001 in Zimbabwe
We were at afternoon tea on a terrace of the Victoria Falls Hotel in Zimbabwe, Africa when our safari guide, Mark, quietly told us, “A jet plane just flew into one of the World Trade Center’s twin towers. It’s 8:46 am in New York.” Our hotel room TV carried a BBC feed as we watched the second tower invaded by another jet plane seventeen minutes later. It felt like a grade B movie. The images were surreal. My safari mates and I met up an hour later for dinner. Servers and buffet staff looked at us with pity and concern. They knew we’d be going back to a country at war. What they didn’t express to us was how our lives were changed forever. Zimbabwe was involved in their own civil war—black against white, neighbor against neighbor. They had a unique perspective on...
Read MoreTouch the Silence
“Learn to get in touch with the Silence within yourself and know that everything in this life has a purpose.” Elizabeth Kubler-Ross It is hard to get in touch with my inner Silence. My mind keeps talking to me, even when I sit quietly. I have found that to find Silence, when I sit quietly, I must let the day wash over me first. Then the silence can begin…if I’m patient with myself. This is not easy.
Read MoreHave a Little Faith by Mitch Albom
Have a Little Faith: A True Story by Mitch Albom, (ISBN-13: 978-0786868728) is a wonderful read. It has a bizarre premise—Mitch’s Rabbi, from his hometown, asked him to deliver his eulogy. Yet, his Rabbi lived eight more years. This allowed Mitch to spend time with his Rabbi, learning who he was and what his beliefs were. Imagine spending time with someone who changed your life as a child, yet…now you had to get to know this person enough to give a eulogy. Your childhood fear & respect would be difficult to overcome. Add to the equation the fact that Mitch had all but left his former beliefs, married out of his faith and now lived a secular life. It makes for an interesting story. But that is not all. Mitch has become successful as a writer. He wrote...
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