Freaky Friday

Some of the best lessons we ever learn are learned from past mistakes. The error of the past is the wisdom and success of the future.
Dale E. Turner
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Ever have ‘one of those days’ ??? Well it seems here lately, I’ve had a few of those days, right in a row.

Nothing bad or anything, just crazy kind of weird?  I’m a person of routine. I like my routine, try to stick to my routine and when something comes up at the last minute, it kind of throws me off kilter. Not to mention the wind hampering outside activities.

As writer’s we remain private people. We want to share our stories but not our lives, right? Write! I’m always sharing my story; the good the bad and the downright ugly. Go ahead, ask me a question and I’ll be bluntly honest.

This is what we need to do as writer’s penning a novel. We can’t skirt around an issue that a character is having; we need to tackle a situation head on. Change is part of the inevitable with our story, so be sure to give said character a lot of bumps to maneuver over, hills to climb, and situations that he/she can get out of, or at least die trying.

Parts of us will flow into our characters. Pieces of our past will be sifted into the novel or short story. We can’t abandon the fact of all we know and have gained in our life, maybe even things that are not in our lives, we as writers can touch on.  Writing about killing someone for instance, would be a hard situation for me to write, but the good news is, I’ve read enough of King and Koontz to know how it is done.

I think Koontz is an avid fan of weaponry. He can give gripping detail down to the last pin of a revolver or handgun. He can enhance a weapon, even if it can’t be enhanced logically, he can make the weapon become a plausible piece of artillery. And that said piece, will be integral in the story (or not) but the man knows how to delve into the deepest darkest part of the human psyche.

As a writer I can’t dance around an issue because I don’t know it. This is where the research of any weapons, cars, places is essential to bringing your story into the hands of your readers. If you research and literally know your stuff, the reader can visualize the scene more clearly thus giving your story a reality, bringing it to life.

Freaky Fridays can happen anywhere to anyone...change is inevitable, and life happens.
Why not make some lemonade? :)

Thought-filled Thursday

Job 14: 13  O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me!
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Reflect on your present blessings, of which every man has many; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.
Charles Dickens (1812 - 1870)
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Today I’m filled with thoughts. I’m sure you love coming here and reading about my thoughts, don’t you?

Have you ever had the past come back and bite you in the tush? Never? Well dang! My past seems to haunt me wherever I go. Some would say, “Oh just let it go.” Sorry friends to tell you this, but that is easier said than done.

I would love nothing more than to lay MY past to rest, but things creep back to the surface like mushrooms in the wet grass. They appear here and there, one day they’re plentiful but during dry spells you’re hard pressed to find one surfacing. That’s what the past has been doing to me lately. Memories, feelings, shadows dancing, all in my face.

In a novel, the past of a character is called back story. And if we laid the character’s past to rest, you’d barely have a story. Or you might have one that doesn’t make much sense to your reader.

What has brought on this rush of memory lane for me? A bunch of stuff, but most notably, this week is Father’s Day. I’m here in Nebraska far away from my dad and it would be so nice just to put my arms around him, hug him and let him know he’s loved.

My father wasn’t a perfect man by any means. He was no Ward Cleaver for sure. He worked, drank, and lived, rarely batting an eye at any of the six kids he fathered, so why do I love and miss him so much? Because I let the PAST GO! I’ve forgiven all the wrongs that my parents did, and embrace the them that is now.

My colorful past might be one for the books and novels of the non-fiction genre, but so is my tale of healing, forgiving, moving on and facing each new day. I embraced Christianity when I was 14, and even though my parents don’t understand what that means as they call themselves Catholic, by name and prayer only, I move forward in life, not backwards, if I can help it.

A Christian is not someone who attends church and thus says, “I’m a Christian, I go to church!” That is just wrong. For many years I called myself a Christian and hadn’t stepped into a church, only for the lack of Christianity teachings going on in churches.

A Christian, walks the walk as much as talks the talk. I don’t profess to be Christ-like (in my actions, words,  and thoughts) I try my best to ACT like a person of Christ.

I’m not perfect, I don’t forgive in the snap of a finger. I don’t overlook things and pretend nothing ever happened, I don’t lie, keep secrets, hide things, in hopes the discovery is only between me and my conscious. I embrace the past, wash my pain with words, color my world with love. I am working on me, the me that I am. My past is a part of me, it’s a part of your characters. Never let it disappear because there is a beneficial amount of healing to come from the popping up of memories.

Did you ever hold onto the negative and overlook the positive? Yeah, we all are guilty. Now lets move ahead in trust, faith and prayer, and keep God growing in our future so we have strength to deal with the past.

“I’ll move from the past to carry me into the future and hope one day my future has you in it.” ~ joni

Poetry Sunday~Yesterday,Today, Tomorrow

"My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word."
Psalm 119:81

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Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
(c) Joni Zipp

All our yesterdays have
drifted to the wind
that swept through the days
where new ones begin.

Our tomorrows are all
under the cover of shade
that sifts through nights
without any aid.

Our tomorrows are yesterdays
that happened you see
gone in the dust
and will never be.

Our today's we have,
what we know in the present
enjoy the today
always making it pleasant.

For within our yesterdays
we live in tomorrow
each day we rise to
nothing but sorrow.

Live for the moment
before it is gone
in the blink of an eye
the curtains are drawn.

All rights reserved: copyright © Joni Zipp