Voices

Job 3: 18 There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor.
***

I think it was June who did a post on the voices inside your head. I didn’t borrow this idea, someone in class today triggered the voice topic, via sharing her self-doubt with me and thus, I write this.

Have you ever had those voices running around in your head? They’re having a party and  invited you to come and play! These voices are usually the ones of self-doubt, fear, and any other negative word you’d like to throw into the mix of marbles being scattered all around in there.

I always think, Hey, this is my head why can’t I play? Then I jump in full steam ahead barefoot into a bouncy house. I’m loving it, relishing it actually. I’m in here, all good/bad thoughts are on the move, and we are one with the bounce!

Then suddenly, doubt takes a swing at me, he knocks me upside my head, I spin in a circle, my body floats and I’m down for the count. Almost a TKO,only I jump back up and begin bouncing once again.

Has this ever happened to you? Of course not, you’re full of confidence, you walk on air, life is good and everything you touch turns to sold. What? That isn’t you at all? Hmm...well I just assumed everyone had it better than me, was smarter than me, could do more, say more and write more. Guess not.

So once again we’re dealing with the confidence issue. The voices are only there because your confident nature has taken a ticket, and is waiting outside the Bouncy House of Doubt. We need to do something to get all those kids (negative thoughts) out of the bouncy house and put a bunch of positive thoughts in there so that you’re not standing out there when it begins to rain.

First and foremost - Become aware. Make yourself become a witness to the fact that doubt and fear are actually taking up residence. Hopefully you envision your bouncy house square or you won’t ever be able to place denial in the corner, facing the wall.

Second - You need to get in there and wrestle with doubt and fear to show them who is boss here!

Third - If necessary, you can sit doubt and fear down and have a good long talking to. Maybe tell them they are not welcome?

Fourth - In your mind’s eye, become Hercules, face each new day with a positive thought: I can get through the day, I CAN write 500 words, I can, I can I can! As soon as the negative tries to force your hand with the “You can’t do it”, you push harder with all your might, with the force of,  “YES, I CAN!”

Fifth - Get yourself OUT of the bouncy house and enter the Hall of Mirrors. This way you can look yourself in the face with each new turn and know just who is where. You will always be in the lead, you will not falter, you will walk through the maze and realize something as you get a little confused, the door is just ahead into the future. You made it out into the warm sunlight and every day you will take a walk through this place and leave the bouncy house where it belongs, up the hill and around the bend.

The voices have subsided... I CAN face this day! Are you with me?

Write with Confidence

Job 4:6 Is not this thy fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?
***

By now you all know I am one of eight mentor’s in the f2k, (Fiction 2000) free writing course on the web. It is a seven week course and I happen to come into contact with a lot of writer’s who lack confidence.

Some are young, some are old, some have never taken on writing before and are in search, in search of that elusive passion that has evaded their grip for so many years. I ask them what made them come to f2k and they are quick to say, I’ve always wanted to write but got sidetracked on the road to life.

But there in lies the lack of confidence. They’ve taken the leap but are now fearing  putting any of their work out there. Oh the students are full of questions like, “Suppose I’m a lousy writer?” And my response, “You’ll never know unless you get a bunch of non-partial readers to look it over.”

Then come the copyright questions along with plagiarism questions. Yes you are protected and YES it is illegal to plagiarize. And YES you will win a lawsuit if this is caught. I always say, if someone steals your work, they must think very little of themselves, and thus, lack the confidence that they need not only in writing, but in life in general!

Now the question surfaces, “How do I build confidence?” This is a tough one because if you are already suffering with low self esteem, doubtful and full of obstructions that will keep you from fully participating, then maybe you need more than a writing course can give you.

To build your confidence in writing:
 
First you need to write! - This can be anything from a journal style of writing, if you are new to the field, or a non-fiction piece or jump into fiction and create. Or maybe start a blog to get those fingers tapping.

Second - You need to toss doubt and fear out the window. Or put them in a closet somewhere far away from the other writings that you’ve hidden and never shared with the world.

Third - You need to be willing to jump without a parachute into the writing world. Leap into the unknown, bite nails later!

Fourth -  Get feedback on your writing and wait for the reviews. Keep in mind that these people are growing too as writers and you need to be able to GIVE feedback also. By seeing what YOU like in someone else’s writing, you’ll be more than likely able to pick out what you like in your own.

Fifth and final confidence builder - Plan in a positive fashion! Start building that portfolio, grow each day as a new writer, learn new words, skills, and a network of writing friends!

With these five tips, you should be well on your way to growing as a writer. The confidence will come in and sweep you off your feet and you my friend will begin to seek publication for your work because of the bunches of confidence that you now have to move forward with.

Write Right!

Ten Tips to Keep on Writing

Prov.1:5 A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:
***

1. Free-write without stopping
This is where you pick a word, picture, idea, and start writing about the subject without stopping. You can write about your day, your mother or sister, your dog or pet, anything, just to write something. Give yourself thirty minutes and if the keys are tapping so much you can’t stop, then DON’T!

2.Don’t make plans ahead of time
Just write the first thing that comes into your mind. Don’t debate whether it is a good topic or whether you’ll have enough to say, just keep writing.

3. Always keep tapping the keys on the keyboard. (Or keep the pen moving on the paper)
Don’t glance up to see if you’re making mistakes. (Or stop writing when you catch a mistake on paper.) Turn the internal editor OFF. There will be plenty of time for editing when you’ve written a few thousand words.

4.Sometimes it is helpful to have classical (or what ever you prefer) music to help you along.
If it becomes a distraction, turn it off and find whatever puts YOU in the mood. Is it complete silence? Is it background noise that helps? Maybe its rock & roll? Lit candles?
The ambiance setting is up to you.

5.Make your workspace fun and enlightening.
Having yourself surrounded in tranquility can help those stressful days of no-writing and turn them into productive days of key tapping.

6. Write with confidence.
If you are a writer, then having the confidence of a writer means that you will accomplish something on any given day. We, as writer’s, can not say, “I’m not good enough.” That shows lack of confidence in your writing. When you sit down in front of the keyboard, repeat after me, “I AM a WRITER!” Then write your heart out!

7. Study the craft
Make sure you have studied long and hard the craft that you are about to embark on. Roads have been paved for you, sure you can make your own paths, but if you lack the confidence of ever becoming a writer, it is for certain that you will NEVER become a published writer.

8. Step out of the box
You need to find a place where you fit in comfortably. Maybe you like non-fiction, spiritual tales, horror tales or sci-fi. Whatever the case may be. Don’t be afraid of stepping out of that comfort zone and trying on new clothes. Sometimes you might find a comfortable fit in sweats and a tee, but never be afraid of trying on that little black dress.
But as much as I say this, I won’t write or read outside of what my faith calls for.

9. Show determination
If you are not determined to be a writer, how will you expect to ever become a published writer? Writing for family can be rewarding, but are they hearing what editor’s are reading? No, editors expect professionalism from you and it is your determination to strive for the best that will make the editor stand up and say, “Now THIS shows promise!” Give them your best!

10.NEVER GIVE UP!
I say this because there will come a time when you just feel like throwing your work in the trash, times when you wish you could curl up in a ball and wish this talent away. But I’m afraid to tell you, that if it is a true talent, it will haunt your days and nights like the ghost of Christmas past, present and future all rolled into one!

Poetry Sunday ~ Oh Heavenly Father

Pss.33:21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have
trusted in his holy name.
***

Oh Heavenly Father
(c) Joni Zipp

My burdens heavy
I walk alone,
I can only do
what I am shown.

Oh heavenly Father carry me
help me Lord to understand thee.

Though my life
has me blind
I always seek
but never find.

Oh heavenly Father set me free
from the pain of reality.

I do not question
this wonderful task
I can not hide
behind a mask.

Oh heavenly Father now I see
You have a special plan for me.

All rights reserved: copyright © Joni  Zipp

Quotation Saturday

 Sometimes you think you know someone. Then you look in the mirror and realize. You Never knew them at all. ~Joni Zipp

***

 TEAMWORK

"Dependent people need others to get what they want. Independent people can get what they want through their own efforts. Interdependent people combine their own efforts with the efforts of others to achieve their greatest success."
-- Stephen Covey

"You cannot succeed by yourself. It's hard to find a rich hermit."
-- Jim Rohn

"Light is the task where many share the toil."
-- Homer

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."
-- Helen Keller

GROWTH

Language grows out of life, out of its needs and experiences.
--Anne Sullivan

A person can grow only as much as his horizon allows.
--John Powell

When we were children, we used to think that when we were grown-up we would no longer be vulnerable. But to grow up is to accept vulnerability... To be alive is to be vulnerable.
--Madeleine L’Engle (1918 - ), "Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art", 1980

THOUGHTS/THINKING

"Begin challenging your own assumptions. Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once and a while, or the light won't come in."
-- Alan Alda

“The person who sends out positive thoughts activates the world around him positively and draws back to himself positive results.”
-- Norman Vincent Peale

“Nurture your mind with great thoughts; to believe in the heroic makes heroes.”
-- Benjamin Disraeli

"The most expensive piece of real estate is the six inches between your right and left ear. It’s what you create in that area that determines your wealth. We are only really limited by our mind."
-- Dr. Dolf de Roos

SUCCESS

Success is the ability to close the door on your past, regardless of your failures, and move forward. In other words, if you're not on the way, you're in the way, so it's best that you get out of the way.
--Bill White
 
Success is more a function of consistent common sense than it is of genius.
--Josephine Johnson ~The Dark Traveler

If your success is not on your own terms, if it looks good to the world but does not feel good in your heart, it is not success at all.
--Anna Quindlen (1953 - )

Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.
--Christine Bovee

Dialogue ~ To say or Not to say

Have something to say, and say it as clearly as you can. That is the only secret. 

--Matthew Arnold

Dialogue between two people is often never mis-communicated. When I tell someone, “You look nice today.” It is always met with a smile and a, “Why, thank you.”  But in writing, the dialogue we run into has to be deciphered and seen for its hidden meaning.

We can not use words like THIS, or IT, as we write because we’re giving our reader the opportunity to misunderstand what the IT is that we’re referring to. Dialogue is the same way, we need to be clear and concise so the reader knows just what we’re talking about.

As much as I chide people for lack of imagery, failure to use the senses, I also correct them for using the word IT, THIS or AND. These three simple words can confuse the reader and have them doubling back through the book and we don’t want that. We want them to read, clean and concise words so that they keep turning the pages.

“So your saying that if I write right, the reader will understand what I’m saying?”

“Yes! None of that stuff where you say, ‘it is on the table.’ You let me, the reader, know what IT is!”

“And you’re telling me AND is not good either?”

“Well, when your sentence needs five AND’S in the structuring of a sentence, you are not helping your reader to understand.”

“What was the other word?”

“THIS, silly!”

“Okay let me get this straight. Wait I just used THIS.”

“But in the right context.” I breathed, “Had you said, ‘I just used this.’ Is a reader going to know what THIS is that you used? Of course not. Always explain, elaborate, use your words wisely.”

“Wow, that’s pretty cool.”

“I know, now get your feet offa my table!”

That banter was dialogue. We also need to be aware of how we naturally speak. Often we use words like gonna, didja, offa, I’ma, things of that nature, where, when read out loud, it sounds more fluent.  In writing, our dialogue between two people needs to be clear, but in character. We need to speak, so-to-speak, as natural as possible. Could you tell there were two different people speaking? I didn’t use tags on purpose because that is what this weeks lesson at f2k was all about. The use of dialogue!

We’re in our fifth week and next week will be our final sixth week. It has been exciting picking out the ‘lesson that followed all the rules, guidelines and understanding of the lesson’. They were published in the f2kzine where writers got to showcase their work, and can now call themselves ‘published’ writers!

Dialogue isn’t as tricky as POV, or as vivid as the senses, but dialogue is just as important in a story as the plot/theme and the whole structure of the story! Next time you’re writing dialogue, make sure it isn’t being misconstrued, write it clear and concise.

Keep writing people! Most of all, Write Right!

Angry...at God???

I’ve been on this planet for many a year. I gave my life over to God and I did it for a reason. A couple really; to be closer to the creator, salvation, redemption, saving grace, and the promise of eternal life.

1 Tim. 3: 9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.

I didn’t become a Christian so I could get things, you know, prayers answered. But upon accepting Him and all His glory, there were standards that I had to meet. I could no longer walk in the dark, do what I wanted to and never be held accountable. No, I was living my life for Christ and as such, I would try with every vein in my being to be the best person He created me to be.

1 Tim. 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

A lot of people I know, assume things about faith. “Well I won’t have to answer for THAT sin until I meet him in heaven.” So they go about doing what they want in life, never feeling they have to answer until they are dead, so why worry about stuff like that while they’re living?   
1Tim. 4:2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;

4:7 But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.

So when we, as Christians, don’t get what we want, is it God’s fault? Are we to blame him for not giving us what we want? Why would anyone assume that? When you get angry, you do things that aren’t in your Christian nature, losing sight of the One who created you, the Almighty God that would never give up on you, yet you, you feel you can just turn your back on him and stomp off like a child who didn’t get that toy he wanted?
 
You know, I lost two children and everyone expected me to be angry at God. Angry because he took away something so precious to my heart, that I had wanted, but he ripped them away before I ever had the chance to see them smile.
 
Instead of anger, I gave Him GLORY. I praised Him and rejoiced. Why? Because I know that HE knows what is best for me in any circumstance I am facing. No he don’t give me what I want, he fulfills my every need. 


1 Tim. 4:10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

Don’t be told what to pray for. Know what to pray for. Don’t ask to be given something, pray that he knows what you need. NEED! Not WANT!

Tim. 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;8 For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.12 Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.15 Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.
16 Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

My sermon has thus commenced.

Omaha on hold...

"Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that
weep."Romans 12:15

***

My friends and followers have all been following the story of my beau’s blindness. As you may know, he was scheduled to go back to Omaha again today, but  he canceled the appointment yesterday.

Back in September, we were really excited to find out that the Lion’s Club was willing to pick up the tab. Lion lady told us that they would pay for the visits leading up to and follow-up visits. Excitement gathered as everyone couldn’t wait to hear the good news, that beau would see again!

That September visit didn’t go as planned. We got the news that one eye had shut down completely with no chance of seeing from again. The retina had begun to detach. The right eye, possibilities. The doctor didn’t look too optimistic to me as I sat across the room watching as he studied intently the two eyes. An ultrasound was needed. He said, “If we do the right eye, there’s about a fifty percent chance of success, which isn’t bad, but there are other factors, like this eczema, and your allergies.  I can’t guarantee the transplant will be 100% success or even 60%. Let’s get the ultrasound and I’ll know more.”

We both left the office in silence. My heart ached, and beau said nothing all the way home, except, “Lets eat.” We ate in silence. I could feel the cloud of disappointment lingering, and I had to drive and get us home. Tears kept filling my eyes, but we made it.
Silence.

A month passed and we had the appointment in October for the ultrasound. Hope clutched in our hands! We were in the office ten minutes after a four hour drive, only to turn right back around to go back home. We never saw the doctor, we just saw the lady who does the ultrasound.

Not much time passed and someone from the office called and said that they could operate on the right eye. With the success rate that the doctor had pointed out. Okay, now hope is back. One eye is better than none, even if it’s for one day of sight, this is a go! We were a little excited, but I still felt some form of apprehension on beau’s part. More tests need to be done.

A few days later lion lady called and said, “I hear you’re getting the operation, just let me know the day you go in so I can let my people know.” We hadn’t been given a date to ‘go in’, we were not even told anything to that affect. He was told, “More test are needed but there is potential.”

Mixed communication. Lion lady is saying one thing(we’ll pay it all) others are saying other things (they’ll pay for the op and that’s all) and all this info is rendering beau apprehensive to the point where he just doesn’t even care if he gets this operation. What started off as feeling right, now feels as if everything is going wrong. He's like a pressure cooker about to explode. Too much pressure and *KABOOM*.

Does he want to see again? YES! We all want him to see again. But it is not up to me or anyone else. He’s a grown man and can make his own decisions. I NEVER give my opinion, this is for HIM and him alone to decide. Does he want all this confusion? NO! So he has decided to take matters into his own hands! HE will choose a doctor, go and get their opinion, in April he will have medicare and if this is meant to be, he will have this done.

Is time of the essence? I don’t know what that means. It has been a year and a half, so what is five more months? Will his eye be any healthier in April? Well, there should be as much percentage of success in April as there is today. No one knows! Only the Man Upstairs.

This is a bag of mixed emotions I just wanted to toss out to those who have followed, prayed and stood by in support of us.
 
I Thank You!

It is important to distinguish between opinion and judgment. Opinions open us up, judgments close us down.

Confusion~ Conflict

Ps.71:1 In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion.
***

What a roller coaster of a ride. I have my ups and downs, my twists and turns, my corkscrew of a loop and then I live life like a straight and narrow path has been set before me as I walk along the road of life.

Sounds like a writers life, doesn’t it? Sounds like a novel. Ironically, this week in F2K, (the free writing workshop that I mentor) we’ve been working on conflict. Conflict in a story is essential, I guess, just like in life.

If we had no conflict in our story they would be boring beyond belief, no one would read a word of it, or at least they’d get so far into the story, realize there is nothing happening and decide to put the book down.

So I’m wondering, without conflict and controversy in our lives, would our lives then be boring? Sometimes which bread to buy can be a conflict on my weekly shopping trip. Although not really bread but the decision of what meals to make for seven days can stir in me a conflict.

And now I’ve come upon a fork in the road. Which do I take? The easy one that leads me to where *I* want to be, to achieve the things that *I* want. Is it all about me, me, me? No, it’s not and never is about me and what I want, it’s about a decision, made by God, and do I listen to him in his offering of settling the conflict, or do I go against what he is telling me and follow the path that I want?

A yo-yo, that is what I feel like, dangling by a string bouncing up and down wondering when the worn out string is going to snap. We in class like to use the inverted check mark.
Should be a yo-yo but really it wouldn’t define the uphill battle that the inverted check mark provides.

You start out slow going up the hill, conflict arises, you move onward and upward,  /\ , pace it nice and slow, throw in more conflict, reach a peak upheaval, then slowly resolve the conflict to give a to-die-for ending. This can be used in short stories also. You don’t want your story all cozy as a laz-e boy recliner, you want the lumpy sofa with no added pillows for cushion.

That’s my life, a lumpy sofa that needs refreshing. I like to have a plan in place, you know an outline, but when someone comes in and erases the entire central part of my outline, I need to try and figure out the outline all over again. Have a plan and stick to it. Sure, upon revision you can edit out or add to, but stick to the plan, or scrap the whole thing!

Do we go to Omaha or do we not? Does he listen to God and his heart or that of people? Does he buckle to man or rise in the Spirit. His choice. I’m just a yo-yo.

Confused? Join the crowd.

Poetry Sunday~ Twilight

2 Timothy 4:4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
***

TWILIGHT

I claw my way out of the light
finding myself in the still of the night.
Wolves they howl and wild things stir
leaving my mind an ominous blur.

My nails they sink into the soil
I fight my way through lifeless toil
sweat rolls down my furrowed brow
the timeless flight cinches me now.

Creatures lurk as the abyss is looming
deadened trees have all stopped blooming.
He thirsts to drink my fruitful blood
I paw my way through moistened mud.

The beast is heaving ripe with lust,
cry if I will; die if I must.
Lord and Savior help me please
I lost my way; I’m on my knees.

Upon the hill the light it beckons
The Lord is near within just seconds.
Wrapping me in all His Glory,
I wake amid a fabled story.

Gone from me is all the dark,
the Lord has smoldered the evil spark.
I will never stray from the shade
The Lord my God has an angel made!

***
2 Tim. 2: [1] Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
[2] And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.[3] Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Quotation Saturday

2 Tim.1: 8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;

***

SUCCESS
“Success or failure in business is caused more by mental attitude than by mental capacities.”
-- Walter Dill Scott
 
"The first requisite of success is the ability to apply your physical and mental energies to one problem without growing weary."
-- Thomas Edison
 
"Pretend that every single person you meet has a sign around his or her neck that says, ‘Make me feel important.’ Not only will you succeed in sales, you will succeed in life." 
--Mary Kay Ash
 
"Success is not a pie with a limited number of pieces. The success of others has very little bearing on your success. You and everyone you know can become successful without anyone suffering setbacks, harm, or downturns."
-- Denis Waitley

HAPPINESS
Happiness is, in the end, a simple thing. . . .Happiness is really caring and being able to do something about the caring.
--Brian O'Connell
 
Happiness lies in the consciousness we have of it.
--George Sand, Handsome Lawrence

TEAMWORK
"Dependent people need others to get what they want. Independent people can get what they want through their own efforts. Interdependent people combine their own efforts with the efforts of others to achieve their greatest success."
-- Stephen Covey
 
"You cannot succeed by yourself. It's hard to find a rich hermit."
-- Jim Rohn
 
"Light is the task where many share the toil."
-- Homer
 
"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."
-- Helen Keller

EDITING
There is no great writing, only great rewriting.
--Justice Brandeis
 
Half of being smart is knowing what you're dumb at.
--David Gerrold
 
In brief, I spend half my time trying to learn the secrets of other writers - to apply them to the expression of my own thoughts.
--Shirley Ann Grau
 
It's none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.
--Ernest Hemingway
 
We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.
--Ernest Hemingway

Words sound the same...

...but are spelled differently. The elusive homonym.

I work with some really intelligent writers, and like all humans, are susceptible to errors in spelling and grammar. When a person corrects such grammar, you’d think that the writer’s would take note and learn from the lesson! Some never learn and keep on making the same simple mistakes over and over.

Take fore example:

Advise - [ad-vahyz] - to give counsel to
Advice - [ad-vice] -  an opinion or recommendation offered

wander - [wahn-der] - to go aimlessly,
wonder -  [wuhn-der] - to think or speculate curiously:

than - (used, as after comparative adjectives and adverbs, to introduce the second member of an unequal comparison): She's taller than I am.
then - at that time: Prices were lower then.

write - to express or communicate in writing; give a written account of.
right - in accordance with what is good, proper, or just: right conduct.
rite - a particular form or system of religious or other ceremonial practice: the Roman rite.

break - to smash, split, or divide into parts violently; reduce to pieces or fragments:

brake - anything that has a slowing or stopping effect.

to - expressing destination
too - in addition; also; furthermore;
two - a cardinal number, 1 plus 1.

loose - free or released from fastening or attachment: a loose end.
lose -  to suffer the deprivation of: to lose one's job; to lose one's life.

This is just a simple list. You know there is someone who actually collects these words, for fun? http://www.crazysquirrel.com/stuff/same-sound.jspx

I’d say she is a crazy squirrel, but she beat me to it. :)

Wanna add more confusion?
Are they homonyms - a word the same as another in sound and spelling but different in meaning, as chase “to pursue” and chase “to ornament metal.”

or homophones? Phonetics -  a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

Some of these words are not even spelled the same and they confuse me. What I’m getting at is this; we as writer’s need to check our spelling and wording before you click post/submit and post it as a professional piece of work for your writing friends to see. Do your homework, don’t let everyone do it for you.

Doctor Conspiracy

Matt. 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
***

I’m wondering if there is some sort of Doctor conspiracy out there in the world. Why are doctor’s so unwilling to work with other doctors?

Take for example the doctor in Omaha, who is overseeing my beau’s eye condition. Now I know there is more than one facility in the state of Nebraska, that can do an ultrasound on the eye. Let’s see, there’s an eye clinic right here in Kearney that specializes in lasik surgery, cataract surgery and cornea transplants.

We’re using the Omaha doctor because the Lion lady directed us to this facility. Knowing we live 4 hours away, why would the doctor not send us to a closer facility to say, get an ultrasound? An eight hour round trip, a ten minute visit. It makes no sense to me.

Since I’m not paying for anything and I’ve given it all up to God, I’m not worried where the funds will appear from to pay for all of this. They will come.

The butterflies arrive at knowing all that we have to endure to get from point A to point B.
It is not just beau who is involved here. Adam and I have endured the seven years of doctor visits, infections, ups and downs, first hand. Then there is his family who are all eager for him to see, and his friends who would love for him to come out and play also. But again, getting from A to B is going to take time.

Our first visit was the over view, what can be done. The second visit was to get the ultrasound to look behind the cataract to see how healthy the eye is and if surgery is at all possible, now this third visit, more tests. To see if there are any infections? I dunno, I just get, “Need more tests.”

If there is an infection, that will entail more trips until it is healed and ready for a cornea transplant. Then to be put on the donor list, and wait. Waiting is the hardest part. Then the surgery, then the after care keeping the eye, infection free. I know a dermatologist and sinus specialist will come into play real soon. Roughly, in a years time, he might see again! 

The surgery CAN NOT be done while their is an ACTIVE SINUS INFECTION. You might ask why? Because the cornea transplant is a fragile delicate tissue. A SNEEZE can damage all the work that went into transferring the cornea to the recipient. An ITCH can scratch the cornea. So all this combined HAS TO BE taken into consideration.

Idealistically, a perfect skinned man walks in with no allergies, gets the transplant and can see again. Realistically, we know, all this could be for nothing, and a rapid succession of sneezes is not a good thing with a freshly implanted cornea.

But I do carry hope! I don’t sit in doubt here, I just walk with faith that the Good Lord knows what is best for him and no one else can really say what the plan is. I haven’t doubted for a minute that there is a plan in affect and we are not able to alter the plan even with fervent prayer. When Jesus prayed for God to spare him, in the Garden of Gethsemane, God had a plan in place, and had He said “Yes, okay,” to Jesus. His blood would never have been shed for our sins.

***
Matt. 36:45 Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

Poetry Sunday~ Worthy Vessel

Ps.54:6 I will freely sacrifice unto thee: I will praise thy name, O LORD; for it is good.
***
Worthy Vessel

Into the whispering winds I stand
reaching out to take His hand.
From the galloping gust I hear
words that bring me ever near.

Fingers laced I now find strength
to carry on no matter the length
of pain, loss, hurt and shame;
turn the cheek, no ones to blame.

In his arms I place the sorrow
allowing me to face tomorrow.
Looking back with no regret,
the past is gone I won’t forget.

Guide me Lord into this day,
free me from the breath of sway.
I bow to you, I praise your glory
Release from me this inner fury.

A glorious day has dawned on me
with His hand I’m now set free.
To ride the wing of winds soft draft.
I am his child, He is my craft.

Quotation Saturday

“We live in the altered space of man. We thrive in the altered space of God”
-Joni Zipp

***

GOODNESS

Maybe just believing in goodness generates a tiny bit of the stuff, so that by being so foolish as to believe in our better natures, if just for a day, we actually contribute to the sum total of generosity in the universe.
-Julie Powell
Julie & Julia

All good activities which encourage people to learn how to live with one another pleasantly and to develop a sense of humor improve living.
-Leonard Carmichael

"Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best."
- Henry Van Dyke


ACCEPT THE UNCHANGEABLE

“Everything that has happened in your life to this minute is unchangeable. It’s history. The greatest waste of energy is in looking back at missed opportunities, lamenting past events, grudge collecting, getting even, harboring ill will, and any vengeful thinking. Success is the only acceptable form of revenge. By forgiving your trespassers, you become free to concentrate on going forward with your life and succeeding in spite of your detractors. You will live a rewarding and fulfilling life.”
-Dennis Waitley

GOALS

One of the key qualities that any CEO (or successful person) needs--a willingness to stretch yourself and go after goals that others think are too visionary, too hard, or too ambitious to accomplish.
-Richard A. McGinn

Goals too clearly defined can become blinders.
-Mary Catherine Bateson

Everything that doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. And later on you can use it in some story.
-Tapani Bagge
 
When I examine myself and my methods of thought I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing knowledge.
-Albert Einstein

Memory Lane Part II

Pss. 90:4 For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.
***

That post was longer than anticipated yesterday and I thought it warranted a continuation.

As writers, what we are doing in our stories, whether our fictional work or our non-fictional work, we are bringing our past into a character, a scene, an emotion, or maybe a dream.

When I read novel, as a writer, I know in some part there are pieces of the author strewn all about the pages like confetti on New Years. Take To Kill a Mockingbird for example, you can not write something like that without knowing the intricate depths of a situation.

Even authors  like Stephen King has laid pieces of himself in the pages of his stories. He has said about while writing The Shining, he felt like a mad man, drinking boozing it up, life getting out of control, and the Jack Torrance that we (most of us) have all come to know, was born. In his later works after King sobered up, his story Duma Key took on a new color as a new phase took over Mr. Kings life.

I find in my writings, I like to dip into the spiritual pool. My early childhood was shaped by spirits, whether good spirits or the dark nasty ones that you really don’t want to talk about. You’d rather lock them in a closet in the back of the basement somewhere and pretend that they don’t exist.

As a writer, all the doors of your past are open wide, even the little nasty stuff that you buried comes spilling out onto the page. Things you hadn’t remembered for years comes to the surface, you grab your net and scoop up the memory like a fisherman on a good day. You’ve dipped, you now have caught, you own it and you place it on the page.

My childhood was shaped by experience also. Images of the men, the smoke-filled bars, pool balls clanking, men cheering or arguing, the tapping of glasses, the smell, the awful stale aroma of beer that lay in the taps basin. The music, the jukebox that was probably my savior at nine years old.

Ask my brothers if they were sitting in bars at nine years old. Ask them if men felt them up in places that drunken old men thought was playful but to a child felt dirty. Ask the boys, ask one of them, or my sister for that matter, did they sneak drinks of vodka and orange when they were mere babies? Eight or nine year old's belong home not in a bar sipping drinks, sneaking from the glass that was okay for mother to drink from. But then again, home wasn’t much different from the bars.

Yeah that was me, spoiled rotten and given everything. A drinking, toking, smoking child is what shaped my past. Do I long for what was? Never! I bury it in my stories. I was saved by the grace of the Lord. When I write, I write from heartfelt true-blue experience. My inspiration comes from the only thing that has ever grabbed onto me and stuck and that is God!

And that is a piece of MY story.

Memory Lane

Make today great. We may be products of our past but we are also architects of our future. ~Pastor Tim Clowers

***

Are you the kind of person that likes to stroll down memory lane, remembering the old high school, the old friends, the past that eluded your future you thought would manifest?

I’ve never been one who held onto the past like a warm cup of tea. You know, cradle it in my hand, coddle the thoughts as if they were precious and needed to be gently stirred whenever the feeling arises?

No, I’m a writer. I’ve stirred all my emotions with a pen. Laid them onto paper to be read by some unsuspecting reader of the future who happens to like pain and misery. They’ll drink the tea of my past, swallow it and either regurgitate it for the simple fact that the truth can not be stomached, or swallow the warm drink and find that it has become poison in their system.

I was asked if I missed my past life. Which one? The one prior to me being born? Yes, because it was heaven. The one prior to me coming to Nebraska? In my honesty, I have to admit, no. I miss a few family members but that’s about all that I miss.

I went back home a few years ago to Baltimore. Thinking foolishly again that I might have been missed to some extent. I was there because of my mothers medical problem, she had had a stroke and mis-communication from everyone had her on her deathbed, when in reality she had a stroke and wanted me there to be with her, just in case.

Did everyone come out of the woodwork to see me? No, just my sister, who I saw at the hospital a few times and my  niece who found her way to my hotel to visit with me. She was living at  her dad’s home with her husband and five siblings. Going through a ton of her own stuff, I made my way to see her and her brothers and sisters.

Memory lane was a hard stroll. I visited my bro and his wife and she berated me for the way my mother treated me like a precious gem and my brother got the treatment of a bullfrog. This is not quite how I remember it, but I took it all and brought all the agony of the visit back to Texas where I went on a healing binge.

Unfolding in my memoirs is the story of a young girl, who was taken to bars to sit with a bunch of men as mother and dad drank, the brothers were all off on their own escapades. I’ll go down the lane and talk of the many nights we sat at neighbors houses because of parental arguing and small daughters clinging to the mother by her housecoat as she fled.

I’ll also revel in the many joyous Christmas’ that the children were given. Were our parents perfect? No! Did the children have everything they ever needed, yes. But we needed love and that was the instrumental element that was missing in all of the kids life. Did I get more love than the others? Maybe because I was the baby, and clung to my mother like a wet noodle to a ceiling.

Each of us has a different tale to tell. My past is where I want it, in the past, not part of my future. It molded me and shaped me, but as I let it go, I release my pain, I am healed as I walk down memory lane, the one I create, to become my future.

Blog-o-sphere

Job 17:12 They change the night into day: the light is short because of darkness.

***

Blog Catalog

What happened to the friendly, easy to maneuver place where links were at the click of a mouse. Blogs were found easily and you could SHOUT OUT to a blog you liked and visited with an effortless flow. It was bright, congenial, new friends were made, blogs of importance were easily noted, and I visited often, to see what was new in the blogosphere.

Well one day I clicked and could have sworn I hit the wrong button. I thought I hit some kind of stock photography site, with all the pics and chosen links.  The also have an, ‘expose yourself’ option where you can, here’s the catch, PAY to have your blog front and center. Isn’t that sweet? You can pay to have your blog front and center! Before the upgrade, the expose your blog annoyingly appeared in your shout box whether you liked it or not. I couldn’t tell you where it is now.

A nice little box at the bottom, of all the PLUS members, showing just who paid to upgrade, and next to that is a list of links of POPULAR  BLOG CAT, I can’t read the rest because I have a big black stripe down the entire right side of the page, on both firefox AND my Internet Explorer.

So while I’m enjoying discovering new things about Blog Catalog, and see this catalog of blogs advancing into the future, I’m not tech savvy to where I can understand why half of my screen is obliterated from being seen.

On the list of topics, I see Arts, Entertainment and such, along with WRITING, and when clicked, my blog is fifth from the top! Woohoo! Now I’m LOVING blog catalog because many of my followers have found me through them, and commented and went on to join the Free Writing Course (f2k) that Writer's Village University has in session right now as I write this.

Am I giving Blog Catalog a bad review? By no means at all. They have taken the needs of the blog writers, given them a display case, and allowed them to shine and stand on their own merit. There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with that. I just want the black strip down the right side of my page gone so I can leave friends a comment, shout out to them, let them know I’m reading and enjoying their work.

I told one of my students the other day, after we at the F2K have been upgraded to a new site, “It’s all about clicking in this cyber world.” And I’m finding with Blog Catalog, the more I click, the more I learn. I might not be a tech savvy woman, but I certainly am a click happy one.

Happy Writing...and Happy Blogging!

What happened to the friendly, easy to maneuver place where links were at the click of a mouse. Blogs were found easily and you could SHOUT OUT to a blog you liked and visited with an effortless flow. It was bright, congenial, new friends were made, blogs of importance were easily noted, and I visited often, to see what was new in the blogosphere.

Well one day I clicked and could have sworn I hit the wrong button. I thought I hit some kind of stock photography site, with all the pics and chosen links.  The also have an, ‘expose yourself’ option where you can, here’s the catch, PAY to have your blog front and center. Isn’t that sweet? You can pay to have your blog front and center! Before the upgrade, the expose your blog annoyingly appeared in your shout box whether you liked it or not. I couldn’t tell you where it is now.

A nice little box at the bottom, of all the PLUS members, showing just who paid to upgrade, and next to that is a list of links of POPULAR  BLOG CAT, I can’t read the rest because I have a big black stripe down the entire right side of the page, on both firefox AND my Internet Explorer.

So while I’m enjoying discovering new things about Blog Catalog, and see this catalog of blogs advancing into the future, I’m not tech savvy to where I can understand why half of my screen is obliterated from being seen.

On the list of topics, I see Arts, Entertainment and such, along with WRITING, and when clicked, my blog is fifth from the top! Woohoo! Now I’m LOVING blog catalog because many of my followers have found me through them, and commented and went on to join the Free Writing Course (f2k) that Writers Village University has in session right now as I write this.

Am I giving Blog Catalog a bad review? By no means at all. They have taken the needs of the blog writers, given them a display case, and allowed them to shine and stand on their own merit. There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with that. I just want the black strip down the right side of my page gone so I can leave friends a comment, shout out to them, let them know I’m reading and enjoying their work.

I told one of my students the other day, after we at the F2K have been upgraded to a new site, “It’s all about clicking in this cyber world.” And I’m finding with Blog Catalog, the more I click, the more I learn. I might not be a tech savvy woman, but I certainly am a click happy one.

Happy Writing...and Happy Blogging!


Job 17:12 They change the night into day: the light is short because of darkness.
***
What happened to the friendly, easy to maneuver place where links were at the click of a mouse. Blogs were found easily and you could SHOUT OUT to a blog you liked and visited with an effortless flow. It was bright, congenial, new friends were made, blogs of importance were easily noted, and I visited often, to see what was new in the blogosphere.

Well one day I clicked and could have sworn I hit the wrong button. I thought I hit some kind of stock photography site, with all the pics and chosen links.  The also have an, ‘expose yourself’ option where you can, here’s the catch, PAY to have your blog front and center. Isn’t that sweet? You can pay to have your blog front and center! Before the upgrade, the expose your blog annoyingly appeared in your shout box whether you liked it or not. I couldn’t tell you where it is now.

A nice little box at the bottom, of all the PLUS members, showing just who paid to upgrade, and next to that is a list of links of POPULAR  BLOG CAT, I can’t read the rest because I have a big black stripe down the entire right side of the page, on both firefox AND my Internet Explorer.

So while I’m enjoying discovering new things about Blog Catalog, and see this catalog of blogs advancing into the future, I’m not tech savvy to where I can understand why half of my screen is obliterated from being seen.

On the list of topics, I see Arts, Entertainment and such, along with WRITING, and when clicked, my blog is fifth from the top! Woohoo! Now I’m LOVING blog catalog because many of my followers have found me through them, and commented and went on to join the Free Writing Course (f2k) that Writers Village University has in session right now as I write this.

Am I giving Blog Catalog a bad review? By no means at all. They have taken the needs of the blog writers, given them a display case, and allowed them to shine and stand on their own merit. There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with that. I just want the black strip down the right side of my page gone so I can leave friends a comment, shout out to them, let them know I’m reading and enjoying their work.

I told one of my students the other day, after we at the F2K have been upgraded to a new site, “It’s all about clicking in this cyber world.” And I’m finding with Blog Catalog, the more I click, the more I learn. I might not be a tech savvy woman, but I certainly am a click happy one.

Happy Writing...and Happy Blogging!

Poetry Sunday~ Negative Capability

Gen. 45: 7 And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
***
Negative Capability
***
Into a raging sea I ride,
all my will I freely hide
take me now upon the wave.
toss me out for all I gave.

Life is crying out in pain
my mind is rolling with the rain
I hear the voices calling within
A dormant battle I never win.

Hold my hand while I cry
don’t let me be the one to die.
Free me from this angry soul
Set me high where I can stroll.

There He is, not far away
calling me into a new day.
My hand in His, our hearts are one
the battle is free, I feel I’ve won.

Lift me higher into the place
where I can see His adoring face.
I will accept the Master’s plan
trust in Him and not in man.

***

author’s note:

On December 21, 1817, the poet John Keats  wrote a letter to his brother in which he expressed and named a quality of human existence that is tricky to articulate. Keat’s formulation has been adopted by philosophers, poets, and others ever since.

Roughly, the idea is our ability to simultaneously acknowledge the unpredictable nature of events and conduct ourselves with confidence and happiness. He called this familiar yet complex concept negative capability

Quotation Saturday

OVERCOMING FAILURE

"It doesn't matter how much milk you spill as long as you don't lose the cow."
-Harvey Mackay

"Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you're going to do now and do it."
-William Durant

"I've come to believe that all my past failure and frustration were actually laying the foundation for the understandings that have created the new level of living I now enjoy."
-Anthony Robbins

"Failure is only the opportunity to more intelligently begin again."
-Henry Ford

SKILLS

"The better you get at your key skills, the more you accomplish in a shorter period of time."
-Brian Tracy

"Don't wish it was easier, wish you were better. Don't wish for less problems, wish for more skills. Don't wish for less challenges, wish for more wisdom."
-Jim Rohn

"If one is master of one thing and understands one thing well, one has at the same time, insight into and understanding of many things."
-Vincent Van Gogh


MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Happiness and a meaningful life come from making differences. But this is the most important rule to follow: Always make the differences you can make, not the differences you would prefer to make but can't. As you keep making differences, your skill will automatically and effortlessly increase. Anything human beings repeat they get more skillful at. Including misery!
-Lyndon Duke


You count. You make a difference. You can add to the sum of beauty and joy and love and understanding in the world (for yourself, your family, your friends, your community, however you define it), or you can subtract from those already scarce enough commodities. What you do matters.
-Vincent Barnett

VISION

"Teaching people skills without giving them a vision for a better future a vision based on common values is only training."
-Nido Qubein

"With vision, every person, organization and country can flourish.  The Bible says, ‘Without vision we perish.’"
-Mark Victor Hansen

"Yesterday's passions may not serve tomorrow's goals."
-Frederic Hudson

We're writers, we all see things in a new light.~ Joni Zipp