Family...your worst enemy?

Eph 3: 14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

[15] Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

***

Family....your worst enemy

I know that statement is harsh but in my experience, it is the truth. Sure your family is great, all smiles when you’re close to them, a 'normal' family with open arms, opinions, prodding and assistance. But move hundreds of miles away and see just how much your family really cares.

I think from my writing you can glean I was a messed up kid. I have four brothers and a sister and our intricate weaving of closeness ran about as layered as an Igloo’s ice block.  We were close while we could do something for one another. We were there for one another when we had to be, but there was something missing in my childhood that eludes me to this day; genuine heartfelt LOVE!

As you read in my two previous posts, there were decisions trying to be made for me, there was a lot of discouragement and there was hope dashed whenever it could be dashed, by circumstances and family that is.

I got an email the other day from a long lost family member. We had been close at one time in our lives, but ever since I left home and gave up on that whole ‘family’ business and started looking out for me, I talk to no one but my mother (daily), and my sister and niece on occasion.

Not that I haven’t tried to reach out. I called, but the calls got far and few in between until they ended completely. My family is the type, they don’t call you, unless you call them. How’s that for love? One year, my ex had given my brother three hundred dollars to mail to my son. It never made it here. Bro said he felt bad and would send it from his own pocket but, that too never made it here.

So why should I have gotten excited by an email that said, “How are you?” Because people, I hold out hope that someone from that clan really does love me. I was wrong. I wrote back in excitement, shared my joys, sorrows and triumphs and my son attending school. And the response? An ice block. “My family is great, my life is great, everything is great,” reported the email. Not one ounce of, “Sorry to hear you’re going through all of that,” nothing. A compassion-less heart, frigid.

What does any of this have to do with writing? Let me tell you. I was encouraged by the Grace of God. I went on with the Lord’s blessing. I continued through all hardships and struggles to stand firm in my belief. The writing community is my family now. They love, appreciate and encourage me, every step of the way. Just like a family should!

I now know what genuine heartfelt love is! Even if the people reside all over the world, I know to them, I am somebody. To them, I am family.

The writing community is a FAMILY. We don’t just ‘write’, we LOVE!

Encouragement?

Tim 4:8 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.

Encouragement is not an ugly word! Discouragement is.

When I was growing up, I never had anyone in my life that encouraged me to ever become a single thing. I learned from my surroundings to drink, do drugs and waste my life in the process, but along came grace and found me in the clutches of the evil one and took hold of me, shaking me into a new being, one where I could believe in myself.

God found me at an early age, lying in the pool of discouragement. No one in this world came along side of me and said, “You can do it!” I found God at an early age, and asked Him if I could do it, and He said, “Yes you can!”

So from about fourteen years old, I learned that God was going to be my only source of inspiration and that He would encourage me when I was weak and just needed to hear those three words, “Yes you can!”

Encouragement can be misconstrued also. Have you ever seen a kid on the football field, doing lousy, shoulders down, eyes to the ground and when you ask him, “What’s the matter.” He says, “I don’t like football.”

“You don’t like football? Then why are you playing it?"

“My dad wanted me to. He encouraged me to play, even though he knew I didn’t like this game.”

“And you always do what you’re told or encouraged to do?”

“Well, yeah. Don’t wanna let him down, is all.”

How many of us, as children, or have watched our friends as kids, have played that game of pleasing the parent and not ourselves? I bet its a lot of you, if you can be honest with yourself.

I’ve had so many writers come into f2k and Writers Village University and say to me point blank, “I’ve always wanted to be a writer!”

And I always say, “So why haven’t you ever taken any action before your seventieth birthday?”

“Well, mom and dad wanted me to be a lawyer,doctor...____________”
You fill in the blank.

Encouragement is a good thing, as long as we know that we’re not putting *our* wants before the person receiving the encouragement. Sometimes people become so selfish with what they want, they don’t realize that their encouragement could hurt or hinder the growth of the individual.

My advice to you, friends. Follow your heart and what it is telling YOU. It’s nice to hear insight from others, but don’t allow it to shape your decision. You are your own person, capable of making up your own mind. Talk to God, ask him if you can and should be a writer. I bet I know what he’s going to say, “YES YOU CAN!”

Please note: If you’ve never had an inkling or ever wanted to be a writer, God might let you know to stay where you are. ;) Also note: If you are not happy doing what you are currently doing, ask yourself, “Am I doing this for me? Or someone else because THEY wanted me to do this?”

Decisions, Decisions...

Everything changes when you change. ~Jim Rohn

Woulda, coulda, shoulda, have to!

Ever run these through your brain.

Have you ever had a decision to be made, only to find that someone else took it upon themselves to make it for you? Can I ask, how did you feel and where did that leave you emotionally?

Me? I run on emotions. I get my fuel from the drinking pool of the Word, but my physical emotional state runs neck and neck with the ‘do this’ pool. I’ve been talking a lot about pools lately. I must miss Texas!

I personally like to make my own decisions. Whether it is to clean, mow, write, mope. These are the decisions I like to make for myself and when someone pipes in, “You have to do (clean)this,” or “You should (write) do that,” or worse, “Joni is going to (get a life) do this...” it always makes me want to run in the opposite direction and do something completely off the wall, you know, just to stir things up in the ‘pool’ of life?

I don’t like someone to tell me or anyone else (gossip) what *I* am going to do, when *I* haven’t even made a concrete decision in what I was going to do in the first place. I don’t like buckling to pressure. I don’t think anyone does. It makes a person feel incompetent in making his/her own decisions.

I remember telling people, I’m going off to become a writer, within a years time, they were like, “Did you write that novel yet? Make any money? You should get a real job! You would be better off. Think of what you could have.”

Yup, it’s the woulda, coulda, shoulda factor.

Pressure shatters me like a delicate vase on the ledge of a windowsill of an opened window. Any minute, I could come crashing down and break into a million pieces. If you’re going to tell me WHAT to do, why not put a vise on my head and turn until my brains pop out?

Yes, I have written a novel, I have a poetry book(s) in the works, my revisions are slow, finding a publisher is next. But will you share the truth of what I just said or will you spin your own take on it?

“Joni has found a publisher!” they say.

“Joni is a writer, and is going to be published. She said so herself.”  they retort.

Love that optimism people. Encourage me to keep it up! Say things like, “I hope you make the right decision.” Help by adding, “I know this decision must be hard and I know you’ll do the right thing.” But please, oh please don’t tell people I am definitely going to do this or that, unless I’ve told you that this is what I’m definitely going to do.

Encourage a writer to write, but don’t discourage them by saying, “You’re not published yet? I thought you were going to do that years ago?” Years ago I said I was going off to become a writer, and yes, that is exactly what I’m doing! WRITING!

"When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. "~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

Poetry Sunday~ HOPE

Job 14:7 For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease.
***
Hope
(c) Joni Zipp

I hold hope in the palm of my hand
it slides right out like fine quicksand.
I hold hope in the budding flower
wait for the bloom with every hour.

I hold hope with every sunrise
it disappears into the nights eyes.
I hold hope in the pit of my heart
melting like wax it falls apart.

I hold hope with all of my dreams
but the little flower has died it seems.
I hold hope of every new day
soon the wind will whisk it away.

I have faith that hope will stand tall
wash away doubts, not letting it fall.
In my being reside faith and hope
With my Father I know I’ll cope.

Doubt and fear have all run away
I rise this glorious new found day.
I seek the Lord to Him I run
FAITH and HOPE shall not be undone!
All rights reserved: copyright © Joni  Zipp

Quotation Saturday

PASSION

"Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, ‘This is the real me,’ and when you have found that attitude, follow it." -William James

"The happiness of a man in this life does not consist in the absence but in the mastery of his passions." -Alfred Lord Tennyson

"Passion, though a bad regulator, is a powerful spring." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

ENTHUSIASM

Your attitude is the key. Keep up your enthusiasm and optimism through the tough times.
-Kay Yow

Enthusiasm is the greatest asset in the world. It beats money and power and influence.
-Henry Chester

CLARITY

"If you are clear about what you want, the world responds with clarity."
-Loretta Staples

"No man can always be right. So the struggle is to do one's best, to keep the brain and conscience clear, never to be swayed by unworthy motives or inconsequential reasons, but to strive to unearth the basic factors involved, then do one's duty."
-Dwight D. Eisenhower

"Know thyself."
-Plato

LIFE

It is life itself that must be our practice. It is not enough to hear spiritual truth or even to have our own spiritual insights. Every aspect of what happens to us must become part of a learning experience.
-Diane Mariechild

The more science learns what life is, the more reluctant scientists are to define it.
-Leila M. Coyne

EMOTIONS:

The writer who cares more about words than about story – characters, action, setting, atmosphere – is unlikely to create a vivid and continuous dream; he gets in his own way too much; in his poetic drunkenness, he can't tell the cart – and its cargo – from the horse.
-John Gardner
 

It's better to write about things you feel than about things you know about.
-L P. Hartley
 

If you would write emotionally, be first unemotional. If you would move your readers to tears, do not let them see you cry.
-James J. Kilpatrick

Good News! To see again...

Matt.19: 26 Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

***

Well folks, good news came in the way of a telephone call yesterday.

As many of you know, if you’ve read my blog, that my beau is blind. We’ve been trying to get help, we’ve been praying, and maybe our prayers have finally been answered. He needs a cornea transplant and cataract surgery and we’ve found out that one eye, his right eye, has possibilities.

Our first trip to Omaha was wind swept and the long drive was tiring and back-aching. It’s a four hour trip both ways; that’s four to Omaha and four hours back home. The first trip we met with 35 mph gusting to 45mph winds which, you might think me a big sissy, but driving on a narrow two lane interstate, with wind pushing and shoving the truck to and fro, is not a fun task.

In front of me trucks were swerving left and right trying to stay in their lane, to my left cars flying by me at no less than 80 mph, and to my right, a rippled edge to keep drivers awake? Well at 80 mph hour that ripple helps you in losing control of your vehicle. On that day, I never reached 65mph. It was sixty all the way. To top it off, it was a ninety degree day and we have no A.C. in the vehicle, so it was also a dripping wet travel experience.

This trip was more pleasant. No winds, cool temps, still back aching, but a nice trip nonetheless. We were in the office maybe twenty minutes then it was back home.

The wait. We had to wait for the dr.’s office to let us know, if after looking behind the cataract via an ultra sound, if the eye was well enough to go through surgery so beau can see again.

The call. It came and she (the assistant, never a doctor) said beau needed more test but the dr. thought that the eye looked well enough back there to perform surgery. Good news!!! A resounding WOOHOO!!

Another trip. Well actually it will be many many more trips back to Omaha, but our next trip is scheduled for November 13. The doc is going to do even more tests, hopefully put him on the cornea donor’s list, probably get him to see a dermatologist and a sinus expert (preferably in Kearney) closer to home.

The wait. More waiting as we’ll have to wait for someone to die, to donate a cornea and be a perfect match. To think that God already has someone picked out to die so my beau can see again is scary. His last doctor was scrupulous in picking out a cornea and did all the aids testing, and other transferring tests that needed to be done so that the surgery was successful. He got an eighteen year old suicide victims cornea last time. It had a life expectancy of twenty years and lasted only seven in my beaus body. I pray for that boy and the family who donated his cornea. And I pray now for the next person and their family.

We wait in anticipation of seeing again. If only for a year, two years or seven, he will see once again if things go well! That is certainly GOOD NEWS to share with you all!!!

Hakuna Matata

Is. 57:19 I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him.

***

Hakuna matata is a beautiful phrase from the Swahili language. In short that means “no worries for the rest of life”!
 

Isn’t that a nice concept? No worries for the rest of your life. Can you imagine?
 

On the threshold of tomorrow, we all have worries and concerns. I like to give all my worries to God because I feel He is better equipped to handle my baggage than I am capable of doing.
 

Writers have worries also, and with each word, sentence, paragraph, we wonder (not worry) if the next page will be as smoothly as the first. Will we or won’t we even be able to finish the book, short story? Will the words surface like bubbles under water, rise to the occasion; Be lifted by a force so that when it reaches the surface we grab it, only for it to pop?
 

Oh dear, I’ve opened a can of worms. But not to worry. Life is too short to sit in the worry pool. We would never accomplish anything in this place and time if we sat with worry by our side because where there is worry, doubt being its best friend, is right there alongside you too! I can list a whole slew of synonyms that ride along with worry and believe me, if you befriend worry, that list of synonyms clings to it like a spitball to a wall. Anguish, distress, misery, and my favorite worry friend, torture!
 

Do you see what I’m getting at here? If you allow one ounce of worry into your way of thinking, the other negative influences think they have a place in there too and they make sure they squeeze into the scene, never allowing for a positive and uplifting energy to form.The negative makes sure that the positive oozes out of the way, leaving you with what, one positive and ten negatives?
 

I’m no scientist here, but I’m 99.9% sure that ten negatives outweigh that one positive that is lingering there. So what I’m leading up to is an all encompassing peace to blanket your soul and carry you away from the worry scene.
 

Thoughts like ‘I WILL write!’, “I WILL accomplish my goal!”, “I WILL __________!” Place any positive on that line and you will do all you can do, be all you can be and achieve the outcome that you desire.
 

As I head off to Omaha in the morning, am I worried of the outcome? NO! Because I’ve placed worry and all his synonym friends in a pail for the Lord to carry across the sand for me, after all, it is His footprints I see, not my own!
 

Luke 12: 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
 

Matt 6: 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Poetry Sunday~ Dear Lord ...

Pss. 63:7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

Dear Lord....

Dear lord I pray to thee
with all my heart and soul set free
shower me with all your love
rain on me from high above.

Heavenly Father I know not
what your will is in my life
you cater to my every whim
by lifting pain and strife.

You hold my hand when I fear
I walk with bated breath
you stand near caressing my soul
at the hour of my death.

I can not pretend to know your plan
when doubt and fear collide
My will is not yours, this I know
From in the shadows I hide.

I walk without a tremble
at first I seem to fall
but there you are by my side
to help me through it all.

I hold out hope, that my wants
are equal to your own.
The message getting blurry
through all that I am shown.

Clarify your wants through me
shine in me your light;
So we can find great solace
in the passing of the night.

Quotation Saturday

RESOLVE

"People do not lack strength; they lack will." 

-Victor Hugo

"He who is firm in will molds the world to himself." 

-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing." 

-Abraham Lincoln

"Obstacles cannot crush me. Every obstacle yields to stern resolve. He who is fixed to a star does not change his mind." -Leonardo da Vinci


HUMOR

"Gentlemen, why don't you laugh? With the fearful strain that is upon me night and day, if I did not laugh, I should die." -Abraham Lincoln

"Wit penetrates; humor envelopes. Wit is a function of verbal intelligence; humor is imagination operating on good nature." 

-Peggy Noonan


"Good humor is a tonic for mind and body. It is the best antidote for anxiety and depression. It is a business asset. It attracts and keeps friends. It lightens human burdens. It is the direct route to serenity and contentment." 

-Grenville Kleiser


DREAMS

Sometimes my dreams are so deep that I dream that I'm dreaming.
-Ray Charles

Never surrender your dream to noisy negatives.
-Author unknown

Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night. 

-Edgar Allan Poe

FAITH
 

And so faith is closing your eyes and following the breath of your soul down to the bottom of life, where existence and nonexistence have merged into irrelevance. All that matters is the little part you play in the vast drama. 

-Real Live Preacher
 

Desire, ask, believe, receive. 

-Stella Terrill Mann
 

Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles. 

- Confucius

Writing...the journey that leads...

“Writing is an exploration. You start from nothing and learn as you go.” - E. L. Doctorow

Just where does your writing journey begin and where does it end? Just where does all this lead? We sit at our desktop's typing out our words, spilling them onto paper, night after night, taking our character(s) on what seems an endless leg of walking only to find, it has to end somewhere right?

We writer’s are on the same journey as our characters. We flow like the stream, happenstance, like our plot, is built up to the point of high voltage, then we drop the bomb of conclusion and fall victim to an end.

Do any of you find that when you end your story, you find yourself sad because you had come alive via your characters and now they have come to a conclusion, and you wonder, where to next? We know we’re going to let it sit, for at least seven days before we pick it back up and go through scrutinizing and editing the piece, right?

If we’re lucky we might have a sequel to squelch the need to write or a story that preys on our mind until we have to get it out. Ever had a journey like that? If I didn’t have writing to get things off of my mind, or fictional worlds in which to climb, my life would be unbearably exhausting and insanity would ensue.

That’s what our writing needs to do. Build a world of insanity where we can plot, structure, form and mend all of our inner problems onto the paper of falseness. I say falseness because we’re not going to give our character a reality as close to our own now are we? 

The Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa has won the 2010 Nobel Prize in Literature. The Swedish Academy said that it was honoring the 74-year-old author "for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt and defeat." ~The New York Times, 10/7/10

Through our writing we are allowed to give, shape and color our worlds. We are our character's god. We hold the pen of creation in our hand.  Did you read the above about the Nobel in Literature? ...structures of power and his trenchant images! Now THAT’S what I’m talking about. Images that brings your writing alive. Structure that shapes and forms into something believable. An entire world within your grasp.

Oh feel the power! Feel the pen! Release the artist within!

Poetry Sunday~ Lil Green Patch

Pss. 90: 6 In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth.
 

Ex. 23:20 Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
***

Lil Green Patch
***
Where flowers in a field did prance
the moonglow perches ready to dance,
coyotes now howl, the elk they call
on the crux of the rising fall.

Spilling over are leaves on the lawn
silently I await the dawn.
Darkness lingers as frost gives rise
I wipe the stardust from the skies.

Little hearts all take a bow;
shooting stars kiss me somehow.
They reach across the open plain
sprinkle down like falling rain.

Drizzled in an earthly show
something grander is here, I know.
Within my mind I speak to them
give a little of all that I am.

An earthly angel they see in flight
to bear to them a heavenly light.
The heavens open in a fury
to Him I tend to give all glory.

Awakened now from this dream
everything is, as it would seem.
From the pages I dispatch,
the joy I found in a lil green patch.

Quotation Saturday

HOPE

"There never was night that had no morn.” 

-- Dinah Maria Mulock Craik

"Everything that is done in the world is done by hope." 

-- Martin Luther

"Great hopes make great men." 

-- Thomas Fuller

Hope, like the gleaming taper's light,
Adorns and cheers our way;
And still, as darker grows the night,
Emits a brighter ray.
--OliverGoldsmith (1730 - 1774)


GOALS

"An unwritten want is a wish, a dream, a never-happen. The day you put your goal in writing is the day it becomes a commitment that will change your life. Are you ready?" -Tom Hopkins

"Goal-setting illuminates the road to success just as runway lights illuminate the landing field for an incoming aircraft." -Nido Qubein

"The establishment of a clear central purpose or goal in life is the starting point of all success." -Brian Tracy

We find no real satisfaction or happiness in life without obstacles to conquer and goals to achieve. --
Maxwell Maltz

REFLECTION

"When death, the great reconciler, has come, it is never our tenderness that we repent of, but our severity."
--T.S. Eliot

"We should every night call ourselves to an account: What infirmity have I mastered today? What passions opposed! What temptation resisted? What virtue acquired?"
- -Marcus Annaeus Seneca

"Look at your past. Your past has determined where you are at this moment. What you do today will determine where you are tomorrow. Are you moving forward or standing still?"
--Tom Hopkins

"We should learn, by reflection on the misfortunes of others, that there is nothing singular in those which befall ourselves."
--Thomas Fitzosborne

It is defeat that turns bone to flint; it is defeat that turns gristle to muscle; it is defeat that makes men invincible. Do not then be afraid of defeat. You are never so near to victory as when defeated in a good cause.
--Henry Ward Beecher
 
Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail.
--Confucius
 
Try not to become a man of success, but rather a man of value.
--Albert Einstein

Odds in our favor

Matt. 19: 26 Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

***

Well, when beau received the diagnosis of 50% odds on the success of seeing again, I thought hmm...50 is better than 49, right?

Lets take a look at some supposed facts on 50% taken from statistical analysis:

*Odds of double-dip recession: Yes-25 percent. No, 50 percent ...

When yield spreads are factored in, the odds of a double-dip recession fall to 25 percent, according to a new study. When they're not included, the probability jumps up to 50 percent. --San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank

*Relationships improve your odds of survival by 50 percent ...

In the journal PLoS Medicine, BYU professors Julianne Holt-Lunstad and Timothy Smith report that social connections -- friends, family, neighbors or colleagues -- improve our odds of survival by 50 percent.

*Fifty Percent of American Marriages End in Divorce-Fiction!

Truth or fiction.com sums it up: The bottom line is that marriage is still what it's always been: a commitment between two people who choose to remain faithful to each other. And they don't need to feel doomed because of scary statistics — least of all ones that are urban myths.

authors note: Is fifty per cent a scary statistic?

*Odds Are the San Francisco Giants Will Get What They Need Without Trades

They don't need to trade starting pitcher Jonathan Sanchez (who still has a 75 percent chance of being a productive big-league winner) to get outfielder Corey Hart (who'd come with 50-50 odds that his offensive numbers would diminish in the move.

*Study gives 50-50 odds Lake Mead will dry up by 2021 -

The report unveiled Tuesday by the University of California-San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography places Lake Mead's chances of running dry by 2021 at 50 percent, better than your odds of winning at any casino.
According to Scripps researchers, there is also a 50 percent chance that reservoir levels will fall low enough to shut down power generation at Hoover Dam by 2017, and a 10 percent chance the lake could be dry by 2014.

So what’s in all this percentage talk?

A percent is a ratio of a number to 100.

The probability of an outcome for a particular event is a number telling us how likely a particular outcome is to occur. This number is the ratio of the number of ways the outcome may occur to the number of total possible outcomes for the event.

With this in mind, there is a fifty percent probability that my beau will see again. Like a coin toss, you can win or lose. But are we not of the optimistic nature? I say that God is 100% of probable existence. If I said he was only fifty percent, that to me, is not very good odds of eternal life.

In my mind, with God, all things are possible and the probability of odds are nil with Him. If I think in odds, they are not in beaus favor with all the surrounding influences that go into making this surgery a success (eczema, sinus infections, allergies, asthma, meticulous searching of the perfect cornea, a well equipped doctor/surgeon). I won’t put my faith and trust in a doctor!

WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!!! Now the odds are in OUR favor! :)

Psalms 16:9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
Pss. 71:14 But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more.

The Pool...

Pss. 49:3 3 My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
***

Writers call it the pool of words, some the pool of thought, any way you look at it, there is a metaphorical meaning behind... the pool.

Steven King made fictional use of this pool in Lisey’s Story. While Lisey and her deceased husband found the pool to be either a healing place, an imaginary portal that few could step through, or a burying place where the deceased lingered or passed into another realm, the pool existed in their minds, and apparently Manda bunny, Lisey’s sister.

In a form of reality, the pool exists within each and every one of us but often we get so caught up with our daily existence that we never take a dip. We stand back looking at the ripples, fear the plunge because the water appears too cold to be immersed in, or we just walk around the pool edges running our fingers across the top, so we can add to the ripples.

In the pool lies clarity. I love a pool that is ice blue, wrinkled with drips of sunshine embellishing the length and depth. A pool is so different from say an ocean or a river because of the clarity. (assuming you have the proper chemicals and filter to keep it clean.)

The ocean can be laden with crabs and such that keep you at a foots length from really diving in to feel the jellyfish wriggle between your legs. The river is equipped with many rocks and sharp edges that you always want to be wearing protective gear on your feet so they don’t get cut or bruised.

Then there’s the pool. The refreshing pool that sits with it’s wavering water, calling out to you to come in and drink from the beauty. You wade into the shallow end, perhaps slowly making your way to where the water almost crests the mouth then you feel yourself getting lighter and lighter and you float off to the deep end. I always like clinging to the side with my feet paddling behind me, a complete control experience.

Writer’s are metaphorical people. We like to swim, not dip in the pool! This is where we get our clarity, whether we are in the ocean of turmoil, the river of boulders, or the pool of sanity; we swallow all of the offerings and gulp down the intense feeling and bring forth a story of reliable prose.

We have a filter in our brain that allows us to see through the murky, algae infested waters and it is in this place...we listen. We block out all of the incoming thoughts, scrambled as they were and we decipher just what the universe is trying to tell us.

The pool is our meditative process, one that a lot of writer’s or people, rarely dip into, for unknown reasons. Why not dapple in the pool of silence and meditation? You’ll see... it's a clarifying experience.

Pss. 119:99 I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation.

On Writing...

Ex. 23: 7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
***

A writer’s life is a world in which reality and fantasy collide. Imagine if you will, your real world has everything you could possibly have imagined; a luscious home, a fancy car, friends ‘to die for’ and a perfect little family; everything moving along at a pace of normalcy.

Now imagine if you will the writer’s life/reality. Your home is lost, your car runs in a ditch, family is so far away the only contact is from a facebook message or email, and friends? Friends can be counted on one hand, minus the fingers.

Writer’s need to add to their writing many twists and turns; hills and mountains, sunny days amid the stormy gray days. That is what builds a story and wouldn’t ya know, it is diversity that strengthens your reality.

If I asked you to define me, normal would not be your first choice of words. When I’m writing, I don’t want my words to say ‘normal’ either. I want their to be as much conflict and bumps in the story, well planned I might add and well written, but not normal. Normal is almost an ugly word these days.

I want my writing to emulate my life, but I don’t want the facts to be so close to reality, that family members are screaming at you to take their character out of that story. Or to stop it right there.

We writer’s need to know where the line of fiction is. If we want to tell a bit of our brothers story, make the character a distant friend and toss in some grand fabrication and hopefully our brothers won’t see themselves in the character!

Now if it is non-fiction, then you better well be on another continent, so when your family reads it, there are no lines of communication open so they can lambaste you for all your ‘lies’ that you told about them.

It’s ironic, I’m putting together my memoirs, and even I think it is far fetched and I lived the darn life! Life is stranger than fiction is a quote I often think of as I continue the memoir. I have to keep in mind what reality has done to me, how it affected me, and the atrocities that entered my life, shaping me to who I am today.

I’d much rather shape a world of fiction, write out the highs and lows of a character, have her/him face challenges and hopefully in the end, triumph. Now that’s another question to ponder, should you always have a happy ending? I don’t know if a happy ending is what sells a story, but a complete story with a believable ending, one that fell into your lap and just had to do to make the story whole.

Not all endings are happy...just as in reality...not all decisions result in a happy ending. Writing is never cut and dry. It is write and write some more...

Job 21:34 How then comfort ye me in vain, seeing in your answers there remaineth falsehood?

Poetry Sunday~ Divine Glory

Luke 12: 7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.
***
Divine Glory
(c) Joni Zipp
***
I crawl;
my nails dig
into the soil
my knees, bloody,
scrape the ground

I cry,
tears burn tracks
into my face
flowing
without ceasing.

I breathe;
inhale the pain
piercing the armor
cutting like shards
of glass upon my heart.

I wail;
the thought
of indecision
creeps, the dust
of corruption.

I ponder;
the truth of light
as darkness grasps
the very essence
of my being.

I plead;
for unwavering faith
to not let me down
when all around me
hands trying to tug.

I see...
God for the Glory
of all that He is
all that he does
and all He wants for me.

I live...
in trust and faith
walking, knowing
He is beside me
where only He knows
all of me.


Luke 21: 28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.

All rights reserved: copyright © Joni Zipp

Quotation Saturday

PATIENCE

When things come to the worse, they generally mend.
--Susanna Moodie

Haste trips its own heels, and fetters and stops itself. 
--Lucius Annaeus Seneca

You have to allow a certain amount of time in which you are doing nothing in order to have things occur to you, to let your mind think. 
--Mortimer Adler

FOLLOW-THROUGH

"Have the dogged determination to follow through to achieve your goal; regardless of circumstances or whatever other people say, think, or do."
-- Paul Meyer

"The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs... one step at a time." -- Joe Girard

"There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks."
-- David Lloyd George

I had rather do and not promise than promise and not do.
-- Arthur Warwick

DESIRE/MOTIVATION

"We are told that talent creates its own opportunities. But it sometimes seems that intense desire creates not only its own opportunities, but its own talents." 

-- Eric Hoffer

"A man must be obedient to the promptings of his innermost heart." 

-- Robertson Davies

"The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind.  Weak desire brings weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat." -- --Napoleon Hill

"The significance of a man is not in what he attains, but rather what he longs to attain." -- - --Khalil Gibran

A Pleasant Read

I found this on a page with 0000 hits... and the author? It is worth passing along.

Here are the Directions to My Father's House

If you are headed down Sin Alley, you will soon find it is a dead-end road and that at it's end is a place called "Destruction".

To avoid this place you should: Quickly make a U-Turn and head towards Repentance Road.(You will have to make a Right Turn to reach this destination.)

Watch out for the Potholes of Pride that might deter your Signs of Independence that might lead you to go the wrong way.

Once you are on Repentance Road, keep going until you reach Believer's Blvd.Then, Keep Going Straight, until you come to Gospel Lane, make another Right turn and go through the Green Light, which is Jesus Christ.You are now on Grace Blvd which turns into Forgiveness Lane.

Next, turn onto the Bridge of Faith, which at times may be over some troubled waters,but if you Keep Going Straight you can make another Right turn onto Prayer Place Parkway and once there, you will find help anytime of the day or night

Then, another Right turn will take you to Words of Life Place which is on Scripture Street. This is a good place to find answers to any questions you may have about life for The Helper lives here and will guide you to all truth.

Remember, as you go on your way,Yield Not to the traffic on Temptation Ave and Pass up Envy Drive, Hate Blvd and Grudge Lane. Also, pass Hypocrisy Street, Gossiping Avenue, Lying Lane and Backbiting Blvd.

You will also do well to avoid Worry Road, Doubt Street, Pride Place and Pity Path; for these are all Detours that will lead you back to Sin Alley or Depression Dump.

There may be times that you have to go down Long-suffering Lane, Persecution Blvd., or Trials and Tribulations Ave. But that's all right, because VICTORY Street is straight ahead!

So, Keep Going Straight for You are on the King's Highway and Heaven-bound !

If you follow these directions you will someday reach My Father's House where a special place has been prepared just for you to dwell in for eternity!

"In My Father's House are many mansions....I go to prepare a place for you." Jesus

"We can all pretend to know God's will in our lives, but only He knows. Trust in that." ~joni

F2K ~ FREE Writing Course

Writer’s Village University is offering once again the seven week, awe inspiring FREE writing course! Yes it is free! We have eight mentor’s on hand to assist you through the seven weeks. You can pay $25 for one-on-one mentor assistance if you want, but hundreds possibly thousands have sailed through this course without the one-on-one assistance.

There you will learn the basics of writing. Some people join to see if writing is for them. They’ve dabbled in writing all of their lives and just need something to jump start the writing bug once again. Some join to refresh their knowledge and to get their muses pumped in a way that no other course can offer.

We begin with orientation week where we all introduce ourselves and get acquainted with the boards. We click links, roam the halls, peek in on other rooms and get to know the folks you’ll be spending time with over the seven week period.

This isn’t the place to self-promote! We don’t allow the boards to become clogged with people posting their websites. We do have a profile page where we can list our website, our accomplishments and a word or two about you.

We start with character, move on to the senses, we’ll dapple in POV, then we plow ahead with plot/theme, then a finale short story!

We also have some new things for the writer this session. Every week, when you post your lesson before midnight Friday, your work will be read by a mentor and offered up for possible publication in the F2K Ezine! Mentors do not choose who or what work gets accepted, all rooms get an offering and the students will vote! So be sure to make friends and read others work!

Also we offer a Certificate of Completion! Upon completion and active participation, you will be able to download a Certificate for you to print out and frame and hang on your wall, this added bonus will encourage YOU, my writing friend, to keep on writing! You’ll see that yes, as a writer, YOU can accomplish great things.

Use the link if you’d like to join. Many who have visited my blog have joined and loved what they got out of the FREE course, so maybe this is the step you need too?

We begin October 6th. You’ll get an email with your password, so KEEP that in a safe place because you WILL NOT BE ABLE TO ENTER UNTIL OCT. 6TH!!!!

One lady who signed up was so mad she was ready to ‘join another course’ because it offered her more. The class doesn’t even begin until Oct. 6, so how would she know what this course offered? She was just upset because she couldn’t GET IN. There is nothing there. Nothing to miss. Nothing to make you mad!

Writer’s need patience! This woman obviously has a fuse as short as *KABOOM* upon the touching of a match to the fuse! ;)

Join us on OCTOBER 6TH, and judge for yourself what all the hoopla is about!

Hope to see you there!!!

S-E-X

2 Cor. 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
***

Those three letters, S-E-X, garner a click. Why is this society today so awestruck by the word sex?

I do not read books for the sex factor. Whenever I come across a sex scene, I skip right over it, or put the book down. I read for story, character and plot. I write for these same reasons.

I don’t read romance novels, never have, never will. I’ve stood at the book shelf in the library and read a few words from one and immediately got turned off because erotica is not my cup of tea. I know these books are successful and women love to dive into the romantic thriller to grab hold of the imaginative magnet that will transport them to some fantasy field where they can let go of their reality.

We women crave romance on many levels and reading romance carries you to that place that releases you from your inhibitions here in reality, and slides you into a portal of imaginative sextasy. Yeah that’s my word for it.

I think if you’re a good writer, you can pull off a romantic interlude without ever going that extra route and letting the reader have to read how much juice was spilled in the tryst. I mean really. He can take her in his arms, feel the sweat drizzle down her body, pant like two animals but c-u-t. Leave something to the imagination. Don’t take your reader, tongue-lock for neck-lick down the path to a climactic release.

In all my years, I’ve only come across this type of writing maybe five times. I won’t give the author or book because if I know you, you’d run out and read the book and say, oh it wasn’t that bad. No it wasn’t. You’re right! BUT was that scene necessary in the story plot? Was it an essential turning point for the characters? No! It was a sex scene with all its bells and whistles, that made me not like the book or ever really care to read it again.

To each his own, I always say, and to me, a sextasy scene can ruin a book. If you’re a writer, then know your reader and respect their limits. Don’t feed them steak when all they really wanted from you was a meatloaf and some mashed potatoes. If I want steak, I’ll read a romance novel. If I want the crème brûlée, I’ll go to the x-rated magazines for my jollies. I know my limits!

Because I am a Christian, I mind the Laws of the Lord. And He knows what goes in, has a lasting impression on the mind.

Romans 8:5 says: For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.

 

Romans 12:2  says: And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

He does care what we read and what we write. Don’t put your carnal spin on God’s words.

The day after...

Pss. 130: 5 I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.
***

I try to go around writing posts about my personal life, but as the years pass life keeps happening in my world and writing my emotions is another way of releasing my feelings out in the cosmos of the virtual world.

Ok, many of you know that we had to go to Omaha (Monday) yesterday. That was a long four hour wind-swept trip to Omaha and another four hour wind-logged trip back. We were going to get the prognosis on my beau’s eyes, to see how healthy his eyes were for surgery to get his sight back.

Two years ago, when all this started we could have used some help from the government to get this surgery, but as days became weeks and weeks became months, we had no help or resources in getting ANY form of treatment. Sure the government offered medicaid with an eight-hundred dollar a month deductible, which would leave us nil in paying rent, but we are expected to take it or leave it.

Thank you America for this freedom!

I know of drug addicts who receive assistance from the state, get their meds to sell to the community, but when some honest person needs help, that person gets overlooked via loopholes.

Anyway, two years have passed and the eyes have taken a beating. With no treatment, (thanks gov) the eyes have deteriorated. Nebraska is not top in the nation of technology, so really their is not much here offered so beau can get his sight back. The left eye has begun its descent into not functioning at all, and the right eye has a 50/50 chance of ever seeing again, and possibly being hit with numerous infections all over again, and the sight being swept away like dust on the floor.

Does he take the chance? Does he go through all the trouble to regain his sight for a month or year, only to lose it again? I can’t answer that for him because this is solely his decision to make, not mine or anyone else for that matter. He’s strong spirited! God has watched over him like a blanket of comfort and as a family we continue to see the bright side. There is a bright side. He’s alive! And I praise God for that!

I will not give up hope! God’s plan is not my plan and I can’t pretend to know what He has in store. Trusting in HIS plan is what faith is all about. Not putting our selfish spin on it and in essence putting our wants and needs before God. I won’t go that route.

I’ll pray, remain a faithful servant, carry on with His wings on my shoulder, and diligently pursue LIFE with HOPE!!! Thank you Father!

Lam. 3: 24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.

Poetry Sunday~ It is Time...

Job 7: 1 Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? are not his days also like the days of an hireling?
***
It is time..

All in Gods time
is what I believe.
A time to love
a time to grieve.

When all at once
I begin to wonder.
whether I’ve gone
and put all asunder.

I care for those
without any hope.
My compassion extends
a welcoming rope.

My heart it bleeds
for the man without
the woman who needs
to get it all out.

Now is the time
for you to reap
is what He says
His promise he’ll keep.

When all at once
where one does not flee.
The veil is lifted
again he will see.

All in Gods time
this much I know.
A wondrous season
for all to grow!

Quotation Saturday

YOU ARE UNIQUE

"All I would tell people is to hold onto what was individual about themselves, not to allow their ambition for success to cause them to try to imitate the success of others. You've got to find it on your own terms."
- Harrison Ford

"Style is being yourself, but on purpose."
-Patricia Fripp

"The same God who created Rembrandt created you, and you are as precious in God’s sight as Rembrandt or anyone else."
-Zig Ziglar

RESOLVE

"Obstacles cannot crush me. Every obstacle yields to stern resolve. He who is fixed to a star does not change his mind."
-Leonardo da Vinci

"Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing."
-Abraham Lincoln

"There is no chance, no destiny, no fate that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul."
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

PURPOSE

“No man or woman is an island. To exist just for yourself is meaningless. You can achieve the most satisfaction when you feel related to some greater purpose in life, something greater than yourself.”
-- Denis Waitley

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.

“A man may fulfill the object of his existence by asking a question he cannot answer, and attempting a task he cannot achieve.”
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes

CHOICES
 
You have got to stir up that dream inside of yourself. Your dreams and your destiny aren’t determined by “CHANCE” but by “CHOICE”!
- Gary Eby

Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
-Bible, John 8:32
 
The truth that makes men free is for the most part the truth which men prefer not to hear. --Herbert Agar
 
Truth is more of a stranger than fiction.
-MarkTwain (1835 - 1910)

In a rut...

Matt. 17: 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
***

Ever hit one of those bumps in the road where your writing takes a back seat to your reality? I’ve hit one of those. I want to write but the rut is keeping me from doing so.

With dental visits for my beau, an impending eye doctor’s visit in Omaha, the tension that the Lion’s Club is putting us through, Adam being bullied at school, all of these instances in my reality is keeping me from writing anything with substance.

I was going to say writing is like a river, it just flows on and reaches no end. That isn’t necessarily true. It flows but then sometimes it finds itself washed up on the beach sinking into the sand absorbed or evaporated. What’s up with that?

Maybe writing is like a pool. You know, a pool that sits there and awaits a refill upon evaporation? You need to keep refilling to get any pleasure out of the fullness of the pool, right?

Then there is the analogy, writing is like a tree, it grows and blossoms each year with new life and fervor, only hindered by say, a wildfire?

These are not good metaphors. Maybe it’s just a peek of negative things that have been going on that are trying to weedle its way into my writing. I’m always a positive thinker so I know this is just what it is, a rut. The jagged little ugliness that wants to hinder my life when all I really need to do is pull out a shovel and bury the pebble in the road. And a little pebble is all that it is.

Did you ever notice that these little pebbles can really hurt when tread upon? It’s not like a boulder, hindering my path. This is a daggum pebble that I will toss in that river and watch it make ripples for a ways out. Flee you pebble! Get out of my life and give me back my sanity!

The Lion’s Club, who said they’d pay for my beau’s operation to see again, has now backed out. The Lion Lady is going to approach a different chapter and ask them to help. Why is it so hard for compassion to overflow so one man can see again? Pebbles are not only in MY path, they seem to be making their way across the paths of many, hindering them in the way that they want or need to go.

When God said that we have the power within us to move a mountain, I have to say, I feel like a living breathing testimony to that fact. Every mountain that stands in my way, I tell it to MOVE and other opportunities open up before me. Not just me, this isn’t a me factor, this is for EVERYONE!

So dip into the pool of words and pull out your sword and breastplate and armor yourself for a battle like no other. And when you need to get out of a rut, you stand firm in your belief that this pebble,  this mountain will move out of your way, and it will be so. All in God’s time! Remember that. This isn’t about our plans, this is about God’s plan and HIS time!

Even in my rut I produced five hundred and some words! Hmm... the mountain has moved. *deep sigh*

Think Outside the Box

2 Sam. 22:8 Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations of heaven moved and shook, because he was wroth.
***

Have you ever placed yourself so tightly in a box you feel there is no way out? You know, gotten so used to a routine that going off the beaten path might throw you off track a little?

Have you taken the same exact route to the store, gone through the store hitting all the aisles like a robot scourging the shelves in the same pattern week after week? Sometimes we need to shake off the routine and go down a dirt road that has never been explored before.

In our writing, we broach the same topics, write in the same fashion, place everything in the box with us so we feel secure knowing it is right where we want it to be. I’m here to tell you to think outside the box for a change. Write something you’d never dare write, show us, in all the splendid color, what you have to offer.

Think outside the box and shake your writing up a bit. Maybe use a new word that you’ve never used before. Try techniques unfamiliar to you and practice them every day; fulfill your writing dream by letting go of the old cardboard box. Climb out and observe the world around you, swallow up all the beauty and write about what it is you see.

Do pictures help you tell a story? Then google Picture Prompts, you’ll get a slew of new images to meander through all waiting for a tale to be told. Do word prompts help you write a story? Then again, google writing prompts. All of these venues are there for the taking. It’s like dipping into a pool of thoughts and you jump in and grab what you can and come out dripping with a new tale to be told.

Exercise your brain daily. Get out of the box and try your hand at new things. Sail off into the sunset and resurface at the sunrise. As a writer you can travel the world, wind up in different worlds, delve into the consciousness of writing and be on your way.

Whatever you do, don’t get stuck in a rut. The rut will weigh you down, keeping you grounded in one spot, you guessed it, The Box.

So what will you do today differently than you’ve done in weeks past? Are you just going to sit there, tap on the keys, go on about your day in routine fashion and wind up here in the morning to do the same thing over and over again? I hope not. I hope you put your world in a blender and shake up your habits a bit and write your heart out, embracing new things along the way.

Today, as in all days, Think Outside the Box!

Job 37:1 At this also my heart trembleth, and is moved out of his place.

Poetry Sunday~ The Aftermath

James 1:4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
***
Aftermath
***
Embers of hate
mark this date
for all the world to see.

I can not relate
will not be bait.
for my will to be set  free.

Long live compassion
I drown out the crashin’
the light of laughter abounds.

Hold onto my passion
in arrogant fashion
the wonderful world of sounds

The first yellowing leaves
are shaking in trees.
the season enters its sleep.

The nation now grieves
for all it perceives.
the hope it can not keep.

Rise above fear
love will shine clear
in humans once again.

Don’t shed a tear;
hold your faith near.
pray for the sin of men.

September 11~ a poem

Isa. 2:11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
***
September 11
I cradled my morning coffee,
my eyes they struggled to see
a horrific terrible tragedy,
unfolding in front of me.

Today’s background clutter,
seemed to take a second stance,
scrambling cameras everywhere,
gave rise to a deeper glance.

A plane had hit a building,
I couldn't believe my eyes.
the horror of a gaping wound,
of such an enormous size.

By now I'm jolted wide awake,
something was just not right.
I witnessed the impact yet again,
on the twin without a fight.

Billowing smoke and fragments,
scattered all around.
People frozen in a spot,
as objects fall to the ground.

Reports of other targets,
were coming into view.
My tear-filled eyes were wondering.
what this world was coming to.

In merely a matter of moments,
my blurry eyes did see;
heroes rushing into the scene,
as workers fought to flee.

The crumbling of a building,
number two not far behind.
The crashing of plane three and four,
had mentally boggled my mind.

I couldn't feel my fingers.
a wounded numbness arose.
I sat in total disbelief.
as my body stood there froze.

Longing to be shaken,
from this nightmare that is real.
my body shrouded in emptiness,
as I buckled to a kneel.

I prayed for lovetorn strangers,
whose faces gripped in fear.
I longed for welcome solace,
through the shedding of a tear.

The aroma of terror lingers,
as I'm trembling to the core.
I long for the taste of freedom,
which I sense will be no more.

A sleeping nation awakened,
by the trumpets sounding in heaven.
Altering our lives forever,
on the day of September eleven.

Copyright © Joni Zipp

Isa. 12: 4 And in that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted.


Drums in the Deep remembers 911

911~ A day that altered life

Isa. 64:2 As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence!

***

It’s all about numbers. 911 was the time and date that the hearts of the evil men decided on the fate of our country to go through a horrendous devastating blow. They pulled it off, in a splendor that even amazed them as witnesses.

I lived in Baltimore Maryland at the time of the 911 trauma. I remember the year before on Sept. 11th, they had closed down The World Trade Center at the Inner Harbor because apparently they feared an attack from an outside source. In 2001, they didn’t take these precautions and within seconds of the plane crashes, the world fell silent.

I remember watching as Katie Couric and Matt Lauer announced... “This just in, a plane has crashed into the World Trade Center.” Camera’s were quick to the scene watching the events unfold on the screen for all the world to see.

Were my thoughts, Oh my, a horrible accident? No, my thoughts went immediately to, this was intentional. I bowed my head and began praying. I slid to the floor as my knees buckled from under me, I fell into a kneeling prayer. More and more news came in as another plane hit the tower, and the Pentagon and another plane went down in a field. At that moment, my life was forever altered.

The souls gathered, they roamed, they were confused and lost. Wandering, they looked for home, sought out a place to move onto, found shelter in the hearts of the living who might, just maybe open a door for them. All that they wanted was peace for their shocked system.

I no longer felt a part of this world. I felt my spirit being lifted higher and higher. My marriage of eighteen years, which had been solid, had fallen on a rocky quagmire. Days passed and I felt like a new life was being breathed into my spirit. I no longer wanted a world wrought in pain for my then five almost six year old son. I no longer wanted a solitary life of mundane routine. I wanted life; the breathtaking life that God intended for me to begin with when he created me. A year and a half later, my marriage toppled, much like those buildings.

God gifted me with a talent and I was determined to use it to my fullest capacity within the four walls that I had built for myself. My prayer, my gift, my life, altered by a day in history. Unlike any other day in history, this one changed more than many were witness to; it shifted a mental consciousness. The tragedy drew on our strength and weaknesses producing either anger and hate, or love and hope. Very little had hope. Many either found or strengthened in faith! But, it also bred hatred and immorality to the highest degree.

On this anniversary of the number one tragedy of our time, I will pray for those who hate; I will bow my head and pray for love to sweep the nation; I will hope that our lives will be altered in a positive way, instead of the negative that we so easily choose.

I will pray for YOU, and I will pray for ME!

Lamentations 3:20-23

I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (NIV)

911 ~ A Day in History

Matt. 5:44 states: But I say unto you, Love your enemies.
***

Today is September 9...we’re building up to the ninth anniversary of a devastating time in the history of our American lives. We can all remember the day of September 11, like it just happened yesterday, but I see so many have moved on into a breeding ground of immorality and took none of the message in the shrapnel to heart.
 

We’ve moved on, and took giant leaps back. We didn’t understand the message, we instead became angry and full of hate and in a sense allowed that hatred to fester and bloom into what we have today, a world full of hate.
 

I watch as Christians, or the “so-called” Christians, stand up in what is supposedly God’s name and place judgment on men and mankind. Who has the right to judge another mans faith and religion? I, personally, don’t feel I am in any position to sling mud at anyone, just because they don’t believe in the same things I do.
 

The news is loaded with images of a supposed Christian man, whom on 9-11, will burn the Koran, the Holy Book of Islam. It is supposed to show the killers, who brought down the towers, what we think of them. I in no way, agree with this type of action. To me, it is childish and immature and NOT from MY God or MY faith.
 

This minister holds in his hands the life of our military personnel, and perhaps places our country in danger of retaliation. Do I fear? No. My God will protect me. As I sit and move on from the attacks of 2001, men think they have been Knighted by God to be a judge and jury for mankind. This man is not a Christian if his God is telling him to breed such hatred.
 

I don’t expect atheist to believe in a God, they’ve never encountered the power so why should they? I don’t expect the Islamic community to accept my bible, they’ve never encountered the affection of my God, so why should they? What I do expect is for my religious so-called leaders of this country to stand UP for my God, and preach true Christianity. Love thy neighbor as thyself...turn the other cheek, and all the LOVE that Jesus taught us to carry.
 

If you believe in Jesus, or have even heard of Him, you know, he was NOT a man of hate, anger and bitterness. His mission was to bring LOVE into the light of the world, and it is a sad day, when men of Christ bring anger, hatred, and judgment down on men like a warm summer rain.
 

September 11, 2001 changed my life forever. The cruel men that committed this act, are either dead or are facing a harsh sentence, or are being sought after to face their final end. To hold onto anger, bitterness and the need to retaliate is not what my Christianity is all about. Mine is all about FAITH, LOVE, and HOPE.

F2K ~ FREE Writing Course

New and Improved F2K!

The art of writing is not a skill you just stumble upon. It takes awhile to master all the things that go into writing and sometimes we need a course to help move us into the next level of our journey.

Writer’s Village University offers a seven week FREE Writing Course, to refresh your muse, if you’re already a writer, or to dapple in the craft if you think it might be something you’re interested in; either way it is FREE and you have nothing to lose.

This session was the most exciting in all of my years mentoring. We have 8 classrooms, 8 volunteer mentors, and over 200 hundred students divided into those rooms. Now that may sound like a lot of people and a little intimidating, but believe me, after the first week, the students have either lost interest, life intervened, or find that this is just not for them. But this session, it was as if all the students stayed around to finish the course.

Our first week, the Master Administrator, Bob Hembree, switched the format of the board on us. The mentors were learning the boards as well as the students, but we adapt quickly. Why the switch? The old format was dated and Bob wanted to move us into the 21st century. Apparently these things take time to build and it wasn’t ready until we had all started in f2k. It went smoothly, like butter on bread.

New doorways were opened; we had a Social Scene, in a facebook like setting, where students came and introduced themselves, made friends, and uploaded avatars. Groups were formed, discussions were broached, music and photos were shared and we rode into the sunset of newness with a finesse that rattled the world of writing. The classrooms remain private and professional!

A bonus this session was that of a certificate of completion! If you posted your six lessons, gave ample feedback in these seven weeks, then you were rewarded with a Certificate of Completion. You could not just post the lessons and get a certificate. We are a peer to peer feedback course and if you don’t participate in giving feedback then you have not completed the requirements of the course.

We also produce people seeking publication and one woman had her lesson six accepted by an online magazine. Although we require your lesson six to be something NEW that you write FOR THIS COURSE, she had obviously written and submitted the story weeks prior to this course. Everyone was like, “I helped critique that!” But lo and behold, it had already been in the hands of the publisher before your crit.

That’s okay. We take pride in seeing one of our own publish ANY work! :) Congrats Kriti Bajaj on her work The Dream Catcher!  
 

We will have new doors opening again this session come October 6th. Possible publication in our new f2kzine? Bait bait bait... lol I don’t need to bait anyone, this course stands alone on its strength in producing writer’s. It sure doesn’t need me bragging about the course. 

Hope to see you then!

Important: Lessons and Classrooms will not be visible until course start date.

Labor Day

“When pure sincerity forms within, it is outwardly realized in other people's hearts.”
-Lao Tzu

They say it is Labor Day, but why do they give people the day off? That’s not labor.
 

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.
 

If it is to recognize the achievements of American workers, why does Canada, and Non-American workers, get off of work?
 

I think holidays are just a way for the government to get a paid holiday for themselves. Holidays are a time for cookouts, get together's and fun with family. I had a great time with Stevens family yesterday and today do I get the day off? Not at all, I’m tapping on the keys and segueing into a post.
 

We have to be prepared. Labor Day might be for the workers of this world who need recognition of their labors and work, whereas for me, I will work my tail off this day in honor of LABOR!
 

I need to announce the next f2k session, which will be rolling around real soon, October 6th, and I’ll write more this week. F2k is the FREE Writing course that Writer’s Village University offers. Yes, it is FREE, and it is a seven week course that leads you into the labor of writing. If you’re a pro, the class offers a refresher in the basics. If you’re a new writer, then it offers you a chance to see if you have what it takes to BE a writer.
 

Writing is a laborious job. Some people enter class thinking they can whiz through because what, writing is easy? It’s a hard job that takes a lot of thought, persistence and patience that pays off in rewards beyond your imagination.
 

So on this Labor Day, take a moment to register to write. Take the initiative and give yourself the journey that keeps on giving. You WILL NOT gain entry until October 6th, but we do have a Social Scene set up (similar to facebook) that allows one and all a chance at viewing the format. Look for Writers Village University on facebook, we have  a page loaded with info and friends you might already know. :)
 

Have a wonderful day. Don’t stop working just because ‘man’ has given you a holiday. Persist! Work! Live!

Poetry Sunday ~ Autumn

Ecc. 3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

*** 

Autumn
***
The leaves are falling,
the chill is here
once again
that time of year.

As flowers fade
and jack frost looms
fragrance smolders
the ants build rooms.

The grass it dims
oh sacred tree
drop your shelter
down on me.

Time to vacate
and go inside
the world is cold
too oft it died.

I will pray
my jobs not done.
I run the gamut
of a life I’ve won.

Never fear and
always trust.
My God is good
He molded dust!

Quotation Saturday

YOUR CONTRIBUTION TO THE WORLD

We all have, without exception, a very deep longing to give--to give to the Earth, to give to others, to give to society, to work, to love, to care for this Earth. That's true for every human being. And even the ones who don't find it, it's because it has been squashed or somehow suppressed in some brutal way in their life. But it's there to be discovered. We all long for that.
--Jack Kornfield

You cannot contribute anything to the ideal condition of mind and heart known as brotherhood, however much you preach, posture, or agree, unless you live it.
--Faith Baldwin

“If your sunshine wants far outstrip your cold morning desire, have a talk with yourself. Then have a lot more talks with yourself. Convince number one that you can succeed--and you will succeed. If you don't believe in you, why should anyone else?”
--Tom Hopkins

You become what you affirm; positively affirm your greatness, genius and fullest potential.”
--Mark Victor Hansen

TRUTH

The spirit of truth and the spirit of freedom--these are the pillars of society.
--Henrik Ibsen, Pillars of Society

 ASK…

"Before beginning a hunt, it is wise to ask someone what you are looking for before you begin looking for it." -- Winnie the Pooh

"When I hear somebody sigh, "Life is hard," I am always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" -- Sydney J. Harris

"When you take charge of your life, there is no longer need to ask permission of other people or society at large. When you ask permission, you give someone veto power over your life." - Abert F. Geoffrey

ALL IN FUN...

"He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lamp-posts.. . for support rather than illumination. "
-- Andrew Lang (1844-1912)

"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go.."
-- Oscar Wilde

"Why do you sit there looking like an envelope without any address on it?"
-- Mark Twain

I LOVE my job!

Matt. 25:15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.
***

“What? You got a job?”

“Well...”

“But that’s great, you got a job!”

The truth be told, my job is writing. Like it or not. My job is writing.

“Now that Adam is off at school you can go out and find something.”

“Find something? I’ve been working my tail off educating myself, volunteering, networking, getting my name out there, and you what? Want me to quit this job?”

“Does it pay?”

“It WILL!”

“But it’s not going to put food on your plate.”

“I’ll let the Lord worry about my food, shelter, life.”

How many times has a conversation like that been broached. So often I could hurl chunks! I mean, really!

Many many years ago (almost 25 to be exact) when I gave up drugs and alcohol (remember, I grew up in the city. There was no other life except the dark route) I took the initiative, embraced God and moved forward in my life. God had a job for me. Me? Little ol me? Yes!

He said, “Make a difference in people’s lives, change one person at a time. Take care of people, shower them with love, let them know that I AM.” Big job for a little lady. I was twenty-one at the time and people thought I was crazy. God didn’t talk to them, so what made me so special? I’ll tell you. I gave my LIFE for Him! Literally. The old me died and a new one was born.

I set out on a mission to help people in any way I could, often NEVER getting paid one red cent, and many times working in 104 degree heat for one dollar, because to a woman of 100, that was all she could pay. I did it all with grace and enjoyed my work for the Lord.

Then one day, after about 15 years had passed, when I didn’t think I was doing my job to the fullest, He said, “Use the talent I gave you. Change one person at a time.” Me? Here again, lil ol me is suppose to change people with my talent? Oh...I get it.

I dove into my talent. He provided the computer, free of charge, He provided my growth, my initiative and onto the world I went, with my writing talent, to change the world, one person at a time.

I’ve never felt like I was letting Him down. Onward and upward my mission for the Lord goes on, without skipping a beat. He provides the people needed, He helps me to shower them in a light they may have otherwise overlooked and He embraces me in full glory. Wow!

Now that Adam is in school, I feel pressured into getting a job. You know, to help pay the bills, to make ends meet, to let society know “I’m a worker!” Well guess what? I asked God again as satan is approaching me with flames of fire, “Should I get a job?”

His words, “You have a job. You work for ME!”

I don’t expect anyone to understand this concept. This is a hard part of FAITH that many cannot grasp. I put all of my faith in Him who provides every step of the journey, who puts food in my mouth and shelters me from raging storms. I have the faith that He will carry me and mine through the darkest of days. I will hold my head high and move on in a blaze of Glory.

I love my job.