Green grass is back, and with it bare feet - yippee! I love the tickle of lawn under my tootsies, the freedom of unencumbered toes connecting with the earth. How absolutely glorious after months of snow and boots! My husband, however, does not share my affinity for barefootedness, probably due to breaking a toe the last time he ran around sans shoes. He is naturally protective of his otherwise perfect feet, and while his caution serves him well, it is not a pleasure I am prepared to forgo. I already gave up rollerblading, my once-yearly adrenaline rush of extreme (for me) sports, engaged in only while on vacation in flatter regions. Since breaking a back is a little more life-changing than breaking a toe, I feel justified, but I still miss it. Summer hasn't been the same since, and I really hate that my fear of falling is keeping me from doing something I love. Sometimes we give up something for a season - like running across the lawn barefoot - and sometimes we give it up permanently (I said goodbye to ice skating, too), and sometimes we don't have to do either. Sometimes we just psyche ourselves out, fear of falling - figurative or literal - getting the better of us, keeping us from doing what we would really love to do. This spring I have decided that I am going to work hard to get back in shape, and (fingers crossed) give rollerblading another go. It is going to take effort on my part to overcome not only that fear, but the subsequent challenges of extra weight and decreased coordination. It has been nine years since I laced up my skates, but you know what? I stopped writing for even longer, and came back stronger than ever. It is, I believe, all in the attitude. That, and a little thicker skin. Oh, and extra padding helps. C.A. Morgan is an author/illustrator who doesn't believe in the zombie apocalypse, but does keep a well stocked pantry, and offers encouragement wherever she can. For more info check out the about page, and be sure to visit and like her on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/reademrysia/
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I love words. I always have. Though I profess to be a writer, sometimes the right words still escape me. I'm good with the well-mulled phrase, but my tongue usually takes a while to catch up. While grasping for snappy comebacks or soothing consolations in real time, I have more than once turned to the words of others for what I could not readily express. There is no shame, then, that one of my all-time favorite pastimes is collecting quotes. Words already made famous (or infamous) and even utterances by family or friends unknown to the rest of the world; all are fair game when my own wit won't suffice. Yet of all the thousands of quotes I've collected over the years, there are just five well-known phrases that I insist on passing on - a legacy, if you will, of collective simple wisdom. I think you'll recognize them: The only thing to do with good advice is pass it on. It is never any use to oneself.- Oscar Wilde "This too shall pass." Often attributed to King Solomon, this timeless nugget (and favorite of my wonderful mother-in-law, God rest her soul) doesn't actually show up in the Bible, though it feels like the gospel truth. Everything has a beginning and end - every mountaintop experience and every dark night of the soul. If you don't like the way things currently stand, don't worry; sooner or later circumstances will change. You've heard the term "temporal", right? Well, everything in this world is subject to time. Don't get too attached - especially to feelings that drag you down. They are fleeting in the greater scheme of things. Sure, sometimes it feels like we're stuck in the pits forever, but only if we insist on dwelling there. Make sure to enjoy the good times, too, while they last. Soon enough, all will be just a memory. Advice is what we ask for when we already know the answer but wish we didn't. - Erica Jong "It's all good." This cracker-barrel phrase used to irritate me to no end, but I've long since realized the truth of it. Everything has purpose, whether or not we like, or even get, it. Noted psychologist Mihaly Csikszmihaly studied happiness around the world throughout various socioeconomic groups, and found that circumstances matter very little in determining overall happiness. What does matter is attitude. A positive one always serves us better... which leads to my next anonymous tidbit: "No rain, no rainbow." Look for the upside, the proverbial "silver lining" of any situation, and you'll eventually find it. About now you are probably saying "Wow - what gall! What about about all the suffering in the world, the horrible and horrendous things people do to each other, the senseless tragedies?" While I can't condone many things people do, believe it or not, even senseless tragedy is integral to the greater scheme of things. Just as nights separate days, and shadows accentuate what they surround, we can only fully experience the mountaintops when they are punctuated with valleys. Nothing makes us appreciate wellness so much as being sick, or realize how rich we are until we know poverty. Experiencing the negative aspects of life enables us to develop compassion, to move beyond our flawed humanity to embrace the divine. At the risk of sounding preachy, it's how we learn the merits of sacrificial love first hand. Sometimes we're the recipient, and sometimes the giver, and we are incomplete until we've been both. Want blue skies, not constant gray? Let the rain fall, and the foul wind blow away the clouds to what lies beyond them.
"Can't never did." A similar maxim utilized by moms and successful people throughout the world - Failure is a choice. Unfortunately, it is a common one. Most often, failure occurs because we're not even brave enough to enter the starting gate. Remember: "Try" might eventually win, and "will" always will. I am glad that I paid so little attention to good advice; had I abided by it I might have been saved from some of my most valuable mistakes.- Edna St. Vincent Millay "Actions speak louder than words." Lip service is an ugly form of flattery, one that masquerades as compelling. I have been taken in by it, and I've served it up, and in either circumstance was left empty as a piecrust promise. What we do matters more than what we say we'll do. Not that words are powerless; those meant to console become a knife in the back when follow-through fails to happen. To make words work for, and not against you, be a person of integrity. Do what you say you'll do, and while you're at it, "Do good". Good advice is always certain to be ignored, but that's no reason not to give it.- Agatha Christie Okay, so I snuck in a few extras. I never claimed to be good at math! What are your favorite quotes and words to live by? People frequently ask how I come up with my story ideas. They wonder how I ever found time to write three novels. They sigh, wistfully lamenting their own lack of discipline, imagination or ability, and seldom believe me when I tell them they could do it, too, if they really wanted to badly enough. I know it's true because, aside from always dreaming of being an author, I am no different. I am just your average schmo, no special training - heck, I've never even taken a college English course! Yet, somehow I've managed to publish a trilogy. My degree in Commercial Art makes it possible for me to illustrate my work, but even my seventeen year old daughter knows more about sentence structure and composition than I do. So, how do I convince them - and you - that you can achieve your dreams, whatever they may be? Let me start by sharing a little something I've learned in the writing process: It's all about the editing. When the idea for my series first sparked, I mentally filed it away, too "busy" and lacking in confidence to do anything concrete with it. Over the years that file grew. Life experiences sparked other ideas, most seemingly unconnected, yet somehow meaningful. These got tucked away as well; sometimes whole chapters worth. A name here. A description there. I took notes on any available scrap of paper, and lost more of these jottings than I saved. By the time I actually buckled down and attempted to make a coherent story of it all, it had morphed into an amalgam barely recognizable from that first firing of the imagination. Some of the new material was golden. Some was embarrassingly full of holes. Some of it I loved, but eventually had to part with anyhow. That's where knowing what to edit comes in. Often, less really is more. Dreams and ideas aside, we need discipline to make room for what really matters. Our modern lives are overcrowded, our days jam-packed with work, activities and...well...other less important stuff. Along with the good we accumulate sludge and detritus - like mindless binge TV watching and FaceBook scrolling. Such constant entertainment and opinion bantering, with no purpose beyond numbing ourselves to reality or making our point known, saps our energy. It distracts from what is meaningful, and lulls us into complacency. Our days disappear in a blur. I get sucked in, too - which is exactly why I haven't produced much of worth in the last few months. Sure, I've been busy with some important stuff, but I've also indulged in a lot of fluff that needs editing out if I ever want to finish my WIP. Fluff that actually weighs down dreams. My initial goal to publish was only realized because I took inspiration and gave it the time to grow, along with proper trimming when necessary. Doing the same in our day to day lives creates beauty and order. It allows our reality to exceed former expectations, and grow into the stuff of dreams. What do you need to edit out? If you found this article helpful, please feel free to share with your friends on FaceBook (I know!) and Twitter. I knew this winter was predicted to be a long one, but no one could have warned me just how long it would turn out to be. Though we've had nearly record breaking levels of snow, and still sport it knee-deep at this elevation, the fluffy white stuff was the least of it. Looking at the weather map that says the next storm may dump another foot on us isn't the worst.
What makes this winter so intolerably long (besides the political climate) is that I am currently suffering a writing slump. I started the fall season great guns, and got up to chapter 12 on my WIP - a prequel for my Emrysia series - before Christmas vacation and a busy houseful derailed me. I've been so busy with other things since then it has been easy to neglect my writing. Unfortunately, I can't neglect the fact that I miss it desperately. (Self-inflicted wounds are always the worst!) Fortunately, I'm nearing my pain threshold. One of my recent visitors from Japan told me that after visiting Harvard and MIT, he now regrets not attending an English speaking school when he had the opportunity. I wanted to encourage him that it is never too late. (He is young, so it's actually really early in his game.) It is important to acknowledge our mistakes, but also to realize that regret doesn't help in the slightest. You can only push through a barrier by recognizing it as such, and moving forward. Sure we might get sidetracked - I've made a habit of it! - but like an in-breath in yoga, a pause before you reach higher can help ease you toward your goal. (I just started doing yoga, so hopefully this analogy makes sense.) A moment of mindfulness helps you release where you are, and move further into where you want to be. It is just as important as the movement that is contingent upon it. But, you shouldn't stay there dwelling on things any more than you should hold your breath forever. Spring is coming. I'm almost ready to exhale again. My long moment of mindfulness is almost over. ***** A shout out to Fumihiro, Kai and Ryoma - thanks for visiting; we miss you already! And Yuto, come back and see us sometime. Our door is always open. It's a mixed bag, alright. One day you get dumped on, and the next your head is in the clouds. Reality goes from mundane to macabre to sublime in the blink of an eye, and still... we just keep on with it. That's life. Nothing is static. Change is inevitable. I lead a fairly ordinary life and so, I imagine, do most of you. Days drag on in dull sameness until the occasional blip to remind us that there is more to it than that. We have good days and bad, but most are a muddle of both. For example in the last two weeks I have gotten - and gotten over- a wicked cold, nervously anticipated and enjoyed a visitor from Japan, experienced moments of stress and immense pride as my daughter declaimed poetry on public television, braved a blizzard to help my husband with our broken plow truck --- and rejoiced the next day when he was actually able to resurrect it! I've shoveled the weight of that truck in snow, experienced a power outage, sang for a friend in critical care... and last night learned of his passing. Today I will finish cleaning my house and making brownies to welcome a second round of Japanese visitors, while mulling the music for my friend's funeral. Another ordinary day. What keeps us going - what drives us to look toward tomorrow? What makes life worth living despite its ups and downs? I can't answer that for you, but for me it is hope. Hope that I will see another glorious sunset, hear another moving sonata, read another masterfully written novel. Hope that even though I cannot commit to the time and monetary investment of her joining the lacrosse team, I will get to revel in my youngest daughter's role as a fairy/pirate in her upcoming school play, and that my teenager will get into the college of her choice with enough financial aid to make her attendance possible. Hope that my worries for my adult children will be unfounded, and my dreams of a sustainable writing career for myself will come to fruition. Hope that whatever is around the corner will be a blessing, even if it's wearing a mask and holding a gun to my head. "I have learned it is all in how you look at things." Will I be disappointed? Maybe. But living without hope is an even bigger disappointment, one that keeps repeating itself, like a broken record of bad karma for the brain. Believing tomorrow will bring nothing but rain clouds blinds us to rainbows. Today and always, I have hope that there is more to life than what we're living now, that it keeps going on, even after we're gone. I hope that for my friend who just died, for myself, and for you, too. And, I hope you see the rainbows along the way. Who doesn't like a huge payoff? Raise your hand on that one and I'll question your sanity!
Most of the time we get back exactly what we put into things. We can choose to invest our effort, time and other resources in whatever matters most to us. For some that is career, for others it could be family, hobbies, charities, health, self-gratification - you name it. Our choices are practically limitless. Those who focus exclusively on moving up in the world will usually do just that...though they'll probably end up there all alone. Similarly, spend yourself solely on family and you are likely to have a close-knit clan, but you may be lacking in the friends and money department. What I'm getting at is that we all need balance in our lives. If at times one area takes center stage and uses up most of our resources, so be it; attend to what needs your attention most. But, please...don't focus so much on the pay-off that you neglect the other areas of your life too long. Cases in point: the workaholic businessman who realizes he missed out on seeing his children grow up; the lonely housewife who finds herself friendless, goal-less, and at loose ends once the nest is empty; the single person with money to burn and acquaintances galore, but no deeply committed relationships; the starving artist who beggars not only himself, but his family. The old pearl "you can't take it with you" is hard for some to swallow, so much so that they ignore everything but the almighty dollar until it's too late. Equally true, though altruistic, if you live life solely for others, you can end up with no life of your own. And those who devote themselves only to their art tend to make lousy partners, parents, and friends. Most die penniless anyhow. "Pursuing dreams isn't a bad thing. But it's not the only thing." Take it from someone who knows. As a writer and artist, I would love to make it big. But I've learned throughout the years that huge payoffs have less value than lots of little ones --- just like one wildly happy day of utter freedom can't make up for years of drudgery. One big payoff can't compare to lasting contentment, and I'm not willing to sacrifice everything for my art. There is more to life than fulfilling a goal, namely; my family, friends, health, and peace of mind. Usually, I encourage you to follow your dreams. This time I want you to keep them in perspective. I spent a large portion of my adulthood as the most dedicated stay-at-home mom in the world, pouring myself out on my family and rarely - if ever - stopping to refill and recharge. My dreams were definitely on hold for far too long. While I wasn't exactly miserable, I was less than fulfilled...and, I'll admit, often pretty miserable to live with. When the kids were mostly old enough to take care of themselves, I did an about-face, and dove into my writing career with such gusto that I began to see family life as an intrusion. Not good, either. Nowadays I'm finding balance by making time for my work while keeping family and home a priority. I'm taking pleasure in all aspects of my life, not just one or two. I'm enjoying each day more, feeling more satisfied, and fulfilling my many roles in the greater scheme of things, bit by bit. Some days it is easy, and others it takes more effort, but it's a steady payoff. And, it makes my life infinitely richer in ways that matter most. What are you investing in? Is it worth the cost? I just spent a most enjoyable morning with the eighth graders at Danville School. Today is the last day before Winter Break and, hopefully, I left them inspired to read fantasy over the next week and beyond. It has been awhile since I visited a school, and this was my first ever public school appearance. I wasn't nervous, though I wasn't overly prepared either, having decided to go into this author visit and just be myself, which is someone who loves encouraging others. It's true that people live up to what you expect of them. I wasn't sure what to expect when I walked into that library this morning, but I knew one thing: those kids are just kids. They aren't scary. They aren't challenging. They aren't even apathetic, though sometimes they might come across that way. They are just kids who want someone to believe in them, so they can believe in themselves. Peeking at the rapt faces over the top of my reading glasses, I saw young people who have a lot to offer the world. In fact, what they have no one else can offer. Each of us is unique. If we don't leave our mark, it won't get left by anyone else. My characters - Aryelle, Lureli & Eleanor - learn this the hard way. I'm praying these students will take an easier route and decide to make the world a better place than they found it before it tries to break them. It's raining out now, but it's still a beautiful day, full of potential for growing. Here's to seeds just planted - may they be nourished in the fertile soil of a rich imagination, and produce great fruit! |
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