Never Too Late

As a child, I was not much of a reader. I dare say, if you had asked me back then, I would have told you that I hated to read. But today, what is clear is that I never really had a chance to love books.

My parents never took me to the library. I remember coming home from school and telling my mother that I had a book report assignment. She walked over to the mantel and pulled one of her books down for me: A biography of Johnny Cash. The next year it was a dictionary-sized tome: the autobiography of Norma Zimmer (of Lawrence Welk Show fame.) Is it any wonder I had no interest in reading?

"There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them."
Ray Bradbury

Surprise, surprise, I didn’t finish either of those books. But my mother told me that was okay. I could write a report using just the information from the front flap and back cover. I kid you not.

It wasn’t until I was a mother myself, taking my own children, daily, to the library, that I really discovered what books had to offer. And then I began devouring them.                                

"Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him." Maya Angelou

Maybe that sense of what I missed out on is why I read so much MG and YA now. I am making up for lost time. And with so many amazing books to choose from, who can blame me?

I’m in the midst of a bit of a reading lull at the moment. But that hasn’t kept me from adding to my TBR pile. I picked up Linda Urban’s The Center of Everything last week, as well as AnnStampler’s Where it Began. And when the time is right, I am sure that I will devour them too.

What are you reading?

BEA, NYC, ME?

My daughter and I have been considering attending BookExpo America in New York City this spring. Many of you understand that this is a HUGE deal for me. As suggested in the title of this blog, I am shy. I am also a travel wimp.

Although my daughter has been to NYC several time, I have never been. I have never wanted to go. Cities overwhelm me, as do large (and even not so large) groups of people. If my life had a theme it might best be summed up in the words of Jane Austen: "There is nothing like staying at home, for real comfort." But, as suggested by the "goes social" portion of my blog title,  I have been slowly, this past year or so, been trying to stretch the limits of my comfort zone. This trip will be a big stretch. But a book expo - could there be anything more persuasive? Perhaps the most surprising thing, to me, is that since deciding to go, I am actually getting excited about it.

If you've been to BEA in the past, I'd love for you to share any tips with me. If you're planning to attend this year, it would be fun to be on the lookout to say hello in person. And if you are a fellow wallflower, please, please, please wish me luck!

And in the meantime, I'm going to try to avoid the onset of any panic attacks by visualizing things like this:

Instead of this:

A Thousand Fibers

It’s been a crazy month! I think I’ll be happy to be done with February. It started off with my sister going away on vacation. She and I share the responsibility of caring for our mother. Before she left, she made lots of lists. There was a lot to be done, but truthfully, I wasn’t too worried. I thought I had everything under control.

During the twelve days she was on a cruise (thankfully, not THAT one) we had one blizzard, three lesser snowstorms, one doctor’s visit, three medications that resulted in multiple complications, two falls (luckily, no broken bones), three early morning visits from the paramedics, and 12 hours in the ER.

I am exhausted. 

And SO glad that my sister is back home and Mom is finally on the mend.

While we were in the thick of it, I was pretty overwhelmed. One of the things that got me through were the little snatches of time each morning reading from Jesus Calling by Sarah Young, which offered words of strength and encouragement.

The other thing that got me through was the people.

• My daughter, who stayed with my mom to keep a fire going when she lost power during the blizzard.
• The paramedics, who can make a person smile even when they’re scraping them off the floor – literally.
• The policeman who was sympathetic to my situation after he pulled me over for speeding at 2 A.M. as I rushed to let the paramedics in.
• The nurse in the ER who worked with my mom years ago, and the familiar face who greeted her upstairs when she was later admitted.
• My other sister, who read and responded with patience and understanding to every Facebook message rant I sent her.

These people were single strands that together formed a strong network which provided strength to both my mother and I through the ordeal.

“We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men.”
-         Herman Melville

Mom is finally on the mend. Now I just have to get through the housewarming party we’re throwing for my daughter tomorrow. Oh, and did I mention there’s another storm on the way?

How has your February been?

One More Thing

I’ve been having trouble keeping up with the blog lately –  coming up with ideas, writing new posts, and making the rounds commenting at so many of the blogs I like to visit. Blogging is important to me, and I enjoy it, but it’s one more thing, ya know? We all have tons to do: parenting, working, cooking, cleaning, writing, care giving, the list goes on and on. In the larger scheme of things when looking to scale back, blogging seems like the one area I could possibly do that. And I've thought about it.

Then at church this morning, the message was on building bridges. I’ll admit, I am a bridge burner. I often don't value the relationships in my life enough until I've let them go. If you burn enough bridges, our pastor reminded us today,  you end up on an island - alone. Which takes me back to my very first blog post. I’ve done a lot of island living over the years. When life gets big and overwhelming, it’s easy to revert to our old ways. For me, that includes isolating myself.

So today’s blog post is me fighting against my old nature. And instead of letting the blog stagnate, I'm continuing to build bridges, make connections, make friends. That has been the very best part of blogging, for me, after all. 

And one more thing. . .

Novels in Verse Reading Challenge

It's that time of year again; the time for setting goals. I'm not one for New Year's resolutions, but I do like to set one major goal for myself and my writing. Last year I decided to strive towards a finished first draft of my current WIP by Valentine's Day. I tend to revise as I go. So while I have some pretty polished segments already, I sill don't have a start-to-finish draft. Knowing I had a deadline has really helped, and as of today, I am Oh So Close. I do believe I will meet that deadline! The other goal I set for myself was a reading goal. I joined Amanda's Novels In Verse Reading challenge, signing on to read 9-12 novels in verse. I reviewed them all here on my blog, but below is a recap. 

The verse novels I read last year were:

I've joined Amanda's Novels in Verse Reading Challenge for 2013 and I look forward to another year of discovering new voices. All of the books on my wish list are by authors I've never read before.
Titles on my wish list are:

Would you like to participate in the challenge? You can join by committing to read just ONE book. Find the details here.

What's the one book you can't wait to get your hands on this year?

The Muse's Doorway

My good friend, Jennifer, got me this for Christmas from our local Art Market (made by artist Monica Bleiler.) She said it looks like the muse's doorway leading to story land. I love that! And I'm scouting out the perfect space next to my desk to hang it so that the muse can visit me often.

Here are some of my favorite quotes about creativity. I hope they bring the muse through your doorway.

You see things; and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were; and I say, ‘Why not’?” – George Bernard Shaw

Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. –Scott Adams

Photo courtesy of Free Artistic Photos

Creativity makes a leap, then looks to see where it is. – Mason Cooley

Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties. – Erich Fromm

Clean out a corner of your mind and creativity will instantly fill it. – Dee Hock

“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up” – Pablo Picasso

“If you hear a voice within you say, ‘You cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced” – Vincent Van Gogh

Photo courtesy of Free Artistic Photos

“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try” – Dr. Seuss

“Creativity is more than just being different. Anybody can plan weird; that’s easy. What’s hard is to be as simple as Bach. Making the simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity” – Charles Mingus

Anxiety is part of creativity, the need to get something out, the need to be rid of something or to get in touch with something within. – David Duchovny

“Creativity is contagious, pass it on” – Albert Einstein

Each Day a Gift

Photo courtesy of Free Artistic Photos

"Grief is not a disorder, a disease or a sign of weakness. It is an emotional, physical, and spiritual necessity, the price you pay for love. The only cure for grief is to grieve." - Earl Grollman

Today is the one year anniversary of my father's passing. I miss him every day. But this month, there are so many  reasons why his absence will be more deeply felt: birthdays only two days apart that we always celebrated together, Christmas mornings at his house, and the New Years Day gathering that he always hosted before he got sick.

As I grieve this year, I am painfully aware of all of those who grieve the unbelievable tragedy in Connecticut - so many beautiful lives cut short. And I am thankful for every year, every day I had with my father. I treasure the memories that I have and the opportunity to be with family, share stories, and feel his presence in the impression he left on all of us.

"What we have once enjoyed deeply we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us." - Helen Keller

This year, is the first Christmas since our oldest daughter bought her own house. She has been working hard to make it a home and she will be following her grandfather's tradition, taking over the New Year's Day celebration. There will be new memories made and an abundance of blessings to be counted. My hope is that each time I feel the prick of grief anew in my own heart,  it will be a reminder for me to lift up in prayer  the families of those lost at Sandy Hook

"She was no longer wrestling with the grief, but could sit down with it as a lasting companion and make it a sharer in her thoughts." - George Eliot

Photo courtesy of Free Artistic Photos

Wishing you all a blessed holiday and a happy new year!