Tag Archives: creative writing

I alone

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I alone love you

I alone tempt you

I alone love you

Fear is not the end of this

From the moment I heard Ed Kowalczyk sing these intense lyrics, I was just blown away. My interpretation is that fear is not the end of this (life implied) but fear can most definitely paralyze you and as many cultures and religions will tell you, death is only the beginning.

Although money is required for existence, love truly is the power behind all that we are. It guides us to support others, to have the strength to move forward when it seems all is lost, it is found in hope, and trust, and would have us throw ourselves in front of a train if it meant saving the ones that we love most from getting hurt. Hmm I guess I have to add that love is also blinding, both in a good and bad way.

“The greatest teachers will not hesitate to leave you there by yourself chained to fate” = what better way to make ourselves stronger than by the strength in love and in ourselves. Who makes it happen? You make it happen. If you decide to give up, the situation hasn’t changed, it is still there taunting you, poking you with a stick until you get back up and knock it on its butt. So you can’t give up, you just can’t….

This song ebbs and flows in a very powerful way and bring me through a series of emotions; love, a smidge of sadness, longing, but in the end, I always seem to feel more powerful and resilient and more courageous for hearing it.

Weekly Writing Challenge: Music – – As a writer I have many inspiration cues.  A smell, a color, a photo from the past can all be a good launching place to write from.  But today I want you to think about music as your guide.  Let it flow and take you somewhere else today as you dance with your fingertips and write from your soul.

Hurry up already

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She was very anxious, to the point of losing sleep.

Why hadn’t she received the phone call? Was it something she said? Did the meeting not go well?

She answered all the questions in detail and with a smile that even shown in her eyes. She was confident but not conceited and more than qualified for the position. There did not seem to be any holes in the conversation; everything flowed well and as she glanced around the room, noticed a smirk here and there from her light hearted jokes.

But the call! Where was the call to change her life? To catapult her to the next level in her career? To somewhat secure her future and retirement (because nothing is 100%)!

The anxiety was starting to seep into her daily life and affect others. The short snappy answers, the quick to be defensive for no reason…. When will the phone ring with the offer! How much more of this can she possibly take?!! ARGH!!….. ring ring…. And all was right in the world……

 

Easy Fix

Write a post about any topic you wish, but make sure it ends with “And all was right in the world.”

What is all this honking about!!

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geese
It has been said that geese honk while in their formation to encourage the lead goose, for it is that one goose that bears the brunt of the work. What work – just flying is work in itself! The point goose is breaking the air surface and thereby spreading the air current outward. Each goose after the point goose has a lesser degree of air surface to break and makes it a bit easier for them to maintain flight. When the lead goose gets tired he falls to the back of the formation and another goose steps up (or flies up at the case may be). That’s what all the honking is about – working as a team, cheering each other on, sharing the work for the better of the group.

There is so much to learn from such a simple gesture. It goes beyond teamwork and beyond encouragement and it is all natural. They ‘get it’. There is nothing selfish or mean spirited in their quest to get from point A to point B. They don’t secretly wish for one of their feathered mates to fall from the sky so they can get a good laugh from it. They are just honestly praising the hard work and perseverance they are experiencing. What a great concept!

For me, listening to the geese is so self-indulgent I almost feel badly; they bring such a smile to my face while they are working so hard to stay aloft. HONK HONK

Euripides is one smart dude

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“The best and safest thing is to keep a balance in your life, acknowledge the great powers around us and in us. If you can do that, and live that way, you are really a wise man.” – Euripides

Wait a minute, back up, you have not fully digested that statement from Euripides yet… you are not ready to continue reading on…read it again, let it sink it… wow powerful stuff, right!

We all acknowledge balance in our lives is key, but maintaining it is so difficult. It reminds me of the game, Don’t Spill the Beans. The pot is on a rocking device and as the players take turns placing a single tiny bean, if not perfectly positioned, the pot tips over and all the beans come spilling out.

Isn’t this what we are facing every day? Racing around to get the kids to school, all of their extracurricular activities, working full time, paying the bills, etc. etc. only to go to bed and do it again the next day… the monotony of running at 4000 r.p.m.’s daily with very few attempts to step back and regain or restore the balance because it is what is expected of us or ‘we don’t have the time’.

There is a great power around us, and in us, I have no doubt about that, but what we choose to do with that power is what makes us great…makes us a better person….makes us find our balance, naturally and without force. Embrace the power and energy like a big hug! The power is in your mind, in your heart, in your soul, throughout every inch of your body, just waiting for you to tap back into it and release it… (hmmm maybe I am getting a little too sappy…negative or realistic?)

It is thought that what energy you send out into the world comes back to you threefold, so why not send out the positive?! We could all use a little more positive and happy in our lives. It can be something as little as telling a passerby, ‘love those shoes’, but acknowledging each other with a simple positive vibe seems to grow, it changes that person even for the slightest moment, and no, they may not respond back, (you shouldn’t expect anyone to, that is not why you are doing it and some looks you get will be priceless and make you smile even larger), and no they may not pass it along, (hey.. that is on them), so why not? It didn’t cost anything, it didn’t take any of your precious time from you… so… Why not sprinkle a little bit of happiness in your life and heart by sharing it with others, and improving your balance? Throw out the entire pot of positivity to those around you and see what sticks.

Do whatever it takes to find that powerful balance without excuse. Don’t let that ‘pot of beans’ spill before it is too late.

My next cup of tea

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I would like to order my next cup of tea, bottomless please.

A never ending perfect cup; neither too hot nor too cold, neither too sweet nor too bitter, with the slightest taste of honey that makes me lick my lips wanting that last droplet. The kind of tea that, when you close your eyes, you have been transported to another place and time and seems to last forever…

Maybe it is in the past, but maybe it is in the future, each sip is always different. Which do you taste first, the bitter? The mistakes made that you have tried to put behind you? Some are safely locked away while others give a glimpse to let you know they are lurking and waiting for the exact moment to ruin your complacency on any given day.

Sometimes the bitter is just missing someone you will never see again. You have safely compartmentalized in that velvet box, way way back, so far deep down, and then for no reason at all, BAM the tears start to fall-you don’t want to forget (you will never forget) but you also don’t want to remember…

Does the heat from the tea flowing from palate to stomach to thaw you inside and out? Remember the freezing cold days well below zero, shoveling, brushing off the car before the sun rises, or the chill you felt that made your hair stand up for no reason – just a perfect cup of tea can cure them all.

Maybe it is the sweet? The times where you made the right choice, saw the smile on someone else that was because of you, the simplest happiest moment just because… because you heard the perfect song, smelled the perfect flower with the perfect scent, heard the birds sing and laughed at what they may be saying…is it a song? a private joke? or stood in awe at the size and power of Mother Nature and what she can produce…the ocean waves, the bounty of snowfall, for that matter the beauty of each snowflake and its delicacy.

Yes that endless cup of tea has so much to offer; now I need to know just where to buy one.

Vivaldi’s Four Seasons

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Vivaldi’s Four Season is the prime background music – isn’t this what life truly is? Spring Summer Autumn Winter? Close your eyes and listen to the music. Vivaldi brings out the essence of each season with every note: spectacular!

We are born and everything is fresh and new… green and smells like the dew drops in the Spring… colors bursting with the excitement of what is to come… growing and learning and spreading our wings to eventually leave the nest (insert Cyndi Lauper’s Girl’s Just Want to have Fun).

Summer comes and we are in our prime, we have hit our stride, we are trying to enjoy life while finding the perfect balance of family, friends and work (insert Shinedown’s: Shine from the Inside).

Slowly we realize Autumn is upon us. Our hair turns gray as do the leaves change colors. Temperatures cool and we find ourselves needing another sweater. Funny, when we were younger how the temperature change would not affect us so drastically.

We look to the Winter months knowing it is not too far away. We try to cram as much family-time into a short of a period as possible. How quickly time has passed and it feels as if we never really had any time with them at all. Our children’s lives have become filled with their own family friends and ‘Summer’ (Incubus’: Wish You Were Here)

As the snows from Winter keeps us in our homes and secluded, so does the ultimate and infinite hibernation arrive. (Pink Floyd’s: Time – “far away across the fields, tolling on the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knee, hear the softly spoken magic spell…”)

Response to the question of the day:

Cue the Violins

If your life were a movie, what would its soundtrack be like? What songs, instrumental pieces, and other sound effects would be featured on the official soundtrack album?

Deconstructing the misconception of the Bostonian

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The amount of articles citing Bostonians as being racist, snarky, and just downright rude, could not be further from the truth. Bostonians, and I lump people from several different parts of New England into this category, are more loyal than any watch dog you could purchase.

Why are we so sarcastic, stoic and snarky upon first meeting? Well, simply put, we don’t know you. You see, there is a bit of a test that we put people through before we can call them a ‘friend’ in the true sense of the word. Not an acquaintance, not someone we just met or a work mate, a true friend, and we don’t use the term often, so when we do; you know we mean it. That is how serious we are about it.

It is a timely procedure, yes, you can equate it to a job interview where you are required to return a few times before you are told you have the job. You will be asked a hundred questions about your past, your relatives, and your high school. You will be made fun of, you will be tortured with relentless jabs and ribbing, you will be reminded of the horrible mistakes that you have made and not let you live them down, and will laugh at you… just like any family member would. And we expect the same in return. After all, if you are not receiving such a ‘roast’ you better run; it’s a clear sign that you are being tolerated but not liked.

We will not give you the ‘no there is nothing wrong with our friendship’ smile, while promptly texting and FB’ing everyone what a d-bag you are. We will not tell you that the awful Member’s Only Jacket is making a huge comeback and you are on the cutting edge. We will not agree with your choice of sport’s team, especially when one of our players turns rat and leaves the team for yours.

We are going to hit you smack in the face with the truth, because although it hurts more for the first few seconds, it won’t follow you around like toilet paper stuck to your heel.

We need to be sure that you are going to stick around, because when times get tough, when the ‘stuff’ hits the proverbial fan, we need to know that you ‘have our backs’ as much as we will have yours.

It is not unlike many families motto; I can make fun of my family all I want, but you say something, and you will get your ass handed to you.

So you see? We are not some heartless, sardonic, people; We have a heart of gold, sprinkled with a little sea salt.