Thoughts spin like a marble,
colors blend together into confusion,
going fast, spinning out of control.
And when the marble stops, there is
a great calm; the colors are vibrant, the surface is smooth–until it begins
again.
Archives for the month of: December, 2015
Marble
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A few weeks back I learned of a book talk coming up from a local bookseller’s email newsletter. I’ve been itching to go to one, but haven’t found one close enough or that fits my schedule. I hadn’t heard of Adina Sara before; after reading more about her work in the email that I received, I knew I had to go and learn more about her new book. She had written a memoir many years back; and a short book about her days in the law office: 100 Words Per Minute, which I found used on Amazon and purchased because I felt I could relate to the administrative perspective.
Blind Shady Bend is her first novel.
The book reading was intimate. It was a small crowd with many folks that knew her and some folks that were new to her work.
I always find it fascinating to listen to people talk about their writing process, how the characters came to life, the birth of the story idea, the nurturing of the elements that go into creating fiction; the process of allowing the fiction to mold itself and change before our eyes, aiding us along the way, nudging us out of the way to allow the stories and characters to speak for themselves.
Adina Sara, shared with the group that the main character came to her in a writer’s workshop–a writing prompt from 12 year ago. When asked if she wrote everyday, she said that she did not, pointing out that it took her so long to complete the book because she hadn’t written everyday.
Someone asked her about the process. She responded that she missed the process and the characters. When she would open up a file on her computer to work on, she said that she would choose by deciding who she wanted to be with that day. There was one character in particular, Pete, that she was going to take out of the book completely, but as she told the group, he became a pivotal character and indeed he did.
I was surprised at how much I enjoyed reading Blind Shady Bend. I say that because I’ve been having trouble finding a book that I can settle into. At 357 pages, it’s a somewhat quick read; it has a flow to it, the writing is nice, and there are words of wisdom scattered here and there within the pages.
Blind Shady Bend is the story of Hannah. She inherits her brother’s rundown property located in the Sierra Nevada Foothills. As she begins meeting the people that live near her brother’s property, interesting things begin to unfold, and Hannah must decide if she will stay or go
Trying to view the glass with all its possibilities and all that there is to be grateful for, yet there is a smal bug that needles, draining energy. A path lies strewn with debris, question marks, worries, doubt. A tattoo on the inside wrist of the bank teller said, “this too shall pass.” I’ve taken a book down, one that I haven’t visited in a very long time, one that I didn’t finish, but find myself drawn to because I’m trying to declutter: Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui by Karen Kingston.
A sunset, birds twittering, the cold air, gardeners planting flowers along the street flower pots, a smiling child…these things make me stop and breathe. Seeing a person without a home, sitting in the cold make me both sad and appreciative for what I have. The news on the television is hard to watch, so many unbelievable, negative acts.
As I continue clearing out the clutter, I hope that my energy level increases and that I am releasing what needs to go, making room for-
For whatever the Univerese has in store.
I feel like I’ve taken a long hibernation for which I cannot seem to wake up from. Migraines are a nuisance and when I have good days, I often find I want to sleep. I think it’s the things I’ve amassed. It’s time to let go of what has not been used, time to focus on the few important things.
In light of my moods, I’m still managing to laugh and stay positive. Classes went well. They are over for now.
I emptied a large hall closet before work one morning, just to force myself to address it that evening. It covered the whole bed. How did all this stuff fit in there? And do I need it all? Four digital cameras! Really, I must let go. A cute coconut purse, a novelty I couldn’t resist, but have never used. The TV show Hoarders plays in the background; my mother was a hoarder. I have the tendencies in my bones, but it’s nothing like my mom or the folks on those shoes. After watching one episode with a mother and son, I could no longer watch. It was too painful to see the sickness, the deterioration. They had a happy ending. It was exhausting to watch.
I unloaded another three boxes of books. They’ll find new people to make happy. I will let others go. Little by little. Sometimes it’s hard, but very necessary. Certain books I take photos of so I won’t forget, so I can look them up again if I ever want to get in touch. I can rely on library books, which I love doing anyway.
“It’s all good.”
I release myself to the Universe.
The moon is actually in Saggitarius at the moment, but it is in the 5th house, which is ruled by Leo.
I came across this little snippet that I jotted down in my notebook. It captures the energy I feel flowing through my being, so when I looked to see where the signs are now, I was happy to see the 5th house connection and I always appreciate the carefree energy of Saggitarius!
**
Leo Moon
Creative juices fill my veins.
Will I lose them or lose them?
child-like activities feel right.
pull out the crayons, the glitter,
the stickers, and get to work!
I’ve had many journal posts in my head this morning. I try to motivate myself by beginning with the photo that I know I want to use. So I did that, but this is not the post. I knew that I wanted to post to my blog journal this morning because too much time has gone by. Then little things came up that distracted me or needed my attention and before I know it, it’s time to get ready. But writing is one of my priorities, it’s something that gives me joy and relaxes me. I’ve made the choice to run late, so that I can exercise this muscle that I don’t want to wither away. (And now that I’ve chopped my hair off again into a pixie, I should be able to leave on time).
This particular post actually started with how my morning was going and the daily horoscopes that my co-worker/boss shared with me yesterday. he likes to read his daily; I actually don’t like reading the dailies, but since he handed me the page he had torn out to share his horoscope for the day, which he approved of, I decided to also peek at mine. It said something along the lines of letting the day unfold as it will and going with the flow.
I must say I needed those words. They stayed with me for the rest of the day and when I found myself at the doctor’s office for a check-up after work, I heeded those words as I wound my way up the parking garage to a completely full garage, trudging slowly behind other cars made the experience drawn out–and I still had to attempt to make it to my appointment on time. I circled my way out of the garage to the next garage. I guess Monday’s are not good days to make appointments. Full. Time was ticking and I was about to give up, but I kept that mantra in my head, go with it, things will work out. I took the parking garage as a reminder to breathe, to stay calm, to be in the moment. After circling the block, I found metered parking for two hours. I made it to my appointment. My doctor ordered some lab work and an x-ray just to be on the safe side. In short, the mantra came into play again. I was sitting there, looking at my watch, getting close to the 2-hour mark. Was I going to get a ticket? Should I ask them how much longer. No, just stay calm. Go with it. It will work out. So that’s what I did. I continued to be in the moment as best I could and let go.
It did all work out. I had just enough time to walk back to the meter at a slow pace taking in the sounds of the evening and viewing the nearly night sky.
I was thankful for the horoscope day. I needed that reminder.
**
I snap many photos and wanted to include one with this post that captured the lightness of the words within the horoscope. I found this one that I had actually taken when I was feeling well and there wasn’t much to eat in the kitchen, except a can of creamy chicken soup. I thought it was a cute smiley face; and it puts a smile on my face just looking back at it.
rebbthoughts 