While battling depression on the daily, I often watch cute dog videos on YouTube; however, this sometimes exacerbates the darkness and despair when I see — among the “funny” stuff — a poor dog with a face full of porcupine quills; a dog tied to a post in the yard for so long that it … Continue reading Do Your Ears First, okay?
Our daughter returned from Korea in 2013 with a hiking fetish, plus we have a dog, which means we’re doing more walking these days. Tuesday we went to a local park for a hike. We had no map of the trails, just took off and got lost in them on a 1.5 hour trek into … Continue reading The Chalk Scribe
There are basically two types of these: one with a comfy space for a full-sized human to sit, surrounded by shelves filled with tomes for a pleasant reading experience, and one that sits on said bookshelf, featuring a miniature diorama, most often illustrating scenes from said books but that can also feature favorite places to … Continue reading Nooks and Shadows
Whenever the word ‘paradise’ is spoken, most people conjure up the image of a sandy beach, palm trees and a cloudless azure sky. They want sun and a nice breeze, drinks with little umbrellas, and nothing to do but lie around on a towel and bake. They want to see and be scantily clad, coated … Continue reading Paradise
When a young person is the victim of a crime or dies of cancer, we always ask the universe, “Why them? They had so much to offer the world!” When an old person approaches death, they inevitably ask, “Is that all there is? I wanted to do more with my time, to be rich and … Continue reading The Meaning of (a) Life
I am a failed writer. What, exactly, does that mean? On one of my writer’s lists, a young author stated to the group that he was on the cusp of publishing but was getting cold feet because he was afraid no one would read his work. He was afraid of being a ‘failed’ writer. This … Continue reading Failure
Since I was old enough to hold a pencil, I have been drawing. In my early teens, my parents gave me art lessons that I will treasure always, because my teacher taught me to SEE. I have applied those lessons to everything I touch; even the food I put on a plate is photo-worthy. To … Continue reading An Artistic Life
Part of how the human brain integrates us into our environment is through organization. We have labels for everything, compartments to put things into in order to make sense of the greater world. The end result has its benefits, but there is also a heavy negative price to pay. When everything is disconnected in our … Continue reading Connected
Even in the most exciting, rewarding purposeful life, we all get stuck in the daily grind of living and forget about the magic of being alive. We “outgrow” our child-like sense of wonder and learn to stop being surprised. Amazing things become irritations that distract us from work, our treasured electronic devices, and tasks that … Continue reading Fireflies and Moon Dogs: The Power of Awe
British crime drama is my thing. I adore a good murder mystery. When I’m not writing, that’s what I put on the telly to be my backdrop during the day. But when you watch enough of something, you begin to see patterns in the writing. The veil lifts and it becomes obvious when the writers … Continue reading Communication is Key
A Beautiful Life 