Sharing the Creative Genius

I haven't posted anything in awhile. Leaning into my favorite post-Robbie mantra, "Don't should on yourself," I am simply stating a fact, not beating myself up over that fact.

Life is busy.

Retirement...HA! Those gray dots on the Google calendar? Good thing there is only one per day and not per event. I would need a full room sized screen to hold all of my upcoming dots. All good, by the way, even the (stupid) doctor appointments and the like. Get checked people! Take care of yourself or you cannot take care of others and/or the other fabulous things you want to do with your days. *stepping off soapbox for the moment

Last week, I was lucky/blessed to lead the 2019 RCWP Writing Retreat.

It was the second summer of this retreat, as I became the RCWP Writing Events Coordinator after retiring from teaching June 8, 2018. 😁 Leading events similar to this is one of my main goals now that I am officially no longer teaching. This year...indescribably powerful interactions amongst a group of seven other writers who humbled me with their willingness to share, their ability to capture feelings and moments and moods with the power of their chosen words, and three days that flew too quickly.

I have received permission to share some of their pieces on my blog. I will also be sharing the links to their own blogs, where you can find more of their writings, discover why I fell so hard for their writings, and fall in love on your own.

Please, enjoy. Let the writers know your thoughts and reactions. Every single writer at the retreat expressed their belief that their writing is: bland, boring, unworthy, less than 'fill in the name of the person who shared just before them', etc. This isn't a call for false compliments. It is the nature of the beast that is a writer.

July 2, 2019

Written by: Victoria Simon (Read more of her work here: https://victoria-simon.com/ )
       *Not written during the retreat, but during the next MMWG group. Due to family needs, she was unable to attend this year.


Which one is better, one or two? Two or three?

I try so hard annually to pass this simple test but, somehow, it seems I score a little lower each time.

Which one is clearer, sharper, three or four?

I blink and suddenly each is a bit clearer.

Sometimes, that’s all it takes is a blink, a moment, to help see things more clearly. The difference between success and failure is having a vision, a goal. I have to believe it to see it and see it to achieve it.

There is a cliché, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. However, sometimes, it is too difficult to take even one step. In that case, blink.

Which choice is better, one or two?

Blink. I see more clearly what I need to do.

Blink  - to change my score.

Blink.



June 26, 2019

I am excited to share a short, yet powerful piece written by newly published author, Dennis Hurley. You will fall in love with his descriptive powers, and will not be disappointed when you read his novel.

Written by: Dennis Hurley

 Author of A Sense of Place, available on Amazon.com

Evenings like this draw me back to my childhood. The long, cool shadows slowly pushing aside the sunlight. Standing in the barn door, as swallows dart and swoop and dive and rush in and out of the barn to deliver food to their young. As a child I stood that way night after night on our dairy farm, while my uncle finished the milking. The swallows were magical then, as they were tonight, as I stood once again in a barn door waiting for my horse to finish his grain. There is something reassuring in a continuity like this that has lasted so many decades. It is a touchstone that I return to on summer nights whenever I can, because it lets me escape the craziness and remember that under it all, the natural world still makes sense.

June 25, 2019

For your reading enjoyment, I present two pieces by the lyrically talented, Cathy LaPointe Blundy. You can find more from her at: cathylapointeblundypoet.wordpress.com

Time 6-6-2019

The calendar squares are full,

brightly inked with pertinent details.

Seeing it makes my heart sink,

a sign of panic I fight

so I look away,

preparing for just today.

Time races ahead,

stealing my days one after another

while I continue slowly savoring,

aware that today comes only once

and tomorrow is beyond my reach.

I am the creator of plans and schedules,

my job to organize life so when spontaneity comes knocking,

we can play with abandon,

unworried by mundane things like bills

empty larders and tanks needing gas,

much less the need for cash

in well worn wallets.

Even credits cards reflect an exchange

that requires a plan.

I’ve got that in hand.

My inner child wants to run away,

but Wendy’s soul wisely knew the truth:

part of us is meant to grow up

to balance the other self’s need for play.

Tonight I will dance in the moonlight

before the bonfires flame,

drinking wine to the music of frog song

and batwing as stars drop dew on the grass.

I will rest in the arms of my love

counting the day well done

willing the calendar to sleep til tomorrow

when I’m rested and ready

once more.

So Where Lies the Difference?

Tell me, he said, what is the difference

between soul, heart and mind?

Not a question asked in the usual day to day.

Neither theologian nor philosopher,

I gathered my thoughts, deciding what to say.

Soul is the creator’s spark

shared inside the shell we wear,

sentient and knowing,

recognizing its shared complexity

in the beauty of the world we share,

the world in our care.

Soul is that bit of the universe,

that ember of eternity forever burning bright,

shining in recognition from old to young

within eyes that know before ever being taught.

Souls hold reverence and awe,

chalices for the wellspring of love

we are given to share,

before being aware of meanings and menace,

of viper and apple.

My soul is the essence of my moral compass,

the defining component of my identity,

a child of the almighty I am who am.

Heart holds our emotions,

the best and worst of our feelings side by side.

It is the voice for the soul’s yearnings,

the motivator for the mind to act.

Heart is the bridge between mind and soul,

linking human frailty with divine strength.

Mind is the thinker, the observer,

the great imitator of the creator,

striving to understand the hows and whys,

struggling to provide answers and order to chaos,

to better live our lives in the day to day,

always seeking through the evidence of its confusion.

This is all I believe,

all I know with my heart, mind and soul.

I pray with all that I am and will be

that it is answer enough.