I love spring! Her vibrant colors cast against the blue sky (yes, even here in Oregon) and the warmth of the sun are energizing. The sounds of birdsong filling the air lift the spirit. The scent of flowers as they waft through the air is satisfying. The world around me feels fresh and new!
And then there’s Daylight Savings Time. You can either love it or hate it or, according to my daughter-in-law, you can take a neutral stance. I’m still pushing my way through the fog left from setting the clocks forward.
Don’t forget the pollen we’re blessed with this time of year. Allergy sufferers around here have been complaining for weeks. At our house, that means two of us going through Kleenex at a rapid pace. And all the while, wishing it would go away at a rapid pace.
thunderous examples. I place my feet
with care in such a world.
For a biography of William E. Stafford, please visit Poetry Foundation. “The Well Rising” copyright 1960, 1998 the Estate of William Stafford. Reprinted from The Way It Is with the permission of Graywolf Press.
Source:The Darkness Round Us Is Deep (HarperPerennial, 1993)
Just when you think the seasons have begun to change, you’re pulled up short by the weather forecast. You see we thought winter might not hit our area too hard this year. Temperatures were unusually warm for several days. Flowers are blooming early. Birds are singing and nest building. Sounds like spring, doesn’t it?
In fact, our white hellebores have been blooming for almost two months now. They are hardy plants and don’t seem to fear the weather. Continue reading →
Most of us enjoy surprises. Some of us don’t. When Bob and I married, we vowed not to surprise the other at work on birthdays and anniversaries. I should have thought about Valentine’s Day.
One year Bob sent me a singing telegram on Valentine’s Day. It came straight to my desk at work. Sung by a Barbershop quartet made up of members from the chorus Bob sang with, I blushed as the center of attention.
Spring is full of surprises. One has appeared in the one sunny spot in our front yard. I noticed it a few days ago and mentioned to Bob the leaves unfurling on tiny green stems looked like cosmos. Bob knows I love cosmos.
After several such comments, Bob looked at me and said, “Surprise! I planted some cosmos seeds.” What a delightful surprise and beautiful thought my gardening husband shared with me.
Nothing raises one’s spirits more than signs of spring. Blue skies, sunlight, colorful trees and flowers. Even a quick spring shower. These conditions are especially effective in healing the spirits of someone who has been more or less confined for the month of March.
But time wasn’t wasted. Some things are done effectively from the recliner with a laptop at hand. Most of the time, however, I slept and read, and took more pain meds and slept some more, and read. When I had my wits about me, I was spring cleaning the computer and my website.
Not all is back in order as you’ll notice on the site. I’m working with the theme designer to work out the kinks and hope to have everything running in tip-top shape soon. Or at least as soon as my pain management doctor says I’m good to go off the current regimen.
I’m so glad to be back among you, my writing friends, and hope to have plenty of reading material for you soon.
Tomorrow look for my review of Pamela Jane’s memoir, An Incredible Talent for Existing. Pamela is likely well-known to many of you as a regular on Women’s Memoirs.
Today’s post is part of a book launch which is near and dear to my heart. Women’s Memoirs hosted seasonal writing contests–Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter–and the winners of these contests are celebrated in the launch of four volumes featuring each Season. It is an honor to be included as a winner in both the Autumn and Winter volumes. I hope you will share this news with writers and readers alike. We believe we have something very special to offer.
Please join me as I celebrate with Women’s Memoirs and the other winners of the various writing contests the launch of four ebooks filled with the best, the most inspiring of hundreds of entries. Knowledge Access Books is the publisher.
Read a review that has already come in:
It is true that each woman is a story waiting to be told–and in this outstanding collection of memoirs you’ll find many wonderful women’s stories. It is also true that each woman’s story is every woman’s story, for we share so many of the same experiences. As I read these stories [in Seasons of Our Lives], I am reading bits and pieces from my own life, and I am inspired to write my own with a more passionate and compassionate heart. I hope you are, too” ~ Susan Wittig Albert, NYT bestselling author of China Bayles mysteries, Writing from Life, Together, Alone: Memoir, and other books
Will you help congratulate these talented women by getting the word out about their stories and the special Amazon savings available for a limited time (see below)? We think the readers of your website or blog will find these 100 stories inspiring and we hope you will consider mentioning their publication on February 1st. Why that date?
For 53 hours, beginning February 1 at 8 am PST, all four volumes will be available for just $.99 each through Amazon’s Kindle Store–that’s 76% off. The price will increase by $1 each 53 hours until it reaches the regular price of $3.99 each.
Memories, Memoirs. Stories of our lives. Matilda Butler and Kendra Bonnett, award-winning authors themselves and co-founders of Women’s Memoirs, invited women to submit personal vignettes about the seasons of their lives. Sweet stories. Sad stories. Joyful stories. Poignant stories. The small stories that make up our days, our lives. Hundreds of stories were read and evaluated. The best of these, the award-winning stories, are included in the four volumes of Seasons of Our Lives: Summer, Autumn, Winter and Spring (see links below to these four volumes).
BONUS: Each real life story concludes with a takeaway from the editors–takeaways that will help readers reflect on the seasons of their own lives. And if your readers are interested in creating a legacy of their family or personal stories, these takeaways are designed to help write more dynamically and powerfully so that they can proudly share their own life seasons with family, friends and even more widely.
Thanks for reading and spreading
the word any way you can,
