Evidently I'm prone to pneumonia. So I, along with my 80-year old relatives, will be lining up to get a pneumonia vaccination as soon as I'm well.
I had pneumonia back in 2016. I've written on this blog about how it was during that time that I began sending out queries for Sweet Divinity after a hiatus. Pneumonia is a very literary disease, and by that I mean that it seems to be the ailment of choice in a lot of classic literature, and also, that one can get a lot of literary work done whilst recovering from it.
I tend to pretend I'm not sick and keep living life at a ridiculously rapid pace. And then in comes pneumonia, knocking me on my rear end and reminding me that I should actually listen to my body.
And so I've spent the better part of three days quarantined in an upstairs room, occupying myself with Outlander, Black Panther, The Man in the High Castle, and Trevor Noah stand up. But I've also been writing.
I've been trying for months to pound out the opening of the sequel to Sweet Divinity. I've written some funny stuff, but nothing that is just right. I love the opening of Sweet Divinity. Its sequel deserves something just as grand.
And then this morning, snuggled under my blankets, eating crackers (which is basically all I've eaten in the past forty-eight hours), it happened. I opened a document, titled it "Aunt Annie Mae", and went to town.
But I'm not thanking pneumonia. It's a horrible illness that really wrecks lives, but I am thanking the cosmos for the swift kick in the pants, and thanking my amazing doctor who's given me some good stuff. I'll happily crawl back beneath my covers now and rest a bit. Until the next bout of inspiration hits.
I advise you to take some quiet time for yourself...no...I advise you to choose some quiet time for yourself. Only then can we hear our inner genius.
Wednesday, November 28, 2018
Thursday, November 22, 2018
Thankful
I have a lot to be thankful for, and I am aware that there are so many people who struggle on this day to find gratitude in lives that are lived with so much struggle. So before I begin this list of things for which I am thankful, I send out a prayer of gratitude and a prayer of supplication for those who struggle to find the places of gratitude in their lives. I wish that they would, in the coming year, experience the love and acknowledgement of dignity that we, as humans, have the ability to gift one another. I will strive to do my part.
A few things I'm grateful for this Thanksgiving:
1. My children. Even at six o'clock in the morning on a Saturday when I hear, "Mommy...Mommy...Mommy...Mommy" in monotone.
2. My husband. Who lives with a writer. Enough said.
3. Books. I just finished Warlight, by Michael Ondaatje, a fantastic read. I was swept back in time by this convoluted tale. I could feel the smoke closing in around me.
4. Words. I'm currently reading Born a Crime, by Trevor Noah. Words matter.
5. Food. I know that I am blessed to have more than enough to eat, but I'd be lying if I weren't especially thankful today for cranberry sauce and sweet potato casserole (with brown sugar pecans, no marshmallows).
5. Family. We don't agree on everything, but we agree to love.
6. Friends. Man, a tribe is so necessary.
7. Beauty. It's everywhere, but I find it so particularly in nature. I love to be in nature, first thing in the morning, when the creatures haven't yet been disrupted by our human antics.
8. Mary Oliver.
9. Beds. My favorite moment of the day is getting in bed. Under the covers. Snuggled with a book.
10. Lemurs. They're adorable. Weirdly adorable.
11. Central heating and air. And blankets.
12. Faith. Believing in more than myself keeps me centered.
13. Bubbles.
14. Puzzles. They focus my mind when it tries to pull me astray.
15. Art. Because expression is of utmost importance.
16. Chocolate. My body may not tolerate you, but my taste buds are grateful.
17. Stars. They keep my self-importance in check.
18. Seashells. Natural art.
19. My abilities. I must write, and I'm so thankful that I can.
20. Support. If you're reading this, thank you.
There's much more, but I'll stop, for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is on the horizon. I wish you and yours a happy Thanksgiving. May you eat, drink, and be merry.
A few things I'm grateful for this Thanksgiving:
1. My children. Even at six o'clock in the morning on a Saturday when I hear, "Mommy...Mommy...Mommy...Mommy" in monotone.
2. My husband. Who lives with a writer. Enough said.
3. Books. I just finished Warlight, by Michael Ondaatje, a fantastic read. I was swept back in time by this convoluted tale. I could feel the smoke closing in around me.
4. Words. I'm currently reading Born a Crime, by Trevor Noah. Words matter.
5. Food. I know that I am blessed to have more than enough to eat, but I'd be lying if I weren't especially thankful today for cranberry sauce and sweet potato casserole (with brown sugar pecans, no marshmallows).
5. Family. We don't agree on everything, but we agree to love.
6. Friends. Man, a tribe is so necessary.
7. Beauty. It's everywhere, but I find it so particularly in nature. I love to be in nature, first thing in the morning, when the creatures haven't yet been disrupted by our human antics.
8. Mary Oliver.
9. Beds. My favorite moment of the day is getting in bed. Under the covers. Snuggled with a book.
10. Lemurs. They're adorable. Weirdly adorable.
11. Central heating and air. And blankets.
12. Faith. Believing in more than myself keeps me centered.
13. Bubbles.
14. Puzzles. They focus my mind when it tries to pull me astray.
15. Art. Because expression is of utmost importance.
16. Chocolate. My body may not tolerate you, but my taste buds are grateful.
17. Stars. They keep my self-importance in check.
18. Seashells. Natural art.
19. My abilities. I must write, and I'm so thankful that I can.
20. Support. If you're reading this, thank you.
There's much more, but I'll stop, for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is on the horizon. I wish you and yours a happy Thanksgiving. May you eat, drink, and be merry.
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