Why VOTE?

I hear the grumbling, the complaining, the hopelessness that the 2016 Presidential campaign has created and I agree. More than the usual complaints of why one candidate is better than the other; those are to be expected, this election season has brought about the worst in most of us and this is fueled directly by those we have to choose from in this election. It is a sad commentary on our country and our people. Still, we must vote because it is our right, our privilege, and our duty as Americans. Our voices are important as individuals and members of a free society and have an impact in ways that we don't readily see.

Beyond these patriotic and logical reasons though, for some of us there are even more important reasons than those. God encourages us to be a part of the society we belong to.

"Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. ..." Romans 13:1-14 English Standard Version

Deuteronomy 1:13 English Standard Version "Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads"

"He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding" Daniel 2:21 ESV

Get out and vote today y'all, because for now, we can.

Peace , TheWritingMommy

Sometimes, you gotta just stand...

Ephesians 6:13 English Standard Version

"Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm."

Sometimes standing is the hardest part, especially when you want to explain, fight, shout, and all the rest. But it comes down to this; if you didn't start it, you didn't want it, and nothing that you have done or said has made a difference, then consider that "the battle is The Lord's" and let it go. It may hurt, but how does holding on to that anger, pain, resentment, and all the rest that goes with it feel? 

 

Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

 

 

(I couldn't lean on my own understanding even if I wanted to because there are things in this life and this world that I can't make sense of anymore so I'm preaching to myself today.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 But, because all things are lessons if we allow them to be, i know that someone out there might be going through something today and need to see this as well.

 

Keep standing friends. Peace, TheWritingMommy

Check out my books on Amazon.com for temporary price reductions...

Hey Y'all,
This is the link to my books on Amazon.com. If you have read any of them I would love for you to submit a review. I would greatly appreciate it.

On August 19, Legacy of Love, a personal memoir of my mother's last year as she battled with cancer and anecdotes from myself and her other daughters, will have a price reduction for 5 days.

And beginning tomorrow, August 13, 2016, the Kindle Edition of One Perfect Now, a story of a woman losing her mom but finding her faith and herself, will be free for download Saturday and Sunday.
                         

                        "One Perfect Now is the story of Sandy Weston’s journey through incredible love and unbearable loss. She embarks on a journey she never wanted to take and along her journey she finds the identity she thought she lost, the strength she hadn’t realized she had, and the courage to walk into the future she always wanted"

Again, any reviews would be appreciated. Even if you don't love it, your opinion matters a great deal, especially as I am about to take my Aunt Millie Goodman's advice and begin a sequel to One Perfect Now, focusing on Sandy's brother and their relationship.


As always, peace to you all. 

Andora , TheWritingMommy

Rest In Peace My Sweet Friend

Puppers Henson. Sweet friend and lazy dog. :)

Puppers became a part of our family in June of 2003. He was so tiny he could barely reach the next step as he tried to climb onto our porch. He showed up covered in Sarcoptic Mange, malnourished, and had clearly been abused judging by his frightened and skittish demeanor.

I had recently been told by my sweet husband, "no more strays!", as we had only just moved in and I'd already taken in a few cats and another dog. I called him right away and explained that it would cost $20 to take this puppy to the pound and $20 for the medicine he needed to get better. I didn't want the responsibility of that decision so I left it to him and he quickly replied that I'd already made my mind up what I wanted to do so just go ahead and buy the medicine.

It took 8 weeks of daily treatment for the mange to begin to heal. I covered him in the foul smelling medicine every morning and left him in the kennel with food and water. I talked to him  when I went outside and sat by his kennel often just to remind him that he wasn't alone. He didn't whine or make much noise at all. I think he was just glad to have a place to rest and heal.


Eventually he was a cute fat little fuzz ball and he began to trust me. He still wouldn't come inside our home for many years and it took about that long for him to trust my husband. Loud noises frightened him and since we live in the country there were hunters and fireworks and coyotes and all manner of noisy things. The poor little thing was so nervous sometimes that I wondered if he would ever feel safe. After a while he began to trust us all though and He became our friend and a member of our family.

 His loyalty to me specifically began when I treated his mange I think, and grew over the years as he found many opportunities to need me. When he was well enough to leave the kennel he lived in our front yard. It was fenced and big enough for a dog his size to live in and get plenty of exercise. I felt it was completely safe for him and had no worries. One morning however, at about 7am I heard a terrible sound. The crying and moaning was awful and I couldn't get outside fast enough. I could see him standing in the middle of the yard but didn't see a problem right away until he shook his head and let out a mournful howl that broke my heart. This identified the source of his discomfort; he had somehow gotten a chain link stuck in his eyelid! This was a heavy duty chain used for securing cars to a tow line and weighed about two or three pounds. I don't know how he found it to this day as there were no chains in the front yard, nor did I ever figure out how he got it through the top of his eyelid but there it was nonetheless. I coaxed him over and calmed him as best I could in order to assess the situation. I had no choice but to try and get the thing out as quickly as possible. The link had remained open enough that I could pull it out if he would let me. I prayed for him as I began and he let me finish. I doctored the wound and let him love on me all he wanted even though I can't stand being licked. Once again, I had proven myself to him and he never forgot that.
He would get into similar harrowing situations several times over the next few years and thankfully God was gracious and allowed me to arrive and help him just in time.

 Puppers hated riding in the car and we didn't force the issue often, but when we had to for vet visits we often followed up with treats. He loved vanilla ice cream. I know, I know.... ice cream is people food and dogs have specific nutrition needs. I've been schooled by friends already but I gotta say, a little vanilla ice cream never hurt anyone and sometimes it makes a scary drive or visit to the doctor's office a little more bearable; at least Puppers and I thought so.

Even as a puppy, he was calm around me. He just knew somehow that I needed peace and he was such a peaceful influence. He would come into my office and sit with me while I wrote, usually with Gladys, the huge stuffed gorilla pictured here. Before I moved into the bigger space, he would come and lie under my desk at my feet. He was always gentle with me, but for a while he was a brute with other dogs. He would pick fights with dogs bigger and meaner than he, which was really surprising because he was always so gentle with people. He stopped when he was attacked, in our front yard, by two stray Pit Bulls. They almost killed him, ripping an ear nearly off. The vet was shocked when the ear healed and he hadn't lost it. He said Puppers must be a real scrapper. He was a survivor for so many years that I think he was ready for this transition from life on earth to life in heaven. He was diagnosed with heart worms and had arthritis so the heat in the summer and the cold in the winter worked against him for the past couple of years.

I'm not a "dog person". It's not that I have anything against animals, I just have a "take 'em or leave 'em" feel about animals in general. I respect that God made them and like us, they serve a purpose but Puppers was different somehow and he found his way into my heart. He was more than a dog to me; he was my friend and I will miss him.  Rest in peace Puppers. 

Times, They are a Changing

So, clearly I have lost the "30 Day Writing Challenge". No excuses. We make time for what is important and there are family issues that far outweighed my need to write.

Still, if I worked for a traditional employer I would likely not haven taken off whole days for the circumstances so I am making changes that will clearly mark my writing time and business. Not an easy thing for a "work from home" professional. Especially when that professional is a woman, and a mom. Not that men who work from home don't face the same dilemmas of time management, but it seems most women feel more of a pull to make sure the house and the children are in order. Maybe it is just me though; I have been told I'm a bit of an odd duck. 



Now that my children are, for the most part grown, I feel that the season of "mommy hood" is coming to a close and I can focus more on my career and the parts of me that I put on hold in order to nurture and raise up my children. That was a choice I willingly made with my husband for our family a long time ago, but much has changed and I'm ready, even excited to raise the level of priority that I give to my writing passion and business.



Do you have any suggestions? What has worked for you? Please share all tips, tricks, and ideas that may be helpful to me or any other reader. We would all appreciate it. Thanks y'all. 

Peace from TheWritingMommy

Hard Times...

Sometimes we go through things, hard, nearly unbearable things and we don’t know why. We may never know why. This is when faith is most important. This is when you have to choose, on purpose what you will believe without physical proof, what you will declare regardless of circumstances, and what you will hold onto even when your strength is gone.

Right now, some of you may be going though something really hard too. I want to encourage you with a phrase that keeps me going in times like this….

“This too shall pass.”

It isn’t in the bible and it isn’t attributed to anyone in particular but it has reminded me often that hard times come and go and it troubles come to the just and the unjust alike. While god is just, life isn’t fair and that remains truer than ever. I count on God’s grace always, but especially in these times.

What do I do during the hard times? Well, The Bible says “be still and know I am God.” Psalm 46:10. It further says that we should resist the enemy and when we have done all we can we should continue to stand firm. But guess what? Standing, just simply being still is so terribly hard for us humans. We want to say something, do something, make a plan, get busy…. And on and on. But that rarely works. And it wears us out quickly and then we are more vulnerable and less able to even resist and stand.

So, here I am, writing because that is how I process things. I’m horribly distracted by the circumstances that I simply cannot control and I really don’t like it but since I have “done all” that I can do, I will stand in faith in my God and Father who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all I can think or imagine.

Peace to you all friends.

TheWritingMommy

PS:

Here are some verses to give you help and hope if you too are going through something hard right now.

Psalm 120:1 ~ In my distress I call on The Lord and He answers me.

Psalm 118:14-16

Psalm 16:8

Proverbs 18:10

Isaiah 41:10

John 14:27

John 16:33

In Memory of All Who Lost Their Live and the Families Who Lost Their Loves - A Poem

I know that Memorial Day is for remembering those who perished in their service to our country, but I submit that there are many who came home and walk among us who have lost their lives in a different way. I wrote this several years ago after one such casualty returned from the sand.  

I pray for the families in both scenarios and thank all veterans and their families for their service.  God Bless America

Lost in The Sand

We were so happy when he came home safe and sound

Not a scar or a scratch could be seen

But we found later that they were there, just out of sight

And while his body came home, his spirit was lost

Missing In Action, a Prisoner of War

 When we drive past innocuous buildings in the city now, he shows us which ones would be good sniper posts

He gives us unrequested tips on where we could hide if we were to suddenly be under fire

And he drinks beer from the time he wakes up till he lays his head down at night

Never water, it could be poisoned

And never from a container opened by someone else

He doesn’t trust anyone.

His daughter didn’t want to see the differences in him

But his wife couldn’t help it

Especially after he woke her one night by punching her in the face

He hadn’t meant to hurt her of course

He was dreaming and the enemy haunted his dreams

Then she became the enemy in his waking hours too

Requiring more of him than he could give by simply needing him to come home

All the way home

And leave the sand behind

He never could though

So he left her too

He carries his wounds deep inside,

So far no one can see,

Unless they loved him before he went to war

Then they know

And they wait for him to return, all the way, from the sand.

For America, Whom I Love

The objectives for Homeland Security are to prevent terrorist attacks within The United States, reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do occur. I propose that the simplest and most effective way to achieve these objectives is to utilize America’s greatest resource; her people. 

How will engaging the American people achieve these objectives? I believe that when our citizenry are reminded of the great liberties that we have, our great history and amazing possibilities, that we as a united people will begin to care more and work harder for the freedoms we have all taken for granted at one time or another. We will begin to know our neighbors and take note of those who have destructive tendencies toward this land. Engaging the peoples of The United States of America will help Homeland Defense in many ways because when we work for a common goal, we are unstoppable as a people. However, history has shown, we will only work in unison when working for something we love, or at the very least respect. When we are reminded or begin to remember once again the great men and women of our history who said and believed things like; "The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors: they purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence.” (Samuel Adams), then we will inevitably become more and better informed and make more reliable political, ethical, educational, and societal decisions.  History has shown that when Americans are united in cause, we are a force to be reckoned with. Uniting the citizens in this great land of ours for the common good of country and countrymen, in my opinion, will be the single most effective way to reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism from within and without, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do occur. 

In order for the American people to become engaged once again in their patriotic duties as citizens, we have to be reminded, and in some cases informed, of what has made this country great. Generations past, before political correctness became the norm and changed our history books, knew these truths: America was built by citizens just like us who were both good and bad, who gave and shared and gave some more. Her citizens were faithful to God and country and family and gave their all to make each one the best it could be. Our forefathers made mistakes no doubt, we all have and will continue to in some ways as long as we are human beings, but when we work together and with one goal, we become great. 

The media has become god-like in this land, and this in many ways is to the detriment of our country. However, we can utilize this giant for the good of our nation. Publicity has made the basest of humanity into icons, and I propose that we use this now to gain back the hearts and minds of our people. Through the use of this image maker, media, we can remind our citizenry of the great men who came before us like; 

JFK who said, "Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation.", and "And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”

 

and Thomas Jefferson who said, “The cement of this union is the heart-blood of every American.” 

and Dwight Eisenhower who said, "Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men and so it must be daily earned and refreshed - else like a flower cut from its life-giving roots, it will wither and die."

 

By introducing “commercials” or public service announcements that are entertaining but with patriotic messages and historical truths, the younger people would undoubtedly be introduced to patriotism in a new way. Add some animated programming and you can reach a whole new group of young people.  Introduce a prime time version of the same and you have an even larger and more impactful demographic. And I’m not talking politics here, I’m talking patriotism: love of country and our responsibilities to her. Somewhere along the line someone fed our people a lie that said in order to acknowledge and celebrate all the cultures that made up the American citizenry, we had to distill our American culture or forget it all together. If we but remind people, gently at first, that America is the “great melting pot” of old where immigrants have been welcomed to come and live and work legally to escape the hardships of their former countries, then perhaps they will realize that even with her blemishes, America once was great, is great, and can be greater still. 

The great minds that now work to slant the news to one opinion or the other, and who write the eloquent speeches and create the scenarios and sound bytes that we see on television could use their talents to make movies that would stir this nation to greatness. (This could even be a form of revenue for the government that might take a bite out of the ever growing national deficit.)

Many are those among us who want their information spoon fed them. Feed them well I say! Feed them on the milk and fruit of patriotism. Show them however they will see that it takes all of us, caring, working together, towards a common goal of one country united for the good of all to uphold the constitution, to keep our flag waving and our land free. Yes, there will be those who disagree, there will be those who will turn a blind eye or will miss out in protest. Sadly, there always will be. Still, you cannot reap a harvest if you never sow a seed. Let the seeds of patriotism be planted in the hearts and minds of America’s people and see the harvest she brings. This land is fertile for growing life, liberty, and strong men and women. It isn’t strong opinions that have divided us; it is skewed information and rewritten histories. Let the truth be told and learned from. People can be moved to greatness when greatness is expected of them.  For too long entitlement manipulation and low expectations have been the rule rather than the exception. If you remind the people the greatness they are born from and for, they will rise up and we will be greater than ever before in new ways. 

Along with the air waves, the written media can be utilized. The major dailies of our great cities reach millions every week. Reminding the thinkers, the readers, those who pride themselves on “keeping up with the times” that no matter your political affiliation you can be a patriot will at the very least begin a dialogue around something more worthy than what the gossip columnists are saying, or about what the first lady is wearing. Let us print the real heart warming and profound stories of what our amazing citizens are doing here in America. Let the people be reminded not only of what made America great, but of what keeps her that way and what can make her better still. 

In that great American Ronald Reagan’s farewell address he said "And let me offer lesson No. 1 about America: All great change in America begins at the dinner table. So, tomorrow night in the kitchen I hope the talking begins. And children, if your parents haven't been teaching you what it means to be an American, let 'em know and nail 'em on it. That would be a very American thing to do." I believe he said this because America historically isn’t afraid of learning. Yes, we have had some hard lessons to learn and we have made some poor decisions along the way, but we cannot change history so we’d best learn from it. The only way to learn from the past is to look it in the face and stare it down, learning all it has to teach then telling it to get behind us so we can move ahead to a better way and a better day. John Quincy Adams said this best when he said “Posterity: you will never know how much it has cost my generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make good use of it.” We must as a nation be reminded once again what price each generation has paid to preserve our freedom so that we can begin to make better use of it. 

Using what we know works, media, to change minds and hearts will be the simplest and most effective tool. Instead of taking years in committees to decide and agree upon some new and expensive way to keep us safe and free, why not use what has worked best for so long; Americans. 

Thank you for your time and consideration in reading the ideas of one American who loves her country and wants more than anything to see her remain strong and free. God bless America.

Written 11/29/2010 for a writing contest. Shared today, 5/29/2016 in the spirit of God Bless America and Memorial Day.