Guest Blogger Hospice Nurse Sharon Ziff writes: We acknowledge that aging, slowing down, and death are normal stages of life. We exercise, eat healthy, think positively, and bring love and playfulness into our lives. Still, eventually, death will walk in. What if we make friends with death? Can understanding the last chapters of your life move you toward acceptance and peace? Acceptance and peace can be a gift you can give yourself and your loved ones. Sharon’s Story:I remember Mama. I wore a hat with a bee pin that was my Mother’s. I gave it to her for her birthday thirty years ago. Maybe for her 75th? I don’t remember the year. But I remember the joy of purchasing it and her face when I gave it to her. I can see it on her blouse. I think of Mother often. Every time I wear my hat with her bee pin….
Tag: Writing freely. Just write. Writing Prompts. The Write Spot Blog.
Know When to Quit
I’m a fan of Brevity Blog. Here’s a favorite: “Quitting Time: Why You Need to Let Go of That Writing Project” by Allison K. Williams. “As writers, we’re sold on the value of perseverance. Just do another draft. Just keep working. Send another query, another submission. One day you’ll break through. Sit down and finish. Now. Today. This week. In fifteen-minute increments while waiting for carpool, or in one wild coffee-fueled weekend. I think I can, I think I can. I can get to the end of this sentence. This paragraph. This page. This essay. This book. But there’s value in quitting, too. Click “Quitting Time” to read the rest of Allison’s Blog Post.
Willow Springs
Willow Springs publishes two issues per year: Spring and Fall. SUBMISSIONS through Submittable Nonfiction is open year-round. Fiction and poetry between September 1 and May 31. $3 reading fee.
Winter’s Walk
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Winter’s Walk By Cheryl Moore On these dark mornings I feel the fog’s kiss on my cheek As though waking me to a new day; So unlike a much drier place I once lived so many years ago Where dust storms were more likely. I walk to the river where The fragrance of wild fennel fills the air Reminding me of the black liquorish I loved as a child. On the muddy banks wild fowl often appear On their daily hunt, bringing to mind They too fill their senses. We are not so unlike in our goals. When Chery Moore came to California in the early 1960’s, she realized she’d found her home. Then moving to Petaluma in the 70’s, she was as close to paradise as she’d ever be. Travel has taken her…
I Know Now
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. I Know Now By Mary O’Brien I know now not to bet on a sure thing. Christmas caroling with Grandpa and the grandkids at a nursing home the Saturday before The Big Day? Piece of cake…and there would be cake and treats for all participants afterwards. The perfect ending to a memory-making afternoon. This I had promised. I know now that my 86-year-old father, once blessed with a deep, rich and mellow bass voice now sings 1.75 pitches above the tone for which he aims. You know, the melody everyone else is singing a Capella because no musicians showed up. I leaned toward my oblivious and progressively hard of hearing dad, aiming what was left of my contralto towards his left ear. I had lost my voice the day before and at this point all I…
Joy . . . Prompt #820
Write about something you own that brings you joy. Or, write about something you own that does not bring you joy. Why do you keep it? #justwrite #iamwriting #iamawriter
Scent: Powerfully Evocative
Rainy Day Chocolate “The seasonal ingredient that might be the most powerfully evocative is scent. Physiologically speaking, the central location for identifying aromas lives in the front of our brains in the olfactory bulb. This structure is closely tied to the limbic system, a command center for our emotions and long-term memory. That explains why scent is so closely allied with thought.” — Stephen Orr, Editor in Chief of Better Homes & Gardens magazine (December 2023). Choose a prompt related to sensory detail and Just Write! Smell, Taste, Hear, Touch Imagery and Sensory Detail ala Adair Lara Sensory Detail
Winter Sunrises
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Winter Sunrises By Elizabeth Beechwood On the darkest days The glorious sunrise shouts And still we persist! Winter solstice marks the beginning of our journey around The Wheel together. It’s a mysterious dark time here in the Northern Hemisphere, when Nature challenges us to turn inward. Inward to our homes, inward to our bodies, inward to our minds and thoughts. In my part of the Pacific Northwest, winter is marked by long stretches of blustery rain punctuated with cold, clear breaks in the weather. Many people find comfort in starry winter skies, chunky knitted blankets, and twinkling lights. But it’s during these breaks that I find comfort in something different: the winter sunrise. The sunrise is especially glorious on these mornings; the sky is banded with robin’s egg blue, house finch blush, and warbler yellows and…
Courage . . . Prompt #818
Today’s Writing Prompt: Courage Just Write!
Getting Older . . . Prompt #817
Image by Freepik Write about getting older. #justwrite #iamwriting #iamawriter