September Memories

Brilliance and creativity arrive on my screen throughout the month. Some really talented folks creating gorgeous posts and some really smart folks sharing their expertise. Here are a few that lit up my heart this September.

~ Got inspired to transition the house to fall decor after watching these home tours, "Finding Fall Home Tours",  inspired by BHG. Which home is your favorite?
http://jeanneoliverdesigns.com/blog/2015/09/18/finding-fall-home-tour-with-better-homes-and-gardens/

~  Prose that reads as poetry. A beautifully written post honoring September memories.  http://ripplespeak.com/2015/09/september-singing/

~ Thought I was Word Wise, not so much. Confounded hard word usage article that husband and I used to test-ourselves. Yeah. Missed nearly half of these.
http://mentalfloss.com/article/65217/20-word-usage-mistakes-even-smart-people-make

~ Sang loudly in the car, with this song by Jordan Feliz. Favorite verse,"YOU WILL BE CHANGED!"

~ Getting past seasons of chaos; who doesn't need insight on that from time to time. Thoughts shared by Seth Haines.
http://sethhaines.com/recovery-room/4669/

~ Read these words on intercessory prayer;  pondered them for days and imagined God dispatching angels in a collective response of His will and the believer's faith.

Gathering the beautiful, the inspired, the faith filled...punctuates my days with encouragement and blessings. What shined brightly for you in September?

Humbled and Honored ~ Sunshine Blog Award

Coffee cup in hand,
I was perusing my inbox this morning 
and happened upon to this comment 
from a reader of a recent post on my blog:

"Congratulations!
I have nominated you for the Sunshine Blogger Award! 
Please accept this award for the wonderful way your blog has blessed others."

Well how kind is that! 

After some further link hopping I learned from Peggy Hale that the Sunshine Blog Award originated to highlight blogs that:

"positively and creatively inspire others in the blogosphere." 

Such an honor to have my writing and photography included in that category!

I'm delighted that the original photos and thoughts of praise for divine blessings that are posted here at Reflections – Beside Still Waters has touched the heart a reader in a way that prompted her to confer such an honor and to share this recognition with me. 

As a Sunshine Blog Award recipient 

I'm asked to share some random bullet points about myself:

Love cool, moist air; think fall or northwest coast

Trees and water inspire me

Walking is my exercise of choice

Educator by temperament and calling 

Traveled extensively across America 

Extensive Reader {still prefer hard copy book-in-hands}

Prefer green tea, crave oatmeal cookies, love one pot meals

Passionate life long learner

Spiritual, devoted Christian

Painter in training

Weaver of words

~

Read here for thoughts on Hope,

here for Whispers of God's Grace,

or browse the side bar for topics of your choice.

~

I am inspired by and read several fellow bloggers including: 

Patricia Hunter, Shelly Miller, Emily Freeman, Ann Voskamp, Michelle DeRusha, and Sarah Markely.

An Ever Vigilant Ear to One's Writing

Reluctantly I came to the end of reading Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg after months and months of slow perusing through her thoughts on the writing life and guidance for honing the craft. 

An Afterward in the closing pages offered the author’s thoughts, now more than 2 decades after the original publication of her part memoir, part writer’s handbook classic. 

I mentally stumbled over the challenge of hindsight in reviewing the writing of ones young adult soul that has been printed for millions of readers. Ponder the change in a human’s attitudes, tastes, and experience across that time frame and yet millions of readers keep that individual firmly in the mindset of her third decade. Little chance that a ‘do over’ would topple the sheer size of the author’s original impression. 

As for me, my 50 plus years read a 30 plus author knowing full well that she has added two and a half more decades to her life experience and surely has refined her professional and cultural wisdom. Good fortune would have it that Natalie Goldberg’s book was, is, and remains a collection of remarkable personal observations that new generations of writers continue to read even today.

Though there are many highlighted segments in my copy of the book and it remains in my on-going reading stack; a prominent take-away from the reading of this work is not in the text of the writer but in the historical longevity of the book.  

I counsel myself, 

to underline the need for 

an ever vigilant ear to one's writing before releasing it to a reading public. 

A vigilant ear beyond mechanics to the soul of the message.

An ear for the sincerity of my intent. 

An ear for the accuracy of what has been stated. 

An ear for examples that will weather the test of time.

An ear for the confidentiality of institutions and people.

An ear for consequences stemming from what has been written. 

An ear for responsibility extending far into time.

Because, though my writing is not published in the traditional manner for millions of readers; on-line writing releases these words of personal musings to the public, for all time.