Posted on by ChatterLei · 4 Comments

More Time…

Daily writing prompt
What is the greatest gift someone could give you?
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with my Dad. That is not possible, so I just marinate in the memories.

Two years before Dad died, which was last January, he got Covid 19. It robbed him of his ability to smell and taste everything except tomatoes for the rest of his life. He was not in the best of health for the last several years before his passing. Mom was good to care for him for most of those years. He was mostly homebound except for the mornings he would wake up and say he wanted to drive himself and Mom over to McDonald’s for a McGriddle. He could not really taste them, but said they felt good in his mouth. He was always a breakfast guy. I suppose I am like him in that way. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day.

Anyway…

Since Dad was mostly homebound, so was Mom. She did not get to travel like she would have liked. She did not get to eat out or go shopping much. She was home with Dad. That is just how she was and how their marriage worked. He was home, so she was home. Now that Dad is gone, she can explore more opportunities to go places. She says “yes” a lot more now.

In the last year, Mom has eaten out a few more times than ever before. She has gone to lunch with friends. She goes to her sister’s house once a month for a scripture study meeting. She went to San Diego with my sister in the spring. She is in the process of getting her passport and is planning to go on a cruise with us this year. I can hardly wait to experience that with her! As sad as we are about Dad’s passing, we are equally excited to share some of Mom’s “first-time” experiences.

In the meantime, tonight, my husband and I, my sister, her husband, their daughter, and my brother are going to take mom to Longhorn Steakhouse for dinner for her first time. She is going to love the creamy cheesy smothered chicken breast, mashed potatoes and strawberry salad.

I am grateful for the gift we have been given of this time with Mom and opportunities to explore some of the experiences with her that this life has to offer.

Posted on by ChatterLei · 1 Comment

And then this happened…

Feeling very emotional, one day, I wondered if I could release my emotions through a fictional scene created from emotions I was feeling. In my mind, I was screaming right along with her. Here is the result…

“NOOO!!  It was NOT supposed to happen this way!!” Her screams echoed through the trees.

“Nooo! Nooo! Nooo! Please, God, don’t let this happen!” Not even the forest could contain her anguished cries.

The bodies of both men were lifted into the back of the first and second ambulances. The flashing of the lights, the cop cars surrounding the campground, the EMTs trying to calm her and keep her from pulling more locks of hair from her head as she screamed like a mad woman, was all so surreal.

“Who will put the fire out?” She sobbed, barely able to breathe. She jerked away from the medical technician holding her by the arm. Robotically walking in circles around the firepit, her hands over the sides of her cheeks, cupping her face, she thought, “It doesn’t matter now. NOTHING matters!”  

Those dancing flames that once represented happiness and life, will now forever represent the end of dancing. The end of a dream. The end of breath. The beginning of a nightmare. Her nightmare. The one she created….

It is not very long, but it’s a start. And it is fiction. And it worked! The emotions I felt were screamed right out along with her feelings. In my mind, I screamed with her, pulled my hair out with her, jerked away from the technician, sobbed and walked around the firepit aimlessly. It was a very interesting experience/experiment.

The story brings up so many questions and could go any direction. Thoughts?

Posted on by ChatterLei

Fact or Fiction

The discovery tonight that fiction writing is not my inspiration or gift. Rather, non-fiction journaling of thoughts and experiences holds me captive to the words I want to imprint on paper.

Stephen King’s dark, scary novels do not interest me, but his Memoir of the Craft of Writing called On Writing has held me captive for nine hours of listening and learning. He is a master writer and teacher, in my opinion. Are there greater authors? Possibly. The fact Stephen King wants to share his thoughts about what he has learned as an experienced novelist, so that others may glean and benefit from his suggestions and the techniques he uses to craft great stories, all while telling great stories, which help do the teaching, opened my eyes to the fact he is a great human.  A thoughtful person. He is not just some evil horror storyteller. He is much more. He had a childhood. He has a wife and children. He has feelings.  He cares. He loves his family.

I doubt there is a lot of money to be made for simply sharing thoughts about a person I admire or a personal eye-opening experience I had that turned a negative judgement about a person, because of a particular genre of writing, into a positive judgement about the person behind the writing. I don’t know that Stephen King is the type of guy I would want to strike up a friendship with. But, I could listen to him tell stories about his life and teach about writing for hours upon hours.

Not to get overly political, but this question came to mind: Is my realization that Stephen King is not such an awful evil person because he writes beyond scary, horrendously dark fiction similar to the realization that Donald Trump may not be such an awful human being because he made awful choices in his past? Some might think so. I do not compare the two men to each other. They are very different men. The only parallel I want to draw is that some people believe Stephen King is good for the writing world, just like some believe Donald Trump is good for the political world.  

The pressure is off. Becoming a fiction novelist is not in my future, more than likely. (Did you see me leave the door open to the possibility, still?) However, blogging is in my present. Blogging is a place I can share my thoughts and experiences. My written musings may connect with my fellow bloggers from time to time, just like theirs connect with me. That is what brings me joy and that is what inspires me.

Who knows? Maybe the more I blog the more I will realize there is a fiction story in me that is waiting to get out…. Someday.

Posted on by ChatterLei

An Unexpected Joy

Reading for fun is one of those guilty pleasures I do not allow myself time for very often. It seems that my mind has this crazy belief that if there is time to sit around and read, then the reading should be for learning or increasing knowledge about a subject of great interest, not just some waste of time reading fiction. My interests are (in no particular order) politics, news, religion, photography, writing, the outdoors, traveling, family history/life stories, watercolor painting, just to name a few.

Recently, in one of the writing groups I joined on Facebook, someone asked a question about what books are out there that would help increase her knowledge about writing. She is a beginner and would like any information people in the group would be willing to share. One of the suggestions, by several people in the group, was a book called “On Writing” by Stephen King.

Stephen King’s books or movies would not be my first choice, or last, or anything in between. Horror stories are not my thing. Although, I did watch the movie, “The Shining” with a group of friends when I was seventeen. Peer pressure was alive and well that night. Anyway, this is a book about writing, so I was intrigued. I found the audiobook version read by Mr. King in my Libby App and decided I would give it a listen. The description of the book said it is “Part memoir, part master class….” Wow! So true. It is clear why he is a successful writer. One of the very best.

Did you know Stephen King was a teacher? And, that he is from Maine? Did you know he had a brother? What do you know about his wife and children? He is a brilliant storyteller, author and teacher. He talks like a filthy sailor, but if you can get past that, it is worth the time to read or listen to the audio version. I did not expect to enjoy the audio version as much as I did. It was fun, as well as educational. Even his voice is interesting. Two thumbs up for sure! (Three, if you have an extra thumb!)

(Please excuse any annoyingly irritating adverbs or any possibly passive verbs I may have inadvertently used in the writing of this blog post!) Read the book or listen to the audio version. Inspirational stories and great writing advice!

Posted on by ChatterLei · 2 Comments

Benefits of Writing Your Life Story

Writing your life story can be a therapeutic tool that can help you gain insight into your past and present self, understand how your experiences have influenced the path you chose in life, and become aware of ambitions or dreams that you have not yet realized. It can also help you overcome unresolved trauma by documenting your journey through life and remembering the challenges and triumphs you faced.

Capturing a life story is more than just an exercise in storytelling. It’s a chance to pass along wisdom and life lessons, exercise your memory, organize your photos and music, and discover if any events from your past are still impacting your life. It gives you an opportunity for self-growth, reflection, and awareness. It’s a chance to strengthen family bonds, friendships, and intimate relationships. You can capture your health history and even draft an ethical will to share your values, blessings, life’s lessons, hopes and dreams for the future, love, and forgiveness with your family, friends, and community. It has been interesting and educational to read my Great Grandma’s life history. One of her life’s lessons that she shares by example is that it is ok to be kind to those who do not deserve your kindness. Even ex-husbands.

In addition to the mental health benefits, writing your life story can also have physical health benefits. A study published in the March 2018 JAMA Psychiatry found that writing about a specific upsetting memory was just as effective as traditional cognitive processing therapy in treating adults with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Writing your life story can be a powerful tool for personal growth, self-reflection, and healing. It can help you gain insight into your past and present self, overcome unresolved trauma, and pass along wisdom and life lessons to future generations. So, why not start writing your life story today?

Follow these suggestions here to write it in one hour.