Everything has a beginning, but not everything gets to start again. Today, my mother’s afghan is starting over – making its new beginning. Mom crocheted the afghan years before I was born. She kept it on the back of our living room sofa, always ready for use. There were never any, “Do Not Touch” signs in mom’s house …
I judge my stories as “good” when they have a reader. It moves to “better” when the story affects someone, then all the way to “best” when a reader takes action and creates their own story. My 16 year-old grandson took my 70 year-old experience and moved it into his life. Then he pondered what it meant and how it would shape the stories he would tell his grandchildren …
I wasn’t looking for charity in 1979, but that’s what my friend offered. I had started my own business so my family could enjoy the good life. Sure, I knew it would be hard and that there would be struggles, but I also believed I could make it all workout – in time. Charlotte was different then … getting to know each other was important in those days. So I wasn’t surprised when a stranger walked into my small office …
Kids do stupid things. They’re busy living each moment, never thinking about the future or the consequences of their actions, and how those consequences can last a lifetime. Fortunately for me, a mother’s love overlooks a lot of stupid.
I can still see the surgeon, dressed in his operating scrubs, as he told us about the steps he used to repair our child’s walnut sized heart. Thirteen years later, I asked my son if he would like to have the scar hidden with some type of cosmetic treatment. “No Dad! Chicks dig scars!” was his immediate reply. Thirty years later, I’m still inspired by how wise and enduring those words were. We all have scars. There’s a vast variety of them in our lives. Some are physical and some emotional. They can be self-inflicted, other-inflicted, or purely accidental.
Golf has been good for me. Along with being a relaxing walk in the countryside, this ancient game has given me things I never picked up in school. The most obvious was how there’s only one set of rules, and how the rules apply to everyone. Rich and poor, men and women, left handed and right, everyone plays from the same book. If only that philosophy carried off the green and into the world.
There’s a shameful struggle going on. The struggle is Ageism. On both sides of the equation. Age discrimination will stop happening when we, as a culture, start to understand how wisdom can come at every age.
Yes, there’s a new teacher, and he’s starting class at The Charlotte Center for Literary Arts in just a few weeks. I am honored Charlotte Lit invited me to lead a class. We’ll cover getting permission to write, what to write about, the best way to tell a story, choosing the right audience, judging good writing, and then where to go next.
Pets matter. One in four of us share homes with pets, while millions more dream of an old, or yet to happen, awakening in their lives that comes with loving a companion animal. There is something about the way our pets shower us with unconditional love that makes us want to share their spirit and antics with others. Social media is the best way to spread that love around the world.
Hemingway said, “As you get older it is harder to have heroes, but it is sort of necessary.” Was Hemingway was asking me to redefine my ideas of heroes? Maybe he was reminding me to look beyond the obvious models who get all the attention and find the more supportive “Robins” in the world. These are the heroes who are hidden in the shadows, doing the important work so the stars can shine.