Real Life is Better Than Fiction

Journey My parents instilled a love of camping in me at a young age. That little baby in the stroller, that's me! Journey is a word that can evoke a lot of thoughts and feelings. A journey can be physical, mental, or emotional. Sometimes a journey we take is all about reaching a specific destination, yet other times it's all about the getting there. We all take journeys from time to time. Maybe the word brings to your mind family vacations. My family would often go camping when I was a child. To pass the time the car my brother and I would play a game he made up called "open your mouth and close your eyes and I will give you a big surprise." The rules were pretty much self-explanatory. One time when I opened my mouth and closed my eyes he fed me dirt from the floor of the car. I didn't want to play the game anymore after that! Many times a journey needs planning. I tell my writing students that they should know the beginning and the ending of their

New Anyone who knows me knows I homeschooled my kids from beginning to end. One of the aspects of that I enjoyed most was seeing the light shine on their faces when they learned to read. It's fun to see people's reactions to new things – whether by sight, sound, taste, or feel – especially with children. Watching a child as he or she puts letters together to read a word is an amazing thing. Their eyes light up in recognition and realization. I still have the set of books my mom bought for me when I was leaning to read. (Not sure she really understood what she was starting with that book purchase!) I used those same books with my own children and am keeping them for future generations. I enjoy visiting new places, trying new food, making new friends. Every time we have a new experience, we open the doors of our minds and hearts. When my oldest daughter had the opportunity to go to Europe and see new things, she came home with a couple thousand pictures and a whol

Gratitude Gratitude is something we are not exactly full of these days. We would much rather show ungratefulness with all of our petty complaints. And what do we complain about? Big things? Sometimes. But more often than not we gripe about such minor issues like the temperature being too hot or too cold. Have you ever known someone who complained about everything? Did/do you like to be around that person? The complaining person can be almost toxic. They bring us down and make us want to complain more. There was one time I was going through the checkout at the store. The cashier complained about the company that employed her the entire time. Apparently she needed to be out of her apartment that day and wasn't allowed to take the day off. My cynical mind didn't want to hear her griping. I'm sure she had more than a couple hours' notice to vacate her apartment. As usual, my mouth was at work before my brain. "You should be glad you have a job."

Joy Someone recently told me she wasn't experiencing any joy in her life. Each day she would go through the motions of simply surviving. There was nothing to look forward to. She didn't feel as if she had many friends with whom she could get together and make plans. While her feelings may have been true, the reality of the matter is that sometimes we need to make an effort. Yes, we need to work. Yes, we must pay the bills. But we also must make time for the things that bring us joy. My sisters and I dressed up in some CW finery. One of the things my family did for fun when I was growing up was Civil War skirmishing. That is something that is similar to reenacting, only the different regiments shoot at targets for competition instead of at each other. My parents started doing this when I was only five months old. They continued doing it after I got married. We camped with the same people many weekends from spring to fall. We made lifelong friends, some I'm