Quotes, She Wrote

In an effort to be a consistent writer, I read a lot. Plus, I love input.

I'm usually reading about 4 or 5 books at any given time.

Subjects vary - a short biography on Mother Teresa, some sort of self-improvement manual, the Message (a modern translation of the Bible), music, horses, cooking, beauty, history.... I actually think it's a bit of a medical issue.

I call it Hyper-Bookism Overload Syndrome. It happens when one walks into a library or bookstore and the heart rate rises, the adrenaline surges, hands often begin to quiver, and the eyes dart from shelf to shelf in sheer panic of not knowing where to begin.

It's fatal.

No cure.

So since I'm going to die anyway, I figure I might as well just keep reading!

And writing.

I keep a little journal of quotes - little tidbits I've gathered as I munch on the many books on my plate. I jot down the ones that really resonate with me, challenge me, cause me to think or ponder, or in some way add value to my existence.

Sometimes I even make up my own along the way.

I like to wedge those in between famous people's quotes on the page. Makes me feel special.

Anyway, today I'd like to share a few of my recent favorites.

SO grab a fork, knife, spoon, napkin or just use your fingers - enjoy!

"Mishaps are like knives, that either serve us or cut us, as we grasp them by the blade or the handle." - James Russell Lowell

"Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." - Samuel Beckett

"Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell 'em, 'Certainly, I can!' Then get busy and find out how to do it." - Theodore Roosevelt

"Restlessness and discontent are the first necessities of progress" - Thomas Edison

"When your values are clear to you, making decisions becomes easier." - Roy Disney

"If we keep doing what we're doing, we're going to keep getting whet we're getting.

- Stephen R. Covey

"Those things that hurt, instruct." - Benjamin Franklin

"When you've dropped the ball, pick it up." - Stacey Dee

And there you have it - quotes, she wrote.

s

www.staceydee.com

Cheers!!! (And I'm not even holding a drink!!!)

I read an article today in a magazine I get from NGJ (No Greater Joy) Ministries. (You can find out more about them by going to www.nogreaterjoy.org if you want.)

The article was about child rearing.

That is a funny word combo isn't it?? I mean especially for me as a horse person. I just get this strange visual of children prancing around on their toes waving their arms up in front of their faces and whinnying wildly. Maybe it's just me.

Anyway... the article basically said that cheerfulness is the most important quality that a parent can have when they are raising children. (More strange visuals with that one.)

Hmmm.

Cheerfulness.

Wow!

I just imagined how different our home would be if we were cheerful in all our dealings with our kids. Not a fake giddiness, but a truly cheerful heart. I can't help but think that the dynamics would really shift.

It's easy to feel justified for getting worked up and putting on our intimidating parental faces and speaking with stern and sometimes demeaning tones. But really, does this produce the qualities in our children that we most want to see?

It often works to get their behavior in line but inside I don't think it produces much thankfulness and love. And as the article suggested, cheerfulness is the byproduct of thankfulness and love.

I don't know about you, but a home full of love, thankfulness and cheerful people sounds a lot better than what we sometimes experience on a daily basis!

I'm gonna try it.

I'm going to try to be cheerful.

I'm going to try to love and to be thankful, grateful.

I'll let you know how it goes.

But for now, "Cheers!" (And I'm not even holding a drink!!)

New Year's Non-Resolution

Well....ok, I know. I haven't written much. So the book is going to short that's all. JK.

I've just been busy and not focused on it and focused on other stuff, and busy.....blah, blah, blah.

So we spent the week between Christmas and New Years in Wilmington, NC with my dad, step-mom, my bro, 3 of my 4 sisters and my brother-in-law. Turns out he's writing a book, too, and could use some accountability as well!

So we decided to help each other and make a plan - not a New Year's resolution. A plan.

We're both going to write something every day and post a new blog at least once a week.

That's the plan.

And now you guys know it, too, and I guess that really puts the clincher on it. Darn. Or, I mean, yeah!!

Well, I thought I'd start with some prose I wrote this summer - seems appropriate.

It's called The Author: (enjoy!)

I think I'm an author

a writer of thoughts

of stories

of imaginations and realities

a thinker who must organize my thoughts

unless they be knocked off their pedestals

by the next ones and forgotten

I'm starting to see that I must become a quick doer

for my thoughts and ideas, if not acted upon quickly

are replaced by new thought and new ideas

and fall to the floor like invalids

and after too long, the floor covered in such

can become quite depressing, even morbid

Life is in a hurry for me

like a busy mom clicking her tongue at her slow moving children

knowing she'll be lucky to get all her errands completed before dinner

she cannot rest

she does not have the luxury of waiting

for her days seem numbered and full

full with amazing adventures yet to be had

but known and designed before she was even born

Yes, I'm an author

an author of life

for an author is a channel

from mind to pen

from pen to paper

from paper to other minds

and from there to countess destinations

and pens

and paper

and minds

springing to action without ever speaking a word