Family, Fireworks, Freedom

Did you watch fireworks last night on the Fourth of July? Did you get to hear the oohs and aahs of family and friends while the sky was lighting up with color and noise? Or maybe you had a little one who was terrified by the sky exploding and hid his or her face against you? 

I missed out on the fireworks last night. My son and his family came by to pick up their dog I'd been keeping for them since they traveled down this way to keep cool after the storm in the east took out their electricity. Then they took a little vacation and Sammy, their dog got to spend a few days here in the country. So last night we had grandkid fireworks here. Well, no fireworks, but family fun.

First Prize in The Gifted Celebration

It's been a busy week with the release of my 
new Shaker book, The Gifted and the deadline to meet for my work in progress. Got the deadline met and now time to celebrate The Gifted. Since it's way too dry down here on the farm to set off fireworks, I'm celebrating by giving some things away. The Shakers talked often about gifts and one of their most familiar songs is "Tis the Gift to be Simple." So what better prize to celebrate Jessamine's story than a Shaker music box playing that song. Just fill out the form on my website contest page or send me an e-mail to enter. Two other prizes too.

I'm also celebrating on the Fresh Fiction page by giving away a journal and a neat pen so that the winner can record her (or maybe his) thoughts and daily happenings the way Sister Sophrena did in The Gifted. I've always loved writing in journals.

I sent out a newsletter about The Gifted and my contest, and I've heard from some of you in return. If you'd like to get my newsletter and don't, just let me know. We can fix that. I love hearing from all of you. 

How did you celebrate the Fourth? Next question, how do you wish you'd celebrated the Fourth? I enjoyed seeing the grandkids. But I think a fantastic way to celebrate the Fourth might be to sit out on a beach somewhere and listen to the waves come in while some industrious city leaders shoot fireworks up over the ocean. I'll just make it even better by renting one of those big beachhouses and inviting the whole family to be sitting there on the beach with me. Think I could take my dog, Oscar too? Since I'm only dreaming, I think I can.  

Try to stay cool and thanks for reading.

Freedom to Write

“Liberty is the possibility of doubting, the possibility of making a mistake, the possibility of searching and experimenting, the possibility of saying No to any authority--literary, artistic, philosophic, religious, social and even political.” Ignazio Silone (Italian Novelist & Journalist, 1900-1978)

Liberty is what we celebrate here in America on the Fourth of July. It's what we've had from the time we were born here on American soil. We look at the flag. We say the pledge. We speak of the men and women who have died to maintain our liberty. America - the land of the free. We embrace freedom with the same ease that we pull air into our lungs. It's there, surrounding us. Freedom is ours. We have the liberty to make our own choices. To mess up. To get up and try again. To succeed. To question. To decide our own futures.  We don't all agree on what freedom means. But here in America, we believe freedom is our right.

Albert Einstein said "Everything that is really great or inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom."

Do you truly believe in freedom? Are you living in freedom or are you in bondage to your own doubts and fears of living free? As a young writer, I had to free myself of the fear of failure. If I wrote it and never sent it out, I would never face failure. Nor would I know success. But I had stories to tell and so I had to find the courage to embrace the freedom to tell those stories. Many years have passed since I licked those first stamps to send out that first bit of writing to try to become a published writer. I've had some successes. And many failures. But I have always been free to choose. Free to give up or to continue on with absolutely no guarantees that any kind of continued success would ever come my way. I always chose that freedom to keep writing. To continue to fill pages with words. Uncensored words. I wasn't guaranteed success or publication, but I was always free to write whatever I wanted. 

Freedom - put that on a writer's list of necessities right up there with perseverance and imagination and courage. Why do I need courage? To face the blank page. To tell another story. To believe in freedom. To believe I have the freedom to follow my dream.

"Freedom is the last, best hope for earth." (Abraham Lincoln)

May you be blessed with much freedom on this Fourth of July weekend. Thanks for reading!