
I’m guest-posting on A Writer’s Path today, sharing my experiences as a novelist.
Come on over for a visit and check it out!

I’m guest-posting on A Writer’s Path today, sharing my experiences as a novelist.
Come on over for a visit and check it out!

“And he glanced at the backs of the books, with an awakened curiosity that went below the binding. No one who can read, ever looks at a book, even unopened on a shelf, like one who cannot.” ― Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend
Photo Prompt: cozy ~ wheresmybackpack.com
Photo originally posted here: Is There Room In Your Book For Me?

“Look at how a single candle can both defy and define the darkness.” ~ Anne Frank

What is Vivian staring at?
What has gotten her so concerned?
***
“The problem with cats is that they get the same exact look whether they see a moth or an ax-murderer.” — Paula Poundstone
“That’s the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.” ― Ray Bradbury
“What greater gift than the love of a cat?” — Charles Dickens


The flower that smiles to-day
To-morrow dies;
All that we wish to stay
Tempts and then flies.
What is this world’s delight?
Lightning that mocks the night,
Brief even as bright.*
*This is the first stanza of The Flower that Smiles Today by Percy Shelley, one of my favourite poems. Read the entire poem and a brief analysis here.
And a favourite quote:
“Man’s life is brief and transitory, Literature endures forever.”
― Rory Stewart, The Places in Between
Flowers of primary colours: travel theme by wheresmybackpack.com
Photos: jenniferkellandperry.com
About this time every winter, I begin to yearn for an injection of more colour in my world. So when I saw that Yellow was this morning’s one-word prompt from The Daily Post, I felt compelled to take part.
The following photos were previously shared on my blog over the years, but I thought it fitting – as well as worthy – to give them a second look.














These last two photos are from my Instagram account:

Last but not least, something to wake up the taste buds:

***
“How wonderful yellow is. It stands for the sun.” ~ Vincent Van Gogh
Are you dreaming of a white Christmas?
Winter came early to our corner of the world, and so far it has packed a heavy punch in most areas. These photos were taken a week ago, after our first significant snowfall. We’ve had more since then.
Inspiration can come to the artist in us in many ways. I hope to expand my own horizons in the coming new year, and I wish the same for you.
Here are a few new horizons from Perry’s Point to inspire creativity through the frosty months ahead.

We live on Snowy Beach Avenue now! 🙂
I must give credit where credit is due: Paul “helped” with these next three. They were taken in the last couple of hours before sunset.



“The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.” ~ Christopher McCandless
WPC: New Horizon
What do you see on your horizon for 2017?
To give us perspective. Of note, Karen’s words from the comment section: “I think when there is a shock, we need time to absorb the news and if we can spend sometime in nature … it does ground us and calm us.”
That often works for me when I need to let go of anxiety.

For a seed to achieve its greatest expression, it must come completely undone. The shell cracks, its insides come out and everything changes. To someone who doesn’t understand growth, it would look like complete destruction. – Cynthia Ocelli
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Recently, I was catching up with someone I hadn’t seen in a while.
At first, the conversation was pleasant, as was my general mood, but as the chatting continued, I realized this person was swimming in barely concealed hostility.
Almost everything that came out of this person’s mouth was either a brag or a humble brag, a passive-aggressive remark, or a backhanded compliment (don’t you just love it when someone insults you like that – and it’s “socially acceptable”?).
But perhaps what rankled most was the obvious avoidance of discussing anything going on in my life. Whether the reason for this was self-absorption, disinterest, jealousy, or whatever, I could only hazard to guess.
So what did I decide to do? Well, I held my tongue and chose to follow the advice from Ms. Angelou as stated above. I decided to look at the experience differently, to frame it in a way that muted the annoyance I felt, and replace it with understanding.
I already know this person has difficulties going on in his own life, which helped me to recognize that the hostility had very little to do with me.
So I chose to temper my hurt with this awareness. The pain he is presently enduring in his life is far worse than anything he could inflict on me with his words. And perhaps, along with that, he was having an especially hard day.
It doesn’t always work, but in this case, a little understanding made all the difference.
Have you ever consciously changed your thought processes about something?
How has it worked for you?
How do you deal with difficult people?