Blindly Chosen, Faithfully Read

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To build up a library is to create a life. It’s never just a random collection of books. –Carlos María Domínguez

March is just around the corner. Before we leave this heart-centered month, I wanted to mention an idea that came to my attention through my favorite hangout – our local library.

blind date with a book

 

On Valentines Day, the Bud Werner Memorial Library  provided an act of kindness through their Blind Date with a Book program. They set-up their library patrons up for an enjoyable night of entertainment.

The gift was wrapped up in brown paper, tied up with string, including a clue or two to help the reader make  their date selection. The title and author’s name was hidden and the reader had to accept on blind faith that what was “between the covers” was something good.

But as on any blind date, the only way to get acquainted with a character is to learn something about them. With time we get to know whether a character is as a mystery, a hopeless romantic or ready for a wild or steamy adventure. Sweet idea!

I’d like to conclude this writing today by repeating a bumper sticker that is frequently seen here where I live. One is on my car. It says “I came for the skiing and stayed for the library.”

What an asset to have a wonderful library in any community.

This blog is brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard, award-winning author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sowing Creative Energy

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“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”  ~ Nelson Mandela

heart clockEver since I put my mind to the idea of spring cleaning, I’ve had trouble sleeping. There are too many possibilities before me streaming. My preliminary discussions with my mighty information technology (aka i.t.) advisor have encouraged me to move forward. With time, clarity will come. I just need to practice patience and have faith that the words, sounds and images will be united into one fulfilling space.

 I have of  plenty of concepts to sleep on which is making shut-eye elusive because I am sowing creative energy of the heart and that is stimulating!

blue birds pillowcase

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

 

 

 

Fulfilling Things about Spring Cleaning

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“The day the Lord created hope was probably the same day he created Spring.”~Bernard Williams

The good  news: February 25th is a special day, and it is coming up. Annually I’ve declared it as a benchmark – over the hump day of winter. Occasionally I’ve moaned and groaned about the length of winter living in the mountains but, I must confess it is a beautiful season. So far this year we’ve received just about 300 inches of snow here in the town that the locals call “The Boat.”

It’s hard to believe spring will ever come with the heaps of snow that surround me. But what’s so lovely about the next season is it arrives as “my spring of discontent.” That means I am ready to blossom, grow and step outside my boundaries which always leads to new perspectives and projects.

In a few weeks I look forward to a visit from my sonshine. He’s my mighty counselor in all things technical and digital. I have some ideas up my sleeve. Hopefully, between the two of us we can put our heads together and do a shoveling out and spring cleaning on All Things Fulfilling. I’m up for the challenge because I’ve learned with faith, all things are possible!

springcleaning1b

See you tomorrow on All Things Fulfilling. This blog is brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard, award-winning author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and short stories Lessons of Heart & Soul.

 

 

 

 

 

Retire to the Pink Palace!

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The most valuable antiques are dear old friends.” ~ H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

To my  twin sister and our closest girlfriends – you know who you are:

pink trailerWhen we’re real old ladies (I’m talkin’ real old – retired from retirement) instead of going to the nursing home we can fill a trailer park with these little gems and ramble around inside them wondering how we got there.

We’ll drink cherry colas or brown cows (root beer floats) all day long from the soda fountain ( spiked if you’d prefer). Or better yet, sloe gin fizzes! Let’s horde stashes of turkish taffy, jujubees, pixie sticks…pick your passion, maybe an O’Henry or two.

We’ll put on our red Wax Lips and walk around the neighborhood lookin’ all pretty, visiting from house to house. Let’s fill our mouths with pink Bazooka Joe and blow bubbles and we’ll crack our gum in public as loud as we want to.

We’ll put speakers outside the Pink Palace and blare “You’ve Got a Friend,” and “Sweet Baby James” from our record players and dance till we drop.

We’ve learned from experience it gets mighty cold in the mountains so we’d better make sure the Pink Palace is well insulated and has a woodstove. The one with the best memory among us will have to be the Creosote Captain, lest we stoke too big a flame and start a chimney fire.

Dig out your flannel Lanz night gowns, girls, and your L.L. Bean hiking boots and down vests from the hope chest. Or we can always relocate south and hang out in our bikinis- now thats the beginnings of a vintage comedy act.

What do  you say, girls? Shall we start planning now?

P.S. Happy Belated Valentines Day to you and your spouses!

Valentines 2016 with Lessons of Heart & Soul image Terrys

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

 

 

 

 

Valentines To Heaven

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Valentines Day, 2016

Valentine To Heaven2

free valentines stationary with Fanny Valentines poem

V5 Cover revised font 4 15 15

This blog is brought to you by EVVY award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

Click here for information on her publications.  This e-book can be delivered within a few minutes for the cost of less than a Valentine’s Day card. And you can learn more about the character that I sent this Valentines to Heaven to through the memoir Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected.

From my heart to yours, Happy Valentines Day from

http://www.allthingsfulfilling.com.

 

 

 

 

 

Tracing a Story

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Genealogy, n. An account of one’s descent from a man who did not particularly care to trace his own.~ Ambrose Bierce

Isn’t it interesting how others can motivate us? In yesterday’s blog I mentioned being inspired by members of our local genealogy group to begin tracing a story in my family history.

When I see the work of others, I get all fired up even when it comes to putting my energy into something I didn’t think I had much interest in. But I am beginning to get stoked up.

magnifying-glass-over-business-text-10920164One woman in our group has traced family members who came twenty-seven generations before her. She has located information about her Scottish ancestors born in the 800’s, mapping out her family tree with names, birth dates, places of death and towns of residence. A phenomenal amount of research!

Another member has compiled so much material it’s contained in a tome-sized binder. Very well organized! Now she is considering what to do with all the data, images and pedigree charts.

Others have traveled to their ancestors hometowns all over the world and taken gravestone rubbings, spoken with historians, museums and community town fathers who have helped them reveal some important facts and figures to complete their stories.

It’s sad to think how many important stories in history get lost because of people’s disinterest in keeping them alive through writing. No doubt it is easier just to live in the present.

If you have even the slightest interest in your family history, check out this website. You may come across something that could become your own version of a Gift of Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected.

Exploring Tomes and Tombs

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energy-saving-lamp-shape-heart-8297227So my purpose for today’s blog is to remind to myself that “energy flows where attention goes,” an adage that I used to motivate myself when I was engrossed in writing my memoir “Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected.” Once again, I need reassurance from myself that time spent writing will be worth every minute in personal fulfillment payoff.

There is a person of interest in my family who I have begun researching. The information about my ancestor here-to-fore has been very sketchy and for me, of little interest. Thanks to help from a genealogy librarian, I now have more reason to turn my attentiveness to this person, a blood relative removed by a few generations.

I have been inspired by members of the genealogy club and the genealogy writers group at the Bud Werner Memorial Library to move forward with the knowledge. The tracing of the story will most likely require some intercontinental research. I’ve seen through other people’s genealogy projects how in this  day and age of digital technology, there are fewer obstacles to finding out information originating in other countries than there was decades ago.

If you are interested in genealogy, you might enjoy the PBS Show Finding Your Roots, with Henry Louis Gates, a Harvard scholar. The purpose of the show is  “to unearth the family histories of influential people helping shape our national identity.” See the website to confirm when it is broadcast in your area.

To sum things up,  I am pursuing an interest that begins with my family roots. The historical value in the family member should not be allowed to smolder and die. To me it’s important and hopefully to others it will also be interesting.

Ultimately I’d like to shed more light on the historical story through my writing if I can do it in a way that will not take the rest of my lifetime!

This blog brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard.

 

Wear Red Tomorrow

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“Red is the first color of spring. It’s the real color of rebirth. Of beginning.” ~ Annie Condie

Are you planning on wearing red tomorrow? The American Heart Association has declared February 5th National Wear Red Day. This day is dedicated to raising awareness that “heart disease and stroke kill 1 in 3 women, yet 80% of it is preventable.”

On the Go Red for Women website there are educational articles and resources to educate the public about the importance of children and fitness, and factors which increase chances of heart disease such as high blood pressure, smoking, inactivity and high cholesterol. The useful and free information is there for each and every one of us.

As Conway Twitty once said “listen to advice, but follow your heart.” Always listen to your body, and if it is telling you something is not right, don’t wait – go see a doctor. It could be the difference between death or life.

You can help the fight against heart disease by posting #GoRed on your Facebook page or through other social media.  Remember to #gored tomorrow, donate to the cause or fill a shopping cart at the GoRed on-line store.

Thanks for listening and tomorrow is a good a day as any to begin improving your heart health.

My award-winning memoir Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected speaks to this issue which is close to my heart.

 

Keep a Heart from Aging

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The aging process has you firmly in its grasp if you never get the urge to throw a snowball. ~Doug Larson

Guess what I got last week? A Save the Date notification of my 45th  high school reunion. When I first read it, I thought, “Oh, there is a typo,” until I made some mental calculations. How could it be that so many years have passed?  After all, wasn’t it just last week I was a teen?

In all those years since I was a student I have only attended one college reunion. I guess it’s because I am more interested in living in the present.

 I’ve maintained some friendships in my home town as well as my college town  over the years so I haven’t let go of my schoolmates completely.

About a year and a half ago, I had a book signing  for my award-winning memoir at Ukazoo Books in Towson, Maryland, the town where I grew up. It’s the setting where most of my memoir takes place. It warmed my heart to see some faces I hadn’t seen in decades.

Sue with snowball heart close upLife has been kind to me despite very tentative beginnings and I am extremely grateful for that. I feel very young at heart and try to do all in my power to stay healthy. There are lots of theories of how to achieve that, but moderation in all things is the key, in my opinion.

An exception to the rule is allowing oneself to do kid-like things frequently. What’s good for the heart and soul is guaranteed to be good for our health, including residing since 1975 in the snowy mountains.

This article explains the benefits of getting out and enjoying some wintertime activities!

Sue with snowball heart

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

 

 

Exploring Space Romance

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This isn’t happily ever after. It’s so much more than that.” 
― Kiera CassThe One

I’d like to say “Good on Ya,” to Aussie Author, D.A. Hill for writing another book that despite being outside of my normal realm of reading genres, I read his publication Cerelia’s Choice engrossed from beginning to end. And I really enjoyed it too, I might add! The turns in the plot came often enough to keep me moving forward wondering what was going to happen next.

So as not to be the spoiler, I’ll refrain from giving you too much information about Hill’s first foray into an interesting genre of writing – space romance. But, I will say, “Oh, how I rooted that the chosen next ruler of the Imperial Throne could defend against the forces in the Galactic Empire so the princess could live happily ever after.”

Cerelias ChoiceYou’d almost have to expect a story about a space pirate from a person who works in the I.T. field. But what remained consistant from his previous publications, is the author’s ability to express very realistic human emotion and dialogue through the character of the lovely Crown Princess and others. Earthly sentiments expressed in an “other world environment” resulted in a fulfilling read.

Check out all of  independent publisher D.A. Hill’s novels including Newton’s Ark and Fuller’s Mine which “explore the impact of technology on human society.”

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard. See you tomorrow on All Things Fulfilling!