Poetry Friday ~ Live Your Best Life!

“…Lives of great men all remind us
   We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
   Footprints on the sands of time…”

It’s the fourth week of the month! Time for a theme prompt at Colleen’s 2020 Weekely Poetry Challenge. Pat R. from last month’s challenge picked the theme. The theme this week is the quote above taken from A Psalm of Life by Henry Wadsworth.

Photograph by Damir Spanic

LIVE

Great men remind us

do what gives your life purpose

find your life’s passion

Our time on Earth is a gift

Live your life to the fullest

I believe I’ve found the work that gives my life purpose and passion. Writing has become part of what makes me who I am, and I eat, sleep and breathe stories. Seriously, I don’t know what my life would be like or how I would go on without writing.

That being said, I do enjoy other activities like reading, being out in nature, kayaking, drawing, photography, fashion, baking . . . I love spending time with my family and playing with my dog, Scribbles. I have an adventurous spirit and relish traveling to different parts of the world and learning about other cultures, meeting new people and trying things I’ve never tried before.

Photograph by Eirik Skarstein

Wishing everyone a fabulous day! Live your best life!

Writers Quote Wednesday – FAREWELL

Welcome! It’s Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

The theme this week: FAREWELL chosen by Colleen & Ronovan.

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There’s a reason for this theme. It’s Colleen and Ron’s way of announcing that they will no longer host the ‘Writers Quote Wednesday Challenge’. It’s a sad day for today is the last day of the challenge and the last day of Summer too. The reason they’ve ended the challenge is because they have books to write and I completely understand. I suppose I could continue ‘Writers Quote Wednesday’ but the truth is I have books to write also and I could use more time, so this too will be my last ‘Writers Quote Wednesday’ post. At least for now, I will continue ‘Haiku Friday‘ but I want to dedicate more time to my Fantasy Angels Series. I will keep you updated on my progress with that. Thank you for visiting my blog and for all the lovely comments. I appreciate you all.

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“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”

~ Dr. Seuss

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“People don’t notice whether it’s winter or summer when they’re happy.”

~ Anton Chekhov

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“By all these lovely tokens September days are here, With summer’s best of weather And autumn’s best of cheer.”

~ Helen Hunt Jackson

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“Summer’s gone today; I wished a wish that it would never go away,
but summer told me it couldn’t stay.
So I said my goodbyes, with tear-filled eyes,
and waved my farewell to the blue summer skies.”

~Elizabeth Heller

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“There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart.”

~Celia Thaxter

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Enjoy your week!

Writers Quote Wednesday – UNITY

Welcome! It’s Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

We have a great theme this week: UNITY chosen by Ronovan.

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This has been and continues to be a tough election year here in the USA. I don’t remember ever seeing such animosity between americans due to politics. This country is called the ‘United States of America’ and right now there seems to be no unity amongst the people of this country. America is a country made up of a diverse group of people that form a complex whole. We can be united without necessarily agreeing on everything. We can be united without being cookie cutter copies of each other. We can be individuals with different opinions, beliefs and appearances. As long as we respect one another and show empathy, understanding and consideration toward each other we can be united. A country united is a strong country. I feel that the world is laughing at us right now because of our petty squabbles with one another. They’ve figured it out and are probably wondering why we’re stuck on stupid.

If I offended anyone by speaking my mind, it wasn’t my intention.

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“What I’m not confused about is the world needing much more love, no hate, no prejudice, no bigotry and more unity, peace and understanding. Period.”

~Stevie Wonder

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“I think family is key, and if you have love for family, then you have love for others – and you have unity as a people.”

~Marlon Wayans

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“I think my best skill in this whole deal is as a conduit to try to bring people together, because I think it’s in our unity that we’ll have the greatest strength.”

~Woody Harrelson

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“We all dream dreams of unity, of purity; we all dream that there’s an authoritative voice out there that will explain things, including ourselves. “

~Junot Diaz

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Writers Quote Wednesday – Autumn

Welcome! It’s Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

We have a great theme this week: AUTUMN chosen by Colleen.

My writing buddy ‘Scribbles’ at a pumpkin patch.

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Autumn is a beautiful time of year. Here in south Florida we don’t have much shedding of leaves from deciduous trees but we do share the earlier arrival of night and the cooling of the temperature, although only slightly down here. Nevertheless, the feeling of autumn is very present and it’s one of my favorite times of year. That being said, we still have 15 days of summer left and I plan to make the most of it. 😉

I did grow up in the north, New York City, and I do sometimes miss the red and gold autumn palette. I came across the poem, ‘Leaves’ by Elsie N. Brady on Tumblr and it is such a beautiful and sweet poem, definitely worth sharing with my friends here. Enjoy!

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Leaves

by Elsie N. Brady

How silently they tumble down
And come to rest upon the ground
To lay a carpet, rich and rare,
Beneath the trees without a care,
Content to sleep, their work well done,
Colors gleaming in the sun.

At other times, they wildly fly
Until they nearly reach the sky.
Twisting, turning through the air
Till all the trees stand stark and bare.
Exhausted, drop to earth below
To wait, like children, for the snow.

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“I see the turning of a leaf dancing in an autumn sun, and brilliant shades of crimson glowing when a day is done.”

~Hazelmarie Mattie Elliott

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“Anyone who thinks fallen leaves are dead has never watched them dancing on a windy day.”

~Shira Tamir

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Summer went away

So that wind and leaves can play

Over the meadow

Leaves tire, floating to the ground

To dress the field in scarlet gown

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It’s the middle of the week. We’re almost over the hump, so enjoy the rest of the week.

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Writers Quote Wednesday – COMEDY

 

Welcome! It’s Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

We have a great theme this week: COMEDY chosen by Ronovan.

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“Comedy was my sport. It taught me how to roll with the punches. Failure is the exact same as success when it comes to comedy because it just keeps coming. It never stops.”

~Emma Stone

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“Being funny wasn’t a career choice growing up, it was my way out of situations; a way to survive another day.”

~Tracy Morgan

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“To all the girls out there who think being funny is not sexy, you are wrong!”

~Chad Michael Murray

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“I immediately bond with people that make me laugh. These are generous people that give the gift of life. Laughing is healthy it reanimates you.”

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This is completely unrelated to today’s post, but has anyone begun to use Snapchat? I’ve just begun to figure it out. Well, actually I figured out how to use the filters, camera and video but that’s about it. Snapchat has been around about three years and I believe it’s going to become a huge social media tool. What do you think? Is it worth getting into?

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View this post on Instagram

I finally figured out how to make a video on Snapchat. Now, if only I can figure out the rest.🙄

A post shared by Vashti Q ~The Writer Next Door (@vashtiwrites) on Aug 31, 2016 at 9:50am PDT

Enjoy your day!

Writers Quote Wednesday – STRENGTH

Welcome! It’s Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

We have a great theme this week: STRENGTH chosen by Colleen.

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Colleen asks, what does strength mean to you?

To me love means strength. It isn’t easy to love. Of course, nowadays the word love is used so indiscriminately, ‘I love ice cream!’, ‘I love to dance.’, ‘I love the beach’ . . .  that one might say it has lost some of its value and strength, but I’m talking about real love and not just a word.

To truly love someone means that you have to accept the person with all his or her faults. You have to be able to forgive your loved ones when they’ve wronged you. You have to be patient and understanding. You have to be willing to sacrifice and put yourself last sometimes for their benefit. You have to be willing to go hungry, so that they won’t.

To truly love someone takes an immeasurable amount of strength.

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Love Is Strength

by George MacDonald

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Love alone is great in might,
Makes the heavy burden light,
Smooths rough ways to weary feet,
Makes the bitter morsel sweet:
Love alone is strength!

Might that is not born of Love
Is not Might born from above,
Has its birthplace down below
Where they neither reap nor sow:
Love alone is strength!

Love is stronger than all force,
Is its own eternal source;
Might is always in decay,
Love grows fresher every day:
Love alone is strength!

Little ones, no ill can chance;
Fear ye not, but sing and dance;
Though the high-heaved heaven should fall
God is plenty for us all:
God is Love and Strength!

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“Love is when the other person’s happiness is more important than your own.”

~H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

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“Love is friendship that has caught fire. It is quiet understanding, mutual confidence, sharing and forgiving. It is loyalty through good and bad times. It settles for less than perfection and makes allowances for human weaknesses.”

~Ann Landers

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“She is strong, but not in the ways most people think. She loves more than she’ll ever get back and she knows it. And yet, she loves anyway.”

~JM Storm

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“I never knew how strong I was until I had to forgive someone who wasn’t sorry, and accept an apology I never received.”

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Have a wonderful day everyone!

Writers Quote Wednesday – MIRACLE

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

 

Welcome to another edition of Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

We have a great theme this week: MIRACLE chosen by Ronovan.

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What is a miracle?

A miracle is a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws. 

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“There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle.”

~Albert Einstein

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“Many people are alive but don’t touch the miracle of being alive.”

~Thich Nhat Hanh

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Miracle

by Ivy C. Drape

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We live
On a blue planet
That circles around
A flaming ball of gases
Next to a moon
That controls the oceans….
…If you tell me that you don’t believe in miracles
I’ll point out the fact
That we are made out of stardust
If you still don’t believe then…
…I’ll point to the God that made it all.

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Thank you for visiting!

Writers Quote Wednesday – INNOCENCE

Welcome to another edition of Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

We have a great theme this week: INNOCENCE chosen by Colleen.

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Innocence actually means a state that is unblemished by guilt, malice or any other wicked intentions. So shouldn’t we try to hang on to some of our innocence? Innocence should never be misconstrued as ignorance. As adults we should seek knowledge and experience, but there’s a part of us that can always remain innocent. 

Illustration by Sybil Erdnuss-Baum (DeviantArt)

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“A babe in the house is a well-spring of pleasure, a messenger of peace and love, a resting place for innocence on earth, a link between angels and men.”

~Martin Farquhar Tupper

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“An honest man is always a child.”

~Socrates

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“When we take revenge against another, we lose some of our innocence.”

~Patrice Redd Vecchione

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“No security of mind is so salutary as that of innocence: guilt, however confident, has inexorable fears.”

~Norman MacDonald

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“Innocence tinctures all things with brightest hues.”

~Edward Counsel

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Age of Innocence by Staša Sahman

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Happy day everyone!

 

Writers Quote Wednesday – PASSION

Welcome to another edition of Writers Quote Wednesday sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of ‘Silver Threading‘ and Ronovan Hester of ‘Ronovan Writes‘. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then you may add artwork, photography, a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can add anything you like to highlight your quote. Have fun with it!

We have a great theme this week: PASSION chosen by Ronovan. 

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Painting by Marta Nael

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I lifted my eyes 

And in the evening sky

A rare star shined bright

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I opened my chest

She saw the scars on my heart

I asked the fine star

Bring my bloodthirsty lover

Where love leads, this fool follows

~Vashti Q

Artist Marta Nael

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“True love is not a strong, fiery, impetuous passion. It is, on the contrary, an element calm and deep. It looks beyond mere externals, and is attracted by qualities alone. It is wise and discriminating, and its devotion is real and abiding.”

~Ellen G. White
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“A woman in love respects and raises up her man. She is his constant source of support. She matches his heart and passions with her own. She sees the very best in him, even when he does not. She is his foundation; what he returns home to.”

~Elizabeth Bourgeret

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“A man in love is cautious with the decisions he makes, words he says and actions he takes, so he never purposefully causes her pain. He believes in her when she struggles believing in herself. He is her foundation, where she feels safe to be her true self.”

~Elizabeth Bourgeret

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“I would prefer to live with bleeding heart where desire see darkness of uncertainty because I need to know the existence of love”

~Seema Gupta

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Enjoy the rest of your week everyone! ❤

Writers Quote Wednesday – BELIEVE

Hello everyone! A warm welcome to my blog. Thanks for stopping by. First, I wanted to apologize for not having a ‘Haiku Friday’ post last week. Sometimes life happens and takes you by surprise and your time is no longer yours. I hope to make up for it this week.

Writers Quote Wednesday Writing Challenge is sponsored by Colleen Chesebro of Silver Threading and Ronovan Hester of Ronovan Writes. Anyone can participate by choosing a quote by a favorite writer then, write a short piece of flash fiction or poetry to share with us all. You can include photos, photo quotes, or anything else that helps to highlight your quote. Have fun with it! I don’t know this week’s theme because I had to work on this post before this week’s theme was chosen, so I chose my own. I chose BELIEVE in honor of my friend Colleen Chesebro who has recently revealed the book cover to her first book, The Heart Stone Chronicles – Book 1: The Swamp Fairy  In her post she gives a fascinating account of the day she encountered a fairy.

In her words . . .

I heard a sound that instantly caught my attention. At first, I thought it might be an injured bird rustling in the thick underbrush. I peered into the foliage and drew back in surprise. Read on here.

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“I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.”

~Audrey Hepburn

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“The fairy poet takes a sheet
Of moonbeam, silver white;
His ink is dew from daisies sweet,
His pen a point of light.”

~Joyce Kilmer

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“We call them faerie. We don’t believe in them. Our loss.”

~Charles de Lint

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Watch all nature’s things

There are fairies in the air

Breathing loveliness

To inspire the blushing rose

Raindrops are like fairy breaths

~Vashti Q

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Spread your wings and let your inner fairy fly!