Tag: reflecting

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Slice of Life and Open Write June Day 4 with Anna Roseboro

My writing groups converge today – Slice of Life Challenge writers and Open Write writers take joy on days when we get to see all of our fellow writers on the same day when the stars align. I’m so grateful for these groups of writers who are positive people, inspiring others to write. I also joined The Stafford Challenge in January, and we are around Day 160 of writing a poem every day for one entire year – so we’re close to the middle mark. Where would I be without my writing family? I don’t want to know.

Anna Roseboro of Michigan is our host for Day 4 of the June Open Write at http://www.ethicalela.com. She inspires us today to write reflection/projection poems, using synonyms for those words by looking forward and looking back. You can read her full prompt here. Today I have a working retreat before going off contract for three weeks over the summer, so I’ll be doing a lot of this today. I wrote a nonet, a nine-line poem with line-numbered syllables on each line in descending order.

Slice of Life writers are bloggers who share our posts and something about the moments of our lives. We write every day during March and all through the year on Tuesdays. You can find the home page at www.twowritingteachers.org to learn more. Today’s Slicing prompt is thinking about what inspires us to write on the early days of summer. I’m not quite there yet, but I’m almost there…….

Photo by Athena Sandrini on Pexels.com

Almost There

glancing backward to focus forward

setting the sails on this boat

checking wind direction

untying the ropes

feeling the breeze

smiling now

almost

there

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Has Tomorrow Come?

when I’m birdwatching

and you’re nodding

off in the chair

next to me on

our campsite,

me: thrilled in

a composed way

behind my binoculars

and you with

holes in your socks

broken-breath quiet snores

I wonder ~


are we those old

people we’ve

always known

we’d become

one day?

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Hippie Scrapbook Stickers – Stafford Challenge Day 15

I’m having so much fun with The Stafford Challenge that I can’t bear to face my goal chart every month. I’m dropping back to quarterly reflections. Poetry offers more self-care, which I need more right now than thinking of all the things I’m not doing that I should be doing.

So I’m poeming instead.

Hippie Scrapbook Stickers

My childhood scrapbook, filled with stickers

psychedelic colors, hippie

Kim was here!! footprints, daisies,

seventies lettering

mushrooms, all the vibes

coolest era

best music~

Kim is

here!

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Goal Update for October

At the end of each month, (or beginning), I review my yearly goals and spend some time reflecting on how I’m doing in living the life I want to live ~ a way of becoming my own accountability partner and having frequent check-ins to evaluate my progress. I’m still in the process of revising some of my goals as I encounter successes…..and setbacks. New goals have asterisks for the month of November, when I will report on them in a few weeks. For the month of October, here’s my goal reflection:

CategoryGoalsMy Progress
Literature



Read for Sarah Donovan’s Book Group


Send out Postcards


Blog Daily




I participated in the October book discussion with Sarah’s reading group for Reader, Come Home: The Reading Brain in a Digital World. I’ll participate in the book discussion for Assessment 3.0 this month. Time for reading has been scarce lately, but Audible is a good way to try to keep up the pace when all I can do is multi-task.



I sent no postcards this month.

I continue to blog daily, and the daily writing and reflecting is a wonderful habit for me. I don’t feel complete without some form of daily writing, and the blog is a way of continuing the habit.

I had a Zoom meeting with Ruth Ayers of Choice Literacy about writing for her website. I look forward to spending some time writing about local literacy events.
Creativity

*Decorate for fall





*Create Shutterfly Route 66
I created a surprise ducking of our office. I used tiny ducks left over from my brother in law’s birthday ducking and put them to use in the office, even adding Halloween ducks to the lineup.

I have been trying to get to Shutterfly since July, so if I haven’t accomplished this goal by the end of October, I may give up on this one. Update: I’m giving up on this goal.
SpiritualityTune in to church



Pray!



Keep OLW priority		We have been tuning in to church. With Dad preaching every Sunday in October and a few Sundays ahead of that, it makes the church home hunt take a back seat until my childhood church gets a new preacher, since I have the opportunity to hear Dad.

My car is still my prayer chamber for daily prayer, and there’s so much to give thanks for. I continue my conversations with the good Lord each morning and afternoon.

I’m still keeping my OLW my priority: pray!
Reflection
Spend time tracking goals each month

I’m tracking goals, revising, and considering some new categories as I look at my goal table.
Self-Improvement*Reach top of weight rangeThis is a setback for me this month. I’ve hit major stress and gained weight, despite joining WW. I need to set a firm date and get the mental mindset that it takes to stay on track. I have work to do. Update: every day, the diet is starting “tomorrow.” I seriously need a good mindset to start back. I’m keeping this goal. I need to get on track. Tomorrow.
GratitudeDevote blog days to counting blessingsI begin the days this way and end them giving thanks as well.
ExperienceEmbrace Slow Travel







Focus on the Outdoors


I’ve taken a trip in October to F D R State Park for a Little Guy Southern States Meet Up. We met people who have the same kind of camper we have, and we even signed up for next year’s meet up in Tennessee at Roan Mountain State Park. My brother and his fiancee came for a visit during Fall Break, and it was wonderful having some time together with them.

I’m still focusing on the outdoors with birdwatching adventures and camping. We also built our own fire pit foundation for the fire pit my son gave us for Christmas last year.



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Goal Update for June

At the end of each month, (or beginning), I review my yearly goals and spend some time reflecting on how I’m doing in living the life I want to live ~ a way of becoming my own accountability partner and having frequent check-ins to evaluate my progress. I’m still in the process of revising some of my goals as I encounter successes…..and setbacks. I’ve worked on learning new photography techniques, and that knowledge is being put to great use for my nephew’s new dog business website (success!), but it’s hard to travel Route 66 with all its burgers and fries, coneydogs and shakes….and great desserts….without gaining weight (setback!). So new goals have asterisks for the month of July, when I will report on them in a few weeks. For the month of June, here’s my goal reflection:

CategoryGoalsMy Progress
Literature*Read for Sarah Donovan’s Book Group

Send out Postcards

Blog Daily

* Write at least 2 chapters for
writing group’s book		Ethicalela.com has a new
book group! First Book: Healer
of the Water Monster by Brian Young (https://shorturl.at/coAHN

I continue to send out postcards – I would estimate about 30 this month alone, with travel along Route 66!

I continue to blog daily, and the daily writing and reflecting is a wonderful habit for me. I don’t feel complete without some form of daily writing,

My writing group is writing a series of new books, and I will spend time writing chapters for these in July.

CreativityImprove blog photos

*Make a rag quilt for a new grandbaby

*Create Shutterfly Route 66		My nephew asked me to make photos for his new business website, so maybe the new techniques I’m learning mean that I’m improving in photography!

I am having a new grandbaby this month, so a new quilt will be on the month’s menu!

I’ll create a canvas or two, along with a photo book using our Route 66 photos! (Oh, and I got creative with spray paint, too – graffiti is fun!).
SpiritualityTune in to church

Pray!

Keep OLW priority		We will tune in to church by radio or YouTube and catch up with services missed while on the road traveling.

My car is still my prayer chamber for daily prayer, but I’m shifting it to the shower for summer, since sometimes I my habits change when I’m off contract at work for the summer. I’m still keeping my OLW my priority: pray!
ReflectionWrite family stories

Spend time tracking goals each month		I’ll be sharing more family stories through small moment experiences along Route 66 in the coming days.

I’m tracking goals, revising, and considering some new categories as I look at my goal table.
Self-Improvement*Reach top of weight range

This is a setback for me this month. Part of May and all of June was not a good one for weight. I’ve gained back about a third of the weight I had lost, and I need to transition to Weight Watchers point counting, which has been the plan since starting Optavia. I need to make the shift for July – and stay out of the retro diners with burgers, fries, and shakes.
GratitudeDevote blog days to counting blessingsThe gratitude category was strong for the month of June. At every turn of the corner along Route 66, I realized the beauty and wonder of our great nation and its history. I shared the amazing experience of travel with Briar’s brother and his wife this month. I also visited one of my children last month in Kentucky and will visit another one this month in South Carolina. Life is good!
ExperienceEmbrace Slow Travel

Focus on the Outdoors		While I covered a lot of distance in the month of June with road trips through Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico (NINE states in ONE month!), the pacing was relaxed. I didn’t try to do too much in one place – – I enjoyed the moments! I visited Dunbar Cave State Park in Tennessee, Palo Duro Canyon State Park in Texas, and Sandia Peak in New Mexico to enjoy the outdoors and the grand views of nature and experience time in the great outdoors. I’ve been way far up and way far down on landforms and in goals, but it just goes to show that the peaks and the valleys can both be beautiful places that give us unique views!



Palo Duro Canyon State Park