Words Make The World Go Round

The statement ‘Words make the World Go Round’ is really a no brainer. When I was at school, words and english, correct english was a necessary evil. Not all of us thought that words were a doorway to a magical world that you could create yourself, a world limited only by your imagination. 

I can’t remember thinking to my self “I want to be a writer”. I just wrote. About anything and everything. I think before writing became all-important to me I drew and most of all I read and read and read. I mostly read lady writers (no offence guys), tis was probably to my own detriment, however ladies such as Enid Blyton,who wrote The Famous Five, The Secret Seven The Ringading Mysteries and a lot more; Eleanor H Porter author of the ever optimistic Pollyanna; Pixie O’harris was famous for her illustrated fairytales but I loved her series the Fortunes of Poppy Trelor.  

These are but a few of the wonderfully talented ladies who shaped my early times of reading and who, along with my school teachers at primary school encouraged a young writer on her life's path. Later on in my life the ladies feature once again in the pages of  Catherine Cookson, Barbara Taylor Bradford, Anne and Charlotte Bronte, Phillipa Gregory, Karen Rose, and many many others.

So words! Why do they affect us so profoundly? What is their magic? What do these amazing conglomerations of letters mean to us. We use them every day in a multitude of different ways . We use words without even thinking about it. We spell, write, read learn, all these things involve the use of words. Even those of us who don’t feel this overwhelming urge, no need to put our thoughts into some sort of permanent display, are bound to use words every day.

As I get older I appreciate the use of ‘proper’ language. Not because I am prude so much as for the innate beauty of stringing together the perfect sentence. Hearing how the syllables roll off the tongue painting an exact picture in ones mind. 

I am saddened that our younger people are have created their own abbreviated text that, while they understand it well enough has destroyed the beauty of the english that we were taught in school. Don’t knock old english it is the essence of who we are.

Have you ever stopped still to simply admire a flower in your garden, or been looking in a book filled with lovely painting or photographs? Do you ever take time out of a busy schedule to sit quietly and ponder on how fortunate we really are? Sometimes it seems that a week will slip by and we haven't taken time out to just think. We get frustrated and make up excuses, oh they are all very real ones, such as family commitments, work, housework, time for our friends; the list goes on and on. 
A very wise lady once said to me to take time to pray. Take time to know the meaning of contentment because only when you are quiet and sit and think of the good things in your life (and yes I bet even at your lowest you can find at least one good thing to be thankful for). Following is a list that I made quite a few years ago when I was having a rough time.
Things that I am grateful for:

• Captain Corsair aka my husband( even though after 22 years he still leaves his towel on the bathroom floor for the cleaner aka me to pick up).
• My four very different boys, each one has brought joy and tears.
• My cats, little creatures that understand more than we give them credit for.
• My mother who is my inspiration and so much more.
• My father who I know is always there and who makes me laugh.
• An old farm house that is beautiful in its own way.
• My ability to write and research and write again.
• My imagination that seems to be unstoppable.
• My freedom, in a world where many are not free to write what they feel, worship whom they believe in, live where they want to live.
• And lastly I am thankful that I have a dear friend in Jesus Christ.  

These are ten things that I am thankful for -- I invite you to think of ten things too. 

Laxettes and Chamomile Tea

24^th January 2012

And so inevitably the old year rolls over and a new year takes its place. A new year with another set of resolutions to aspire to. We humans are a remarkably predictable lot, on the whole I find that resolutions don’t change all that much. In fact one could almost be tempted to give the whole New Year Resolutions thing a miss, excepting the fact that we are creatures of habit and we look to organise our whirlwind lives give some meaning to the sometimes perturbing events that go under the heading of ‘family life’.

So once again I find myself mentally listing the things that I wish to do with my life in 2012. Loose 10kg, thoroughly clean the office, do the ironing that I left over from last year,secretly get some Botox treatment, really get on with writing my novel, get my blogs up to date and comment on those blogs that I follow. It is all well intentioned but rather sad, as these were the last years resolutions too.

And whilst on the subject of passing years, I wonder if other more mature ladies like myself; find that due to the inevitable new year diet they are looking forward with pathetic enthusiasm to the nightly laxette chocolate.

And along with that new cleansing diet comes an abandonment of the daily shot of caffeine. Not to worry though this has been replaced by the always reliable Chamomile tea.

One could be forgiven for coming to the conclusion that New Years resolutions are not all they’re cracked up to be. However something to look forward to is an alcoholic beverage(for strickly medicinal purposes)before ones bedtime.