Letters to the Moon....

It is not always easy, to be a writer. It is often difficult to get the stars to align and for the thoughts to come out. I put the thoughts on paper. I read what I have written. Does any of it make sense? Is any of it worth sharing? Sometimes the muse Calliope, the muse of poetry, comes, and creativity abounds. The stars align; the words come together and flow out of me like a waterfall. Yet other times my muse is elusive. Inspiration hides from me. In those moments, I feel like the myth of Sisyphus, confined to a fate of rolling a massive bolder up a hill, only to have it come hurdling towards the Earth again. The words remain stuck. The stars do not align. In these moments I have learned not to press the issue. I have learned that Calliope will come, the stars will align, and the words will flow. I must give it time. I must be patient with myself.  I must be patient and wait for my muse to arrive, to wait for the stars to align.   It can be an act of fut...

In my state of Indiana the issue of marriage equality is up for a vote. Lawmakers are trying to pass a bill labeled HJR3 , which would permanently change our state constitution to define marriage as between one woman and one man only.  I have written a letter to Indiana lawmakers about my views on marriage equality and equal rights for all. Here then is my letter, "A Letter on HJR3"..... To whom it may concern: I am writing to you about the HJR3 proposed amendment to the Indiana state constitution which defines marriage as between one man and one woman. Let me first start by saying that I am a Christian, I am single and I am heterosexual. I was not born in Indiana, but have lived here for 41 years. Indiana is my home. I understand that many have strong views on homosexuality, some of which are religion based, while others are based in fear. If you are opposed to same sex marriage, I hope you will open your heart and mind to listen to what I have to say. It...

Last week, the U.S. experienced two winter storms. The first storm laid 6 inches of snow locally. Three days later, there was another storm-a behemoth storm, unlike any other. Its name was Ion. “A thirty year storm” they called it. The storm was said to have been reminiscent of a blizzard that happened in 1978. I remember that blizzard. I remember sitting in our living room; our windows, which went from the floor to ceiling, were entirely covered with snow. Winter storm Ion brought almost 12 inches of snow, which was, ironically, more snow than we received in the blizzard of 1978. The Polar Vortex was the second part of the storm, the deadliest part of the storm. An area of cold air normally located at the North Pole and South Poles, the Polar Vortex visited half of the United States. It was colder in parts of the U.S. than at either of the poles. The temperature in the wind reached -50 degrees below zero (Fahrenheit) in my town. News reports said a person could be dead within min...

The Purging (An internal monologue) Day One Finally, some time to work on things around the house. I have so much to do. Where should I start? Maybe I will start with this closet. I have to sort through everything in here. This will take forever. I guess I should collapse down these cardboard boxes first, to get them out of the way, and recycle them later. Now, what to do with these things that are still in here? Keep, donate to charity, or throw away. Those seem to be my only options. Wow, that did not take much time at all. Look at all this empty space. What should I put in here? This might be a nice place to put my Christmas decorations. I only need them once a year, and they would be easy to get to here. There, that looks great. Everything I wanted to keep fits in this space. But now I have a closet in the other room that is half empty. I wonder, could I clean that closet out as well? What all do I have in there? Day Three I cannot believe that project on the...