Letters to the Moon....

A month ago I took a week of vacation from work. I did not travel; instead I worked on projects around my house. One project I finally had the time for was sorting through papers in my home office. I had thousands of papers and documents to go through. It was a daunting task. I found I had many previous drafts of my book printed out, as well as old bank statements, financial papers and more. Among all of these papers I found two journals. I was curious as to what I would find when I opened them. Were the pages blank? Were they full of writings? I opened one of the journals. I thumbed through it and found all of its pages to be full-some pages had lists, some had thoughts which later morphed into poems. Other pages were filled with letters, drafts that  I wrote out first, to gather my thoughts, before writing the letter by hand. The second journal contained more of the same. I did not take the time to read every page; however I did stop and pause to read some of the lette...

I would like to tell you a story today, a story of two kittens. I have never divulged the names of my cats or their photos. But now I feel I need to. The reason should become clear. Here now is my story, “The Ballad of Jazz and Blues.” I am the type of person who has to have an animal in my home. My animal I prefer-the cat. Two years ago my feline companion Calypso went to heaven. It was a very hard time for me.  My cat Calypso http://www.esperanzahabla.blogspot.com/2012/07/one-more-star-in-skyuna-estrella-mas-en.html Yet, I knew I would get an animal again. I decided to get two kittens this time, so they would have one another as a playmate. I searched nearby shelters for weeks trying to find the perfect pets for me. There is an unspeakable bond that happens when you find the animal meant for you. Every kitten I saw in the shelters did not speak to me. I was very specific in my wants in kittens: they had to be female and I wanted them to be 8 w...

Monday evening I heard the news. I could not believe my eyes. My mind was a flurry of activity. I remember reading the words, “Rest in peace.” I then remember thinking: Rest in peace? What? What are they talking about? Robin Williams? THE Robin Williams? Wait, what?!?!?” I then did a search on the internet and read the news. There, on the screen,  I read the words: Robin Williams Dead at 63 . Over the minutes and hours my shock upon learning of his death turned to astonishment and then to grief. When I found out that Robin’s passing away was by his own hand, it made the news of his passing much more tragic. I read a news release by Robin’s widow, Susan Schneider…. "This morning, I lost my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken. On behalf of Robin's family, we are asking for privacy during our time of profound grief. As he is remembered, it is our hope the focus will not...

The internet is a fascinating place. It is a platform of social interaction, political discourse, a source of news and information, a showplace for the arts. The internet is also an invaluable tool in terms of education, acquiring information within seconds. It also serves as a gathering place, enabling anyone to voice their opinion on any issue. I have seen the good that can be done on the internet. People can pledge money to help get a movie made, donate funds for relief efforts after natural disasters, even ask for thoughts and prayers and share updates with family and friends in times of illness and death. It is also true that internet is home to the opposite effect. Anyone can go on the internet and voice their opinion, positive or negative. Anyone can write about anything, including negativity, racism, and hate speech. A ny group that has hate as their message can set up a website, write propaganda on any issue, and share grisly images of violence to instill fear. Of...