Day 3 - Beginnings, Art & Books

My love of books started very young.  I'm not sure of my exact age, but one of the first was a very large picture book.  They were called My Big Little Golden Books and measured about 12 by 9 inches.  Mine was called Wonders of Nature and I loved it.  The illustrations were by Eloise Wilkin, and they were beautiful.

 This was the beginning of my love affair with books and art.  Over the years, I've read hundreds of books.  When my grandpa couldn't get me to the library, I would pick up the Childcraft Encyclopedias.  I read them from cover to cover.  I loved reading so much, I read about subjects I wasn't naturally drawn to, such as science.  When I'd exhausted all of my books, and my sister's, I started reading books from my grandparents shelves.  This was everything from Go Tell It On The Mountain by James Baldwin to The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.  Then I moved on to magazines.  We always had Better Homes & Gardens, Readers Digest, and National Geographic.

Stories opened a new world for me.  One of travel, adventure, and imagination.  These days I spend much of my reading time online, visiting other bloggers, and continuing my happy journey with the written word.

 © 03JAN12 ajj

Day 2 - Beginnings, My Journey with Writing

Last night I made a list of life events to look at for the NaBloPoMo prompt, Beginnings.  One that came immediately to mind was the beginning of this blog.  It began in the spring of 2008.  A dear friend of mine had a blog I'd been reading.  She knew how much I enjoyed writing and encouraged me to blog.   It was so foreign to me.  It took a while just to get through the setup and then the writing began.

I've written about a lot of things since that beginning.  Mostly about family and my daily life.  I was writing for myself and also for my mom, who had passed on.  Back in the 90's I'd started a book.  It was intended to be a romantic mystery along the lines of a Victoria Holt or Phyllis Whitney.  I had written about six chapters and let my mom read it.  She was so excited about the book and couldn't wait for me to finish.  During that time, my dad was fighting to survive cancer.  He didn't make it.  I felt such guilt that I'd been busy writing, instead of spending more time with him.  I set the book aside.  It was only meant to be for a while, but I never went back to it.  Mom would ask about it from time to time, encouraging me to finish but it didn't happen.

I satisfied my writing urges with a monthly church newsletter.  That worked for a season of my life.  My friend Carol, of Silver Valley Stories, had been doing our church newsletter.  When she moved back to Northern Idaho, she recommended me for the job.  It was a blessing in so many ways.  Carol is also the friend who inspired me to begin blogging.  When my days doing the newsletter ended, I had my blog to satisfy those writing urges.  I've done some poetry and short stories, as part of Sunday Scribblings, as well as sharing about my family life.  As I continue to write about "Beginnings" this month, I will have to look back at that first book attempt.  It may be time to dust it off, or maybe it's time for a brand new beginning.

 © 02JAN12 ajj

Day 1 - Beginnings, A New Commitment...

Bright new beginnings,

like bubbles rising to the top or

balloons set adrift on the breeze.

You don't know where they 

will go or how far.

The journey is the adventure.

I've decided to participate in NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) for the month of January.  The prompt is "Beginnings" and this is a new beginning for me.  I'm making a commitment to write every day of the month.  Over the past few weeks, my mind revisited some of the stories rattling around in my head.  I just couldn't seem to find my words when I sat down to write.  I'm hoping this exercise will get me back on track with blogging, Sunday Scribblings, and my writing in general.

I noticed a friend had signed up for NaBloPoMo and it inspired me to push myself.  During the month, I plan to share my thoughts on other Beginnings in my life.  I hope you'll enjoy taking this journey with me.  If you want to give this a try for yourself, go HERE!  You have until January 5th to sign up.  Another blog with writing prompts is Sunday Scribblings.  Today's prompt is "New" and you may enjoy reading what their participating writers have to share.

 © 01JAN12 ajj