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Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781481707312 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | AuthorHouse |
| Publication date: | 02/25/2013 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 114 |
| File size: | 330 KB |
Read an Excerpt
Insights
By Beth Hall McCandless
AuthorHouse
Copyright © 2013Beth Hall McCandlessAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4817-0729-9
Excerpt
CHAPTER 1 Through A Glass Darkly
Misty, vague, uncertain, veiled,
Vision bent in shades of grey;
Truth refracted, light impaled,
As a dream from far away.
So to see the view before,
'Twixt the raindrops and the tears;
Wipe the pane, expunge, restore,
Dry the eyes, allay the fears.
Clarity, the new-found vista,
Warms the heart and heals the mind.
New—familiar?—well come is the
Long-sought pathway, now defined.
Toilet Paper Legacy
My grandmother used to tell us, when we visited my grandparents in their cottage on Lake Ontario, that the septic system was limited, so we were only allowed to use THREE sheets of toilet paper at a time. Being fairly young and impressionable, and not wanting to cause trouble (especially that kind!), I didn't question this but took it to heart and followed her directions scrupulously.
Some years later, as a teen, I remember this same grandmother (my father's mother) talking about her days as a boarder before she married my grandfather. She was recounting that her landlady was rather austere, and required that only ONE sheet of toilet paper be used at a time. She said she told the landlady—somewhat stiffly—that she would buy her own toilet paper. When I heard this story, I chuckled inwardly, wondering if my grandmother remembered giving us similar, if slightly more lenient, instructions. I never brought it up to her, not wanting to embarrass her, but I still wonder, to this day, if she ever made the connection.
Recently I had occasion to create a memorial for both my parents. At one point a family friend pulled me aside to tell me a little story. She remembered that, one day, she and my mother had gone into the ladies' room, and my mother had cautioned her that no more than FOUR sheets of toilet paper should be used at a time. She asked me if my mother had ever instructed me in this manner. I laughed and told her no, I hadn't heard that from my mother, but told her about my grandmother.
As I look back on my life so far and appreciate the rich tapestry of experiences and events that have contributed to me as a person, I see that early influences do indeed have an impact, particularly when they come from both sides of the family. I personally use only three sheets of toilet paper at a time (sometimes four), and buy it in warehouse quantities.
Listen
Listen—to the robin as she sings a
morning sonnet,
Listen—to the wind that blows through
the trees above.
Listen—to the fullness of contentment at
the sunset,
Listen—to the secret voice that tells you
how to love.
Listen—to the rain splashing on the shiny
pavement.
Listen—to the winter sun's cold and
distant fire.
Listen—to the silence of the stars in
heavenly union,
Listen—to the caring hands that wipe
away a tear.
Listen—to the senses that foretell a new
day's dawning,
Listen—to the whisper that reveals the
sacred night.
Listen—to the Universe that ever is
unfolding—
Listen, and the chosen path ne'er is hid
from sight.
H
Hell.
Hate.
Hurt.
Hole.
Halt.
Hint.
Hope.
Help.
Hug.
Heal.
Heart.
Hum.
Heaven.
Jigsaw Puzzle
Find a straight-edge, then another;
Fit together, find a third.
Piece together sections, borders,
Trace the outline, shape procured.
Inside now to find the detail,
Piece by piece you flesh it out.
Greens of summer, loving places,
Reds of anger, scars of doubt.
As the puzzle grows, the picture
Sharpens, coming into view.
When the puzzle is complete, the
Picture He beholds is You.
Paper Chase
I come from a very literary family. Not authors, but readers. We like information, it's interesting. It gives us ideas, which we then work out into better or more esoteric ideas—often on paper—to record and share with friends and coworkers, or maybe the next dinner with Grandma.
We're always using paper for something, whether it's to jot down a name or phone number or to write a letter (the kind now generally referred to as "snail mail"), creating a travelogue or even journaling. So when my parents passed away and it was left to me to dispose of their belongings, I wasn't surprised to find paper. Unused (so far) paper, kept in case they needed to write something down. Some of it was aged enough that I knew it had been my grandparents' paper.
I am something of an organizer, so at some point I decided to put all the paper in one place—that is, to combine all the "inherited" paper with my own. When I stepped back to look at it, I was somewhat alarmed at the sheer volume. I have LOTS of paper, mountains of it. Paper for lists, recipes, phone numbers, and reminders. Paper with lines, paper without lines, paper with lines in 2 directions like graph paper. Some paper is specifically designed to record my diet, my conversations, my medical information. Some is meant to hold names, addresses and phone numbers.
White paper, cream-colored paper, yellow paper, pink, blue, green and purple paper. Different sizes, different shapes. Some shaped like a piano, and some with groups of lines for writing music (we're also a musical family). Some have designs on the edges, some are patterned all over. Bound paper like journals. Paper glued together across the top so it forms a pad. Looseleaf paper. Paper with little holes along the edge—top or side—with metal spirals holding the sheets together. Some paper is perforated so you can tear off a sheet cleanly. Much of the paper has 3 large holes along the left edge for storage in a 3-ring binder; some have holes in different places, to accommodate different types of binders. Some paper has six or eight or ten holes along the left edge, so it will fit any binder you can find.
Some of them are sticky on the back so you can tack them up all over the house. Some have tabs along one edge so it sticks out of a stack and you can find things quicker. (These are often blank and are simply meant to separate one pile of paper from another.) Extra-big paper for big ideas, tiny little pieces of paper for a quick
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Insights by Beth Hall McCandless. Copyright © 2013 by Beth Hall McCandless. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Through A Glass Darkly.................... 1
Toilet Paper Legacy.................... 2
Listen.................... 3
H.................... 4
Jigsaw Puzzle.................... 5
Paper Chase.................... 6
Ode to Star Trek.................... 10
Thoughts on Words.................... 12
More Than I Can Say.................... 14
The Child Within.................... 15
Metamorphosis.................... 17
Making a Difference.................... 18
To A Soul Mate.................... 21
CloudScapes.................... 23
Blank Adversity.................... 24
Love Me.................... 25
Living On The Edge.................... 27
Come Home.................... 29
Voice of Experience.................... 30
The Power of Peace.................... 33
Patience.................... 34
Empath.................... 35
My Life With Chronic Illness.................... 37
Going Nowhere.................... 40
A Gift from the Sun.................... 41
The Case for the Arts.................... 42
In An Instant.................... 45
Awakening.................... 46
One.................... 48
Hope vs. Trust.................... 49
Reflections.................... 52
On Fathers and Daughters.................... 55
Passions.................... 58
Nothing to Say.................... 60
Respite.................... 61
A Part of the Whole.................... 63
The Thought.................... 64
Coping strategies.................... 65
The Thread.................... 66
Doubt.................... 67
Suspension.................... 70
Patience.................... 72
Opening.................... 73
Friends.................... 77
Candlefire.................... 78
Falling.................... 79
Influences.................... 80
Double Sunset.................... 83
Songs of Healing.................... 85