Words from the Heart

With the advent of the "Me, too" campaign, I have seen a disturbing rise in the use of the word bitch on social media. What is disturbing is that young women are using this word to describe themselves. Why, I ask? When we coop words that have been used to denegrate, demean and dehumanize people to identify ourselves, we are giving our power away, not strengthing it. This form of identity is akin to the idea of "if you can't beat them, join them." Do we, as women, really want to do that? This blog was built on the belief that words hold power. They can hurt, as well as heal. We decide in our day-to-day use of language, which we want to promote.  So, let's step back for a moment and look at the etymology of the word, bitch.  " bitch (n.)Old English bicce "female dog," probably from Old Norse bikkjuna "female of the dog" (also of the fox, wolf, and occasionally other beasts), which is of unknown origin. Grimm derives the Old...

Photo Credit: By Marcusmoseley (Own work)  [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons Our guest blogger is Suzie Kolber, writes for a much needed resource - ObituariesHelp.org .   The following are some thoughts about how to express words of condolence. How to Express Condolences to Someone You Love  It is customary to send condolences to the bereaved when someone dies, but sending condolences to someone you love, someone you’re extremely close to can be a difficult task. When sending condolences to a person or family that you didn’t know so well, the emotional impact is not so intens e; you are sad for them, but not overwhelmingly so. But if it’s a close family or friend to whom you’re expressing your sympathies, the feelings are much stronger. It can be quite difficult to sit down and write that heartfelt expression without being overcome with emotions yourself. The following article mentions some things to keep in mind when expressing condolences to close fam...

Sacred Geometry / (Photo credit: Sarjana Sky ) For the next few weeks, I will be teaching a class on symbols.  In preparing for the class, I came to realize that our life is deluged with symbols, but we don't even know it! Like jumping head first into a snow pile, symbols surround every part of our life.  For instance, the shape of things are based on symbols found in Sacred Geometry.  Squares, triangles, circles, rectangles, etc. are in everything we touch...the keys of the computer, the computer screen,the speakers, the planter, the bottles of vitamins, the bits and pieces of paper and even the books all on my desk at the moment, are shaped based on these simple geometric symbols or designs. Our alphabet is a series of symbols for the sounds we use to make words.  Those words can be linked together to make sentences, paragraphs and entire texts, which symbolize what we think and why we think it. The other day, as I was preparing to find a poem on women fo...

Today, I have the pleasure of sharing a guest post from author/artist, Melissa Foster.  I just finished reading Melissa's book, Megan's Way , a mother/daughter journey through life, death and the paranormal, which held me captive all weekend.  I had to squeak in time to read between helping my daughters care for their little ones, but I finally finished on the train ride home from New Hampshire.  (At which point, I began her other book, Chasing Amanda ...more on that book in a later blog.) Megan's Way touched me on many levels.  There is the intrigue of secrets shared, discovered and hidden.  There are the bittersweet moments between best friends, parent and child and lovers.  There is the heart-pounding tension of a parent's worst nightmares.  All of which builds a story that captures the reader's attention, satisfies the senses and leaves an afterglow of satisfaction. The following is a short video promotion of Megan's Way. The Healing Power o...

  " Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -- I took the one less travelled by, and that has made all the difference"                                   The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost The Poem-A-Day challenge has just completed its first week!  Wow!  Time does fly when you are having fun.  Truth is, it IS fun to write poetry each day.  I am enjoying getting up as early as I can to write, post and comment on the work of the other writers. This morning at 5 a.m. I came up with a great idea.  Throughout the month, I challenge readers to post a line of poetry that really touches them. Make sure you give the title of the poem and the author's name so others can read the entire poem if they wish. There is a joy of writing that can also be found in the reading.  Words heal, words encoura...

It never ceases to amaze me how a few kind words can heal the most grievous wounds.     "I'm sorry."  "Forgive me." "I'm here." "I love you."    Simple phrases; easy to say.  Sometimes, we say them without thinking.  But, when we take the time to look into the eyes of another human and say with all our heart these phrases, healing happens. Interestingly, these same phrases are seldom said to the one person who needs to hear them the most...ourselves! When was the last time you looked in the mirror and said, Forgive me , or, I love you ?    It's not easy.  We feel foolish.  We don't see the need.      It's a shame, really, because when we are not able to love or forgive or care for ourselves, we cannot truly be there for anyone else. It took me many years to forgive myself for not being the perfect daughter, the perfect wife, the perfect mother.  Once I was able to understand that it was OK...

Photo credit: Microsoft Clip Art The premise of this blog is to share the beauty of words, however; we often need to be able to compare the opposite in order to appreciate truly the beauty. Words are not always beautiful. They can cut deeper than a surgeon's scalpel; destroy someone's life faster than a natural disaster; and leave them with scars that last longer than time itself. Verbal abuse is the worse form of abuse because while the pain runs deep, it is invisible. As an abuse survivor, it has taken me many years to realize that the words that were yelled, thrown, hurled my way did not have anything to do with me. I was not those words. It was a long and often painful journey to this discovery. Gratefully, it is one that I can now share without fear, hoping that others will benefit from my discoveries. One of my earliest and most painful memories was being told that I was never going to be "pretty" because of a scar I have on my shoulder and my broken nose. ...