Monday, September 12, 2011

Changes and Possibilities

There’s a delightful feeling of fall in the air. The temps have dropped some and the mornings are blissfully cool. I am in heaven since fall is my favorite time of year. I’m looking forward to leaves changing colors, pumpkins and scarecrows showing up, and sunny, cool days.


I find fall and spring to be wonderful times. The transition from a cold, bitter winter or a hot, cranky summer is for me the perfect time. It seems that as the world transitions so does something in my soul.

Transitions are happening a lot in my world. The hospital is going through a time of transition and struggle. The last few weeks there have been talks of layoffs and that makes things even tougher.

Upon review of my life I realize that layoffs and uncertain job futures has been a prominent message in my work going back to about 1993. So, what is happening at work is nothing new for me and in some ways that is comforting. I know how to handle it. I did get laid off in 2007 and God was faithful during that time.

He took that time of transition and uncertainty and gave me an incredible gift. I spent much time the 10 months I was unemployed with Mom and Dad. Those were the last 10 months of my mother’s life and while walking with her during those months were hard I also have sweet memories of being so intimately involved in hers and Dad’s life. I wrote about one of those beautiful moments here.

In the midst of this, though, God is whispering in my heart about something. I think it’s a new writing project but I’m not sure what it’s all about yet. I’m excited about what this might be and keep listening for that quiet voice.

In the writing world, I’ve been trying my hand at some new forms of fiction. I’ve been working on a fantasy short story and a mystery/thriller. These are not my norm so it’s been fun to see where that leads me.

Flash fiction is also something I’ve given the old college try. Flash fiction is very, very short stories. A blurb in the paper about Esquire’s 78th anniversary and a flash fiction contest caught my eye. The word count was to be exactly 78 words. I tried it and came up with a story. I haven’t decided yet whether I’m going to submit it or try another one first, but I promise to post some of my attempts when I decide what to submit.

So, lots of stuff happening in my world and I thought I would share with you. Have a great week.

1 comment: