Fortune Cookies Fortune

I had Chinese today for lunch. The fortune read: "Your original ideas will get you well-deserved recognition." I like this because it is positive encouragement, and today I need all the positive thoughts or encouragement that I can get. I am depressed! I was going to write a tiny bit depressed, but I am more depressed then that. I feel better now that I ate lunch, and half the cookie that the fortune came in. 

I always eat the cookie my fortunes come in because I like the taste. I do not know if it is bad luck to eat the cookie the fortune comes in or not. The truth is that it does not matter to me one way or the other. I am not superstitious when it comes to things like walking under ladders or eating fortune cookies. I do not think I have any superstitions. At least, none that manifests themselves in bad or good luck.  

Memorial Day

"Memorial Day isn't just about honoring veterans, its honoring those who lost their lives. Veterans had the fortune of coming home. For us, that's a reminder of when we come home we still have a responsibility to serve. It's a continuation of service that honors our country and those who fell defending it."

Pete Hegseth

A moment of silence,
a prayer whispered,
for those who gave their lives.

They did not return
from their last battle,
to family,
to friends,
or jobs left behind
when the stepped up
to serve their country.

A moment of silence,
a prayer whispered,
for those who gave their lives
and who now in heaven reside.

Poverty Is Not a State of Mind

It's Saturday. I'm frustrated and on the verge of tears. I'm 70 going on 71. I don't have enough  income to pay my bills and my rent. My Social Security is barely enough to keep me from being homeless. My physical issues cause me problems when it come to doing housework. I can dress myself, get in and out of the shower without help, and do a few other things without assistance. Cooking is difficult because my left hand trembles, but the doctors can't tell my what causes the trembling. If I didn't have a friend living with me I would never have a clean house or be able to eat anything except food cooked in the microwave. 

I'm frustrated. I've been attempting to earn a little extra money with survey, but they don't pay as well as they claim. Even the ones that are not cons don't pay that well. I am fortunate that I qualify for programs that help with my medication and assist in purchasing food. They still don't help in paying the rent and the electricity. Now Congress wants to cut out or cut down on programs that help  seniors like me survive. 

Then there are well-known  people who claim that poverty is just a state of mind. I can damn well tell you that it 's not. Once you get below the poverty line getting back into, what is left of the middle class, is difficult and, almost, impossible. 

Memorial Day Memories

I'm 70 years young, and I can remember when Memorial Day was celebrated May 30 instead of the last Monday in May. Each year, Grandma would make crepe paper flowers to put on the graves of family members who had served in the military or war. Grandma and Grandpa called it Decoration Day because that's what it was called when they were young. 

I haven't written a poem, story, or essay containing my Memorial Day memories in a long time. I like the title Crepe Paper Flowers, it sounds like it would make a good Memorial Day poem. I'll need to do a timed free write to bring back some of the memories, but I think it would be a good writing exercise. 

Gratitude list for Thursday, May 25, 2017

Today I am thankful...

01. ...for the prayers revealed by The Bab, Baha'u'llah, and 'Abdu'l-Baha.
02. ...that I was able to download the Baha'i prayer app to my smartphone.
03. ...for fresh brewed Folgers black silk coffee for breakfast.
04. ...that I am able to pick up some of my prescriptions when I go to see my doctor.
05. ...for bottles of ice cold water now that it were experiencing triple digit temperatures.
07. ...that I could read Some Answered Questions on my smartphone while waiting to see the doctor.
08. ...for the inspiration I receive from reading the scriptures.
09. ...that my checking account is not overdrawn.
10. ...for writing.com.

Midweek Reflections on Sparking my Imagination

Today, Wednesday, May 23, the writing.com newsletters hit my inbox. The subject for the Contests & Activities newsletter was "Sparking your imagination". This week's editor discussed quotes as a means of igniting a writer's imagination. The author used quote to show that writers need to stay positive about their writing. I know, from personal experience, that quotes encourage me to remain positive while giving me ideas for poem. 

If you find yourself becoming despondent, which can lead to writer's block, find an inspiring quote. Once you find the quote, read it, and meditation or think about it before sitting down to write. Have a dictionary nearby, in case you come across a word you don't know.  These are just some things I've found that help me. I encourage you to find your own methods to overcome your self-doubt. Remember the important thing is to meditate on the quote after your read it. 

An Idea for a poem or essay

This year, 2017, is the two hundredth anniversary of the Birth of Baha'u'llah. I am working on a group of poems tentatively titled Bicentenary Poems and Prose. So far, I have three completed entries and one uncompleted. Today, while three friends were visiting, I got an idea for another entry. The title is "The Dawning of the Day of God", but I have not decided it it will be an essay or a poem. I will have to pray and meditate on that. 

A New Week Begins

I pick up my datebook, open it to the month of May, and look at today's date. It is Sunday, May 21, 2017. It is the fourth week of the month. It is the third Sunday in May. It is the beginning of a new week, with  wonderful possibilities. 

The Declaration of the Bab will be commemorated on the evening of May 22 about two hours after sunset. The Ascension of Baha'u'llah will be observed on May 28 at 3:00 AM. These are Holy Days which last from sundown to sundown, on which work should be suspended.  The day of the Declaration of the Bab begins at sunset on May 22 and ends at sunset on May 23. 

I know I won't be doing any surveys on those two Holy Days. I am planning to write a poem or essay about the Declaration of the Bab. I will also read the sacred scriptures and pray. Other than that I will play it by ear. 

Comma Insanity: A Poem

To comma, 

Or not to comma? 

That is the question 

Which is driving me insane. 

I know I learn about commas 

In grade school, 

Junior high school, 

High school, 

And college; 

So why can't I remember 

What I learned? 

Is it a question of age 

Or lack of practice? 

Whatever the answer, 

I need to figure it out 

Because I'm sure 

I missed 

Or misplaced 

A few commas 

In this poem. 

Friday Review of the Third Week in May 2017

That title probably won't hook anyone. I have no excuse for the boring title, but I do have a reason. It's the third week in May, I'm on lesson three of a comma course I'm taking on writing.com, and I just finished a poem about abuse. I'm either tired or depressed; I'm not sure which, and I don't think it matters because I'm tired. 

I've accomplished most of the goals that I made on Monday. I am on the second reading of Commanding the Comma Lesson 3. Once I finish the reread, I can begin the exercise so that I can post it this weekend. Then I have to do the writing exercise. I will do a better job this week in the class then I did last week.  Maybe Ill make tomorrow's entry about commas, since I did the review of the week today. 

Thankful Thursday: 10 things I am thankful for on May 18, 2017

Today I am grateful...

01. ...for freshly brewed Folgers black silk coffee because it is my favorite type of coffee.

02. ...that I can open the front door to let in the (almost) fresh Las Vegas morning air.

03. ...for the Comma Sense class I am taking on writing.com

04. ...that I have two responses from the May fantasy newsletter to post in the June newsletter.

05. ...for a cold 29  fl. oz. can of Arizona Sweet Tea because it is one of my favorite cold drinks.

06. ...that I already have three items for the editor's picks in the June fantasy newsletter.

07. ...for two small oranges that I can eat for my afternoon snack.

08. ...that my checking account is not overdrawn.

09. ...for the 16.9 fl. oz. of bottled water we have in the house.

10. ...that I was able to put the photo of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in a new frame.

Midweek Reflections: A Poem

Gazing back 

Across the past seven days 

I contemplate the mysterious ways 

God has revealed 

Himself 

In my life. 

Gazing back 

Across the proceeding stanza 

I contemplate the reason 

I always refer 

To the Unknowable Essence as 

Him. 

Gazing forward 

Across the next seven days 

I wonder about the ways 

The Unknowable Creator 

Will shed blessing 

Upon me. 

Tuesday Contemplations on my Blog Platform

I checked the notes on the blogger class I took on Saturday, May 13. The instructor gave four keys to a good blog, and I added a fifth key. The key I added contained just one word "Act". I still have to finish the exercises suggested for key one, bust since I haven't composed an e-mail to send to five friends, I'm going ahead with the discussion of my blog platform. 

In Saturday's class, I learned about several different blog platform, but the one I'm focusing on is the artist. This is because I'm a poet, and I know it. I also have an intriguing, or, perhaps, weird sense of humor. I'm not sure my sense of humor has much to do with my choice of blog platform because I've had a weird sense of humor all my life. 

I am an artist, 

A poet and an author: 

Inspirational poems. 

Motivational Monday: Contemplating My Worldview

The instructor teaching the blogging class I took on Saturday, May 13, suggested I ask myself this question: What is my worldview? After thinking about this question, I have come to the conclusion that my worldview has changed over the decades. My beliefs in the early twenty-first century are different then the were in the middle twentieth century. 

Part of this change is due to maturity and part is the results of a change in religion. In the late twentieth century, I declared my belief in Baha'u'llah. As a result I now look at the world differently. I believe in the three onenesses: (1) humanity is a single race, (2) God is an unknowable essence with many names, and (3) religion is one book with many chapters. At regular intervals God sends a prophet or Manifestation (a person who reflect the divine attributes to humanity) to assist the human race in the next stage of its spiritual growth. It is this belief that motivates me to write poetry and prose. 

Mother's Day 2017

I visited my mother's grave site today. It's the first time in a couple of years that I went to Palm Mortuary and  Cemetery, at 7600 South Eastern Avenue, in Las Vegas. The reason I haven't visited Mom's grave more often is that it's difficult to find. I found her grave, with the help of some of the employees. I attempted to take a picture of the gravestone, without success. I'll have to read the instructions for the camera in my smartphone. I did get some pictures, but not of Mom's headstone. I said a prayer for my mother's soul before leaving. 

Mother's Day is sad, 

I can't give Mom a Mother's Day card 

Or take her out for prime rib.