Female in Motion

Here's the old lady at 48! Nah, really I'm happy to have another birthday. I am incredibly, profoundly grateful for the life God has given me. He gave me life, a great family, warm and safe home, great church family, meaningful work and a fun new hobby. He also saved my life from cancer 22 years ago. I am blessed! *** "The Robin's Return" was a song my mom played a lot while I was growing up. She could play just about anything on the piano, and us kids would gather around and sing and cut up. This past week, despite the hinky weather, I've noticed lots of well-fed robins hopping around. They have returned to Ark City from their winter vacations and are ready to chow down on some fattened up worms. Let's hope Spring follows the robins to town real soon! *** Cowley County Writers Guild met last Thursday night and we had a blast! I got to try writing a real haiku poem, coached by Grant Williams, Ark City's Poet Laureate. We also got a primer on the many t...

The Hubster gave me the most romantic Valentine's Day gift. "Slippers?" you say. "Romantic?" Yessir! My feet have been really cold this winter, and my old slippers bit the dust right after Christmas. Tennis shoes just aren't warm enough. When he saw me wearing my snow boots around the house, he realized something had to be done. These new slippers are perfection. Sheepskin on the outside, sherpa lining. Ah! *** The fact that The Hubster gave me toasty slippers and a mushy love note for Valentine's Day is even more impressive when you know that he has the flu and strep throat. Yes, even when he's sick...he's thoughtful. And no, you can't have him. I'm just getting him broken in! *** B.D. Tharp (writer friend) posed an interesting question on Facebook last week. She asked, "Where is your favorite place to read/write?" I pondered on this for a while. When I was a kid, I spent hours in the closet of my bedroom. All right, no jokes! ...

When your daughter calls and says, "I'm okay, Mom," you know it's not good. Sarah really is okay, although she has multiple injuries and is in a lot of pain. But she's alive and nothing is broken and she was checked out by the ambulance crew. Now if she could just say the same about her car! As a mom, you spend a lot of time praying for your kids' safety. As a mom, you spend a lot of time praying for your kids, period! Sarah was hit this evening on her way to WSU for a class. She's a great, safe driver, but not everyone else is. Thank God that she was buckled up and her airbags deployed. Sarah now has seat belt and airbag injuries, but she's alive! Please pray that she will recover fully from these injuries. *** Last week, I wrote about a book I had read called, "Now, Discover Your Strengths." I got quite a lot of feedback about this subject, so I thought I would update you on the Gallup Organization's latest offering. "StrengthsFind...

I am reading a new book, and the information contained in it has been quite a revelation to me. It is "Now, Discover Your Strengths," by Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton. This non-fiction business book is a publication of the Gallup Organization, but is not a stuffy executive manual. It's just a great way to find out why you do what you do and why others do what they do, too! When you buy a copy of this book, it comes with a secret code (fun!). The code allows you to access an online personality test that will help you discover your key strengths. Revealing what makes you tick helps you to channel energies and make sense out of your work and life style. Once you complete the profile, you will receive your five dominant themes and strategy on how to translate these into personal and career success. My strengths are: Input, Discipline, Developer, Belief and Context . Input means I am inquisitive. Yeah, who would've guessed? I always have to know everything. Collect...