Monday, October 24, 2005

Untitled Hymn

I joined the choir at my church last week, and the Untitled Hymn (Come to Jesus) is the name of my favorite song for the Harvest Choir. We sang this past Sunday, and will be singing again in November. I can't wait and am so excited about the music. We will be accompanied by an orchestra and I am sure it will be quite lovely.

I have to admit-- music is and always has been my truest passion. Growing up it was my whole life. My little Emerson radio was always on. I could not wait until night would come so that I could sit upstairs in my makeshift bedroom and listen and sing. I could not wait for my mother and grandmother to leave on the weekends to run errands. I would turn up my radio as loud as I pleased and would sing at the top of my lungs. Oh what a high! I feel the music as deep down in my heart and soul as I can reach. When I sang, my pain was gone. I no longer had to think about my cruel father. I wonder what masks his pain.

Anyway, I am thrilled to be a part of the choir. I expect there will be a lot of social and spiritual growth for me. I also hope to continue to grow and fulfill a dream. And how exciting would it be to fulfill a dream and glorify Jesus at the same time!

Wel, I guess this is all for tonight. It is late--past 11:30 already! Wow! Time flies. The problem with me is that I want to do so much. I have lofty goals, ideas, and dreams. How will I ever reach them. I don't even know where to start. Start somewhere, right?

I will try to blog again tomorrow. Until then, good night!

Monday, October 03, 2005

Up and Running Again!

I am back and more enthusiastic than ever! What a crazy summer it was. We moved and I babysat all summer. But that's not really why I haven't been blogging. Toward the end of July, Nick, the girls, and I went for an extended weekend getaway at a friend's cabin in Tidioute.

Before we left, we had all been busy doing various things. I, of course, spent a great deal of time preparing to move, babysitting, taking care of my own children, and housetraining a puppyl. Nickwas busy doing what he always does, which of course is work, work, work (I'm so proud of my dear husband). But even throughout all that I had plenty of time to think about my writing. I had gotten very inspired and determined to publish an article somewhere. I began to craft my first independent query letter (I wrote one in college for a magazine writing class that I took). I aimed high and wrote three query letters to parenting magazines. I was so excited to be leaving Cambridge Springs with three envelopes addressed to editors in New York City. I really felt that I could enjoy my little getaway--with one cloud looming over my head.

When I finished printing out my letters I turned off my computer. Right before we left, I decided to turn the computer back on just to check something real quick, but much to my disappointment Windows would not come back. Something appeared to be seriously wrong and it was. According to my 21-year-old little brother, who is a computer whiz, my computer was very broke. He told me I would need to buy a whole new system. Let me just tell, ya, I was downright sad. Fortunately, my older little brother, who is also a computer genius looked at it and said, "Oh, don't worry! It just needs (blah, blah, blah, and yada, yada, yada) and it will be just fine." Forgive me, as I'm not real up on the computer lingo. Anyway, he lives in Pittsburgh, but came up as soon as he could to fix it for me. Hence, the marvelous technological piece of equipment that I am enjoying right now. Thanks, Matt!

So now I am gung ho again and am working hard every day to learn how to become a published writer. That's my goal and with a little effort and the help of my Lord, I plan to achieve it!

Other than that, life has slowed down considerably for me. The house is fairly settled, with the exception of the remodeling that needs completed, and I no longer babysit during the day, as the children are back to school. The girls and I have established a wonderful afternoon and evening routine. As for Nick, he started a new job a GE and is working like a mad dag. He is so excited to be there that he is putting in all sorts of crazy hours, often working 12 hours a day. His philosophy is to take it while its there. It might not be tomorrow. Good thinking, I suppose, as long as he doesn't fall asleep driving home. That's my worry. I love him and am thankful for the job and benefits, but I also miss him. He is truly my best friend.

Well, I am not getting much writing done sitting here blogging, so I guess I will go for the evening. I will try to blog on a refular basis again, but am sure it won't be daily. It's hard enough to do everything I want to in a day, and often I don't. But, hey, it's great to be back!