Unofficial.
It's all very premature on my part to post this header for "Seven Minutes" when the novella is only on its second edit and first round of beta reading, but I'm just so excited to share. Hopefully "Seven Minutes" will be released the end of March.

Stone, a hard-edged lead singer for a metal band, finds himself at a party where an adult version of Seven Minutes in Heaven is being played. With trepidation, Stone pulls Devon's name. Devon, a cross-dressing mechanic, finds himself locking lips with the last person he'd ever suspect willing to do so. Stone can't get Devon out of his head after the party. Devon thinks Stone a complete closet case and writes him off until Stone appears at the garage where Devon works and apologizes. Stone's got a temper. Devon's got attitude. With fire and sass, these two come together...but for how long?

Protection

Protection. What does that word mean to you at this moment? Is there a job you want to keep safe, a home, or maybe a child? Or maybe you're going through a challenging time and feel like you're drifting and wish for some assurance.

Things are challenging for me and my family. We are facing a major move (again) for a job, meanwhile my mother is 800 miles away in a place state that offers little to no work for me and my husband's business, and her health is questionable. We moved there once before and it drained us financially and emotionally, nearly caused divorce. But how do I decide between being with my mom for whatever time she has left or staying with my husband and work? I know many people have been exactly where I am. Many have moved and never regretted the decision; many have stayed because they had to. There isn't a right or wrong answer. And I have to believe when the time is right, and our current lease is up, I'll make the best decision.

Protection and being guided. Sometimes decisions are made for us, like a lunch date being cancelled and then learning later the restaurant had food poisoning. We dodge proverbial bullets all the time. It's a miracle, if you really think about it, that you are here and able to do everything you do. I don't think it's coincidence. Sometimes terrible things happen that are beyond our control, and sometimes for no reason. But those things shape us and often define us. I got hit by a car my first year of college, no permenant injuries, thankfully. I sued the driver and won. Had I not, I wouldn't have had the money to finish school. Terrible, but necessary?

Whatever is going on in your life right now, you are protected, and you are guided. Watch your thoughts and remember simply by being you, you may unknowingly be protecting someone else.

Limitations.

Limitations can be externally or internally created. The external ones we might not have control over, like a debilitating illness or being laid off, but the internal ones we have more power over than we realize.

Take a moment to inventory your beliefs. Examine the truths of statements you might think, ones like "I'm not good enough for that promotion" or "I'll never have that" for validity.

Someone once said to me that the greatest gift we have is the ability to control our thoughts. The more we focus on what we don't have, the more we concentrate on the negative and limit ourselves from obtaining what we really need. 

This week try taking a small step away from negative reinforcement by turning an "I don't have" into a "I have." For example instead of saying "I don't have enough money to buy a new car," turn it into "I will have a new car" or by simply appreciating the car you currently have. It's not easy. Our thoughts are generally more negative than positive. So for one day, if not all week, try to catch yourself and see if what you're thinking or saying is limiting you from achieving what you want, and if so, reword it into something positive. Good luck.

Celebration

Celebration.

Lately, I’ve been completely stressed due to financial worries, new job, and health concerns for both my husband and myself, as well as worrying about my parent’s health. It’s like this big cloud of worry descended, and I’m stuck thinking what the f*ck, Universe.

Today the word Celebrate came up, and I wondered what exactly I had to celebrate when so many worries seem to overwhelm me. The Upanishads have this saying, “Watch your thoughts for they become words. Watch your words for they become actions. Watch your actions for they become character.” By choosing to focus on the things I’m concerned about, I’m actually bringing them into fruition and not seeing the good things, the things worth paying attention to.

Last year, I was terribly ill and during that time I was forced to slow down and think of what was important in my life. It forced me to cut out unessential things and let go of people who had no respect for my illness. It gave me a break, like a pause button on life, which I hadn’t known I’d desperately needed. Even more miraculously, the Universe gave me financial means to take that break.

This year, I’m back to working out and doing things I love and feeling nearly 100%. Cause for Celebration! I finished the fourth edit of a story and got encouraging feedback from a publisher on a previous one. Celebration! I applied for and got a new job, even if it isn’t as many hours as I’d like, it certainly helps my financial concerns. Celebration!

If we can change our perspective, we can find little things to celebrate everyday even when something we view as terrible has happened. I’m not trying to sugarcoat a shit situation. There are dark elements in this world and in our lives, chronic illness, terrorism, environmental disaster, etc., where a reason for celebrating may seem impossible. But there are others worth celebrating, and it’s important to pay attention to those.
A Queen song comes to mind, and though it speaks of miracles, it is a reminder of things we should celebrate, to not take for granted. And I’ll leave you with this…

THE MIRACLE
 by Queen
Every drop of rain that falls in Sahara Desert says it all,
It's a miracle,
All God's creations great and small, the Golden Gate and the Taj Mahal,
That's a miracle,
Test tube babies being born, mothers, fathers dead and gone,
It's a miracle,
We're having a miracle on earth, mother nature does it all for us,
The wonders of this world go on, the hanging Gardens of Babylon,
Captain Cook and Cain and Able, Jimi Hendrix to the Tower of Babel
It's a miracle, it's a miracle, it's a miracle, it's a miracle,
The one thing we're all waiting for, is peace on earth - an end to war,
It's a miracle we need - the miracle, the miracle we're all waiting for today,
If every leaf on every tree, could tell a story that would be a miracle,
If every child on every street, had clothes to wear and food to eat,
That's a miracle,
If all God's people could be free, to live in perfect harmony,
It's a miracle, we're having a miracle on earth,
Mother nature does it all for us
Open hearts and surgery, Sunday mornings with a cup of tea,
Super powers always fighting,
But Mona Lisa just keeps on smiling,

The wonders of this world go on,
It's a miracle, it's a miracle, it's a miracle, it's a miracle,
The one thing we're all waiting for, is peace on earth and an end to war,
It's a miracle we need, the miracle, the miracle,
Peace on earth and end to war today,
That time will come one day you'll see when we can all be friends,

I hope everyone is having a great start to the new year! It's time to jump on those treadmills and run to work off all those cups of eggnog, and delicious pieces of apple pie! 

This year, I want to give back. I want to help other people. More. I'm still figuring out the best way to do this, but one way is to beta read, another is to play/sing at hospice or work with kids, or maybe  just be nicer to people. Maybe helping each other is our only redeeming quality as humans at this point: our government is frozen and the majority of our citizens--as a whole--are paranoid.

I'm guilty. I barely know my neighbors, but I do talk to them on occasion. But if I took the time to know those in my neighborhood, would it help? Would my neighborhood be less hostile? Hmm. Maybe I'll try it out for the new year and see.

The writing:
I'm adoring my beta readers. They have been so very helpful. I also heard back from a publisher, who loved the characters to one of my stories, and if I am willing to make some (drastic plot) changes, I can resubmit. It seems like a positive thing, right? I'm staying hopeful here.

I wish you all the best in the coming year.
Peace and Love