Lillie Ammann's Blog, page 113

International Literacy Day 2013

As a writer and avid reader, I am passionate about literacy. From a selfish perspective, people who aren’t literate aren’t candidates to read my books. More importantly, and less selfishly, I know how much reading means to me, and I want everyone to be able to share the experience. In addition, literacy is required for most jobs that provide opportunities for the future. Simple tasks of daily living require basic literacy.

An individual who can’t read a book or the newspaper misses out on excitement, education, entertainment.

A man who can’t fill out application is severely limited in the kinds of jobs he can work. Even if he gets hired, a worker who can’t read the boss’s instructions or who can’t prepare a written report required as part of his duties can’t perform his job well enough to keep it, especially in slow economic times.

A mother who can’t read the instructions on a bottle of medicine for her baby is at high risk of administering the medicine in the wrong dosage or the wrong way , potentially harming rather than helping the child.

Today, September 8, is International Literacy Day. The International Reading Association says this on its website:

International Literacy Day, observed annually on September 8, focuses attention on worldwide literacy needs. More than 774 million of the world’s adults (nearly two-thirds of whom are women) do not know how to read or write, and roughly 123 million children lack those same skills, and are often denied any access to education.

This year, the International Reading Association has adopted the theme “Invent Your Future.” Our goal? To help shine a light on the crucial literacy skills that prime students for success in school, work, and life. (emphasis added)

Today’s activities are focused on school activities to prepare students to succeed in their future. This is critical—if we can educate children, they will function in society when they become adults. But there are many adults today who are illiterate. They need to know it’s not too late. They can find an adult literacy agency that can help them learn the skills they failed to learn as children. No matter how little education they have had or how young or old they are, they can gain basic skills.

A man can learn to read and write well enough to get and keep a job.

A mother can ensure that she gives her baby the right dosage of medicine administered in the correct way.

Men, women, boys, and girls can learn to read for information and for fun. They can keep up with what’s happening in their community by reading their local newspaper (in print or online) or learn about their interests, whether it be history or horse racing. Vicariously in the pages of books, they can travel, fall in love, solve mysteries, develop great friendships, and experience things they will never have a chance to do for real.

If you’re an avid reader like me, imagine the joy you will experience if you see someone learn to read for the first time. Help that happen by volunteering or contributing to literacy organizations in your community. Or if you personally know someone who is not literate, offer to help them to learn to read and write. You will enjoy watching them succeed, and they will appreciate an opportunity to make their lives better.

How Did I Become So Beautiful in My Old Age?

The first anniversary of my husband’s death is coming up in a couple of weeks. In some ways it seems like only yesterday that he was with me, and in other ways it seems like forever. I still talk to him—so if you hear me talking in an empty house, don’t think I’m crazy. I’m not talking to myself.

Family, friends, neighbors, and my church family have been incredibly helpful to me. I’m so blessed to be able to continue to live in the home Jack designed and built and to work in my home office.

One thing has really surprised me, though. After I changed my relationship status on Facebook to widowed, I started getting messages from men. I didn’t even know there was a place for messages from people who weren’t Facebook friends. My helper, Betsy, pointed it out to me one time when one of her friends sent me a message. When I went to find that message, I found a number of messages from men. All of them were along these lines: “I saw your picture and had to contact you. You are so beautiful [pretty] and have such a charming [intriguing] smile. I’ve been widowed [divorced] for several years and am so lonesome. I would love to chat with you …”

I confess that I haven’t updated my photo since I’ve been on oxygen, so they’re not seeing the tubing stretched across my face. But no one but my husband has ever called me pretty before. In fact, when I was in college, my boyfriend-of-the-moment and I went  on a double-date with a friend of his. The next day my so-called boyfriend told me that when I was coming down the stairs in the dorm to meet them in the lobby, his buddy said, “That’s the ugliest woman I’ve ever seen.”

Now, I don’t think I’m the ugliest woman there is, but I certainly can’t honestly be called beautiful. I don’t mind because beauty is only skin deep, and I focus on what’s really important. Most people who know me would probably say I’m a kind person, and that’s what’s important to me.

But I’m sad to realize there are men lonely enough to seek a relationship with plain widows they don’t even know. Do they think I’m lonely enough to fall for their lines? If they read Jack Stories: Favorites Memories of Jack Jordan Ammann Jrand realized how very special Jack was, they would understand that his memory is too strong for me to be interested in a relationship with anyone else.

Happy Labor Day 2013

Labor Day has been a day for a holiday from work, parades, and picnics, for more than a hundred years.

Although Labor Day was originally created for members of labor unions, only a small percentage of workers today are part of labor unions. Today all workers, union members or not, can enjoy a day to celebrate their job. Give thanks that you are working, and if the job isn’t exactly what you would like it to be, remember that in these economic times, having a job of any kind is a blessing.

Entrepreneurs and managers can also enjoy the day because even though they aren’t considered to be part of labor, they certainly do labor along with their workers. Be thankful that you are still in business or still hold a management position and appreciate the workers who help create the success you enjoy.

For those workers who are unemployed and seeking a job, enjoy a day off from your search and begin anew tomorrow. Appreciate the ability to work and the opportunity to look for any job for which you’re qualified.

ALMIGHTY God, our heavenly Father, who declarest thy glory and showest forth thy handiwork in the heavens and in the earth; Deliver us, we beseech thee, in our several callings, from the service of mammon, that we may do the work which thou givest us to do, in truth, in beauty, and in righteousness, with singleness of heart as thy servants, and to the benefit of our fellow men; for the sake of him who came among us as one that serveth, thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (1928 Book of Common Prayer)

photo by:


BiblioArchives / LibraryArchives

50 Years Ago: Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream Speech

Listen to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr deliver his powerful and moving “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington 50 years ago today.

Stick-to-itiveness: A Real Word and a Key to Success

When I was a kid, my mother always said I had stick-to-itiveness. When I asked her what it meant, she told me that it sometimes seemed like plain old stubbornness, but it really meant sticking with something and not giving up. I always thought my mother made up the word by just adding iveness to stick-to-it. My mother was a smart woman, but had only a high school education. She didn’t have a huge vocabulary and spoke plainly. I had never heard anyone else use this word, and I never bothered to look it up in a dictionary. I just felt sure it wouldn’t be there. I even wrote about stick-to-it-iveness in a guest post at Confident Writing several years ago, attributing the word to my mother.

Then recently I read an article in a newsletter from Jim Blasingame, The Small Business Advocate. I don’t have a link to the article because it was an email newsletter, and I don’t think the newsletters are posted online. However, you can find many great articles about entrepreneurship and small business on the website.

Jim’s article was about the importance of stick-to-itiveness for small business owners. Then, I did look up the word and discovered it is a real word with the first known use in 1867! According to Merriam-Webster Online, the word means “ dogged perseverance : tenacity.” As expected, it originated from the phrase “stick to it.”

To succeed as a writer, an entrepreneur, an artist, an employee, a spouse, a parent, a whatever–you-want-to-succeed-at, you must have stick-to-it-iveness.

Stick to it when success seems out of reach. Stick to it when you feel quitting. Stick to it when you think you can’t hold on a minute longer.

Stick-to-it-iveness can take you from beginning writer to published author. It can take your business from struggling start-up to profitable enterprise. Stick-to-it-iveness can take a starving artist to a selling artist, a marginal employee to a valued team member, or a terrified bumbling new parent to a confident and capable one.

Stick-to-it-iveness has no time limit. Success may come quickly or painfully slowly, but it won’t come if you give up too soon. If you don’t stick to it, you might quit just as you’re on the verge of success.

Stick-to-it-iveness, tenacity, persistence, determination, perseverance, whatever you call it, it’s necessary for success in anything you do.

photo by:


Badly Drawn Dad

Storytelling at Lil Country Store

My sister and I are having fun with Lil Country Store. Although she is the one running the store on a daily basis, I get to order inventory and pay the bills. I also get to tell stories, and I love telling stories as much or more than writing stories.

We had storytelling as part of our grand opening, and folks loved it. We plan to set up a regular schedule for storytelling events. The first one is Saturday, August 31, 2013, at 2:00 PM.

The storytelling event is free and fun for the whole family. The adults will be in the cool, air-conditioned store, and the children will be outside on the front porch. Teens and preteens can choose to be with the children, with the adults, or to move from one to the other.

Not only will I be telling some of my favorite stories, but also we will open the floor for guests to tell their stories. Just remember, if you’re telling country tales, you must adhere to the sacred country tradition that at least 10% of your story has to be true. Otherwise, you’re telling tall tales—and we love them, too!

We are located 6 miles west of Dilley, in the Eagle Ford oil fields as well as near farmers in the community. We’re convenient to Dilley, Pearsall, Cotulla, Big Wells, San Antonio, Laredo, and everywhere in between those cities. We are currently open 10 AM to 10 PM, Monday through Friday. However, we will re-evaluate our hours when we get our beer license (should be soon!) and when hunting season arrives.

You can find contact information about the Lil Country Store at www.thelilcountrystore.com.

Come on out on August 31st armed with your favorite story to share! We look forward to seeing you at the storytelling!

 

 

 

 

 

I’m Participating in Blog Action Day

I’m looking forward to Blog Action Day on October 16th. On that day bloggers around the world will be posting on the subject of Human Rights. As I have repeatedly said, the most basic human right is the right to live. My post will be pro-life. I will be advocating for the most vulnerable members of our society—unborn babies.

If you’re interested in taking part in Blog Action Day, just click on the image and sign up on the Blog Action Day website.  You can write about any aspect of human righs.

Courtesy of: http://www.blogactionday.org

An Encouraging Evening

I haven’t gotten out much in the last few years. First, I had health problems of my own, then my husband developed Alzheimer’s. I cared for him until his death, and he  didn’t like people to see him in his diminished condition. We went to a lot of doctors’ appointments, and we went to Walmart and Denny’s once a week. Other than that we stayed at home most of the time.

Since Jack’s death last September, I have been dealing with health issues. Finally I got on oxygen and am able to be much more active. I go to Sunday School and church on Sunday mornings and have been attending a weekly Bible study. Tonight I attended a special event—the end-of-the-year banquet for the Randolph Roadrunners Track & Field Club.

Iman Zakaria (pictured above with me at the banquet), the daughter of my friends Shawne and Amir Zakaria, finished her first season with the Roadrunners by participating in the Junior Olympics as a member of the relay team. The team ran their best time ever and had a wonderful experience at the meet in Detroit.

I didn’t expect to be able to attend the banquet because I don’t drive much and not at all at night. However, Amir took Iman, her grandmother—my friend Ethel Stewart, and me while Shawne was at the facility setting up for the banquet.

Although Iman was the only athlete I knew, I enjoyed the evening and found it extremely encouraging. We hear so much about troubled kids and broken homes that sometimes it seems as if all families are dysfunctional. Greed and selfishness are so common we forget how much generosity and selflessness there is.

Tonight I saw children and young people from elementary through high school recognized for their participation. The videos of the kids involved in their sports showed athletes having fun as they pushed themselves to excel.

I saw proud parents who supported their children throughout the season–taking them to practices and meets, working at fundraisers, and encouraging the athletes to be their best.

I saw coaches committed to encouraging, teaching, and developing the athletic skills of other people’s children. Although the coaches are successful in training the kids in track and field, the most important thing I saw was the love that these men and women have for the children in their charge. The coaches’ affection for the children was as obvious as the children’s love of their coaches. The coaches are strong role models for the young people, especially significant because most of the coaches and many of the athletes are African-American, and young black men (like all young men) need role models of the caliber of these men and  women.

Many other volunteers make this club successful. Behind the scenes, the admin staff keeps things running smoothly. They are as dedicated to the kids as the parents and coaches.

Thanks to Shawne and Amir for inviting and taking me to the banquet. Congratulations to Iman for her success in her first year of track. Kudos to the coaches, staff, parents, and athletes of the Randolph Roadrunners.

I Did It My Way—Not!

I read this article lauding living one’s life “my way.” It made me realize I don’t want to live my life “my way.” I want to live my life God’s way.

When I stand before the eternal judgement seat, I want to hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful slave.” That won’t happen if I live my life “my way.” That will happen only if if I use my God-given talents (however great or small) to do His will, not my will.  That will happen only if I read, know, and do God’s Word, found in the Holy Bible.

14 “For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey. 16 Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents. 17 In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more. 18 But he who received the one talent went away, and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

19 “Now after a long time the master of those slaves *came and *settled accounts with them. 20 The one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you entrusted five talents to me. See, I have gained five more talents.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

22 “Also the one who had received the two talents came up and said, ‘Master, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more talents.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

24 “And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’

26 “But his master answered and said to him, ‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered no seed. 27 Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest. 28 Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’

29 “For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. 30 Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

~ Matthew 25: 14-30 (Emphasis added)

DIRECT us, O Lord, in all our doings, with thy most gracious favour, and further us with thy continual help; that in all our works begun, continued, and ended in thee, we may glorify thy holy Name, and finally, by thy mercy, obtain everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (1928 Book of Common Prayer)

Top Goodreads Reviewer

I had a pleasant surprise in my inbox this morning. A message from Otis Chandler, CEO and Co-Founder of Goodreads.com, said:

On behalf of the Goodreads team, I want to say thank you. You’re in the top 1% of reviewers on Goodreads! Your many thoughtful book reviews help make us a vibrant place for book lovers.

And our community has been growing! We now number more than 20 million members on Goodreads.

Although I post a few book reviews here on my blog—primarily when an author requests a review—I post a review, though it may be brief, of every book I read at Goodreads. You’ll find a list of the 556 books I’ve read and rated, with most of the reviews of books I’ve read in the last four years.