Nancy Stephan's Blog, page 4

NaNoWriMo 2019 – Day 7

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NaNoWriMo 2019 – Day 6

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Ask Me Anything!

It’s always nice to share a little about myself with those who read my blog. Here are 10 questions from my readers and my succinct answers to them. Honestly, I could’ve written an essay on each question. You can thank me later.

How did you know writing was your passion? Sky Wisdom

Imagine asking an eagle, “How did you know that flying was your passion?” Well, it’s kinda the same difference. Writing is an instinctual, almost involuntary way of getting myself from point A to point B. Whenever s...

A Part of Life

On June 24, I received news that a friend died in her sleep from heart failure. I was shocked beyond words, which is why it’s taken a moment for me to share my thoughts. Dede and I worked at the same university, and last January, she unexpectedly lost her only child to a congenital heart problem. I didn’t know Dede at that time, but a mutual friend gave her a copy of my book, and we hit it off immediately. With the deaths of our only children, we had a shared experience that made our relation...

Code Talker

I’m in the process of transcribing 32 years of my handwritten journals into a digital format. Some of my earliest journaling was done in standard notebooks that with age have become faded and almost illegible. Yet, it is absolutely incredible reading the landscape of my life written at my various levels of maturity and stages of evolution. 

During this process, I have come across several entries from the late 80s and early 90s that have left me a bit remorseful. Always fearful that someone m...

The Gray In Between

Hopelessness is a perspective, which is to say: Just because you feel hopeless doesn’t mean it is hopeless. There’s something about this time of year that ushers in the doldrums. The magic of the holiday season has passed, and the beauty of spring has not yet sprung. The gray in between can leave us feeling a little more than uninspired. But guess what! There’s a cure for those blues. It’s called change.

If you’re feeling blue, even small, seemingly insignificant changes can add some color t...

Be Happy!

You know what I heard a lot of growing up? Life is not meant to be easy. Know what else I heard? If things are going too smoothly for me, I’d better check myself; the devil might be involved.   Funny, isn’t it? We live in a society that values struggle. It values brokenness. It feeds off of “rags to riches” but never “riches to riches,” unless somewhere in between there is a catastrophic and very public fall from grace. Society doesn’t want you having something that it decides you haven’...

Yesterday’s Headline: Three Slaves Plan Escape, Thwarted

[image error]Reporter: Frederick Douglass

Yesterday’s Story, 1845
I stepped to the door, and inquired what they wanted. They at once seized me, and without giving me any satisfaction, tied me – lashing my hands closely together. I insisted upon knowing what the matter was… In a few moments, they succeeded in tying John. They then turned to Henry, who had by this time returned, and commanded him to cross his hands. “I won’t!” said Henry, in a firm tone, indicating his readiness to meet the consequences of...

Yesterday’s Headline: Overseer Gore Shoots, Kills Unarmed Slave

[image error]Reporter: Frederick Douglass

Yesterday’s Story, 1845
Mr. Gore once undertook to whip one of Col. Lloyd’s slaves, by the name of Demby. He had given Demby but few stripes, when, to get rid of the scourging, he ran and plunged himself into a creek, and stood there at the depth of his shoulders, refusing to come out. Mr. Gore told him that he would give him three calls, and that, if he did not come out at the third call, he would shoot him. The first call was given. Demby made no response, but s...

Marginalia 701

Alignment. It’s the thin ribbon of light that flows through a keyhole, or the signal on the radio dial that requires impeccable precision to find. It’s a small crack in the façade that you walk past every day but don’t notice because it’s as fine as a strand of hair. Then, in a single instant, a sliver of light spills through that crack and opens up like a peacock spreading its feathers, and the light you were once blind to becomes the light that illuminates your path. It has always been the...