Laurie Jackson's Blog, page 23

Upturned Noses

What am I snobbish about?

My coffee- straight up regular black coffee is what I want. Those fancy lattes with all that cream and sugar- no thank you very much! My coffee has to be medium roast with no cream or sugar. I don’t care for all those funny flavors of coffee either.

I enjoy counted cross-stitch very much. Please do not even get me started on stamped cross-stitch. I’ve tried the stamped cloth kits and those are just not for me. The picture doesn’t turn out right for me. Give me a counted cross-stitch kit or book and I’m a happy person.

Hope your day is filled with sunshine!

Laurie Jackson :)

One-Way Street

If I were given a time machine, I would definitely have to say I’d go back. These days are flying by way too quickly the way it is. I’ll be in the future before I know it.

If I had the chance to go back, I’d want to spend more time with certain family members.

Great-Grandma Hilda-I promise I would listen to your memories of your childhood this time. You grew up riding in horse drawn carriages. I think that’s pretty cool.

Aunt Teckla-you were always such a blast to be around. I enjoyed your humor a great deal. I loved listening to your silly stories.

Grandpa Shorty-to have one more trip around the hay field singing with you and telling jokes.

Grandma Helen-Show me again how to cut out a pattern. Show me again how to make that quilt. I promise I’ll pay attention.

Elvin-to be able to see that smile and hear your laughter one more time. Having fun baling hay with you.

Mindy-my hero, my inspiration, to be able to hold your hand, hear your giggle, watch you play with your Barbie dolls. Just to be able to sit and talk with you would be so awesome.

I miss each and every one of you. Each one of you has touched my life in wonderful ways. There are many memories in my heart of each of you.

Enjoy each day to the fullest. Life is so short.

May your day be full of sunshine and blessings!

Laurie Jackson :)

What Do I Fear?

My biggest fear is the fear of failure.

Growing up, I seriously thought my dad had great pleasure in telling me how stupid I was. Especially when I had to ask him for help with math. It seemed that us four older ones could never do anything right. He didn’t actually call us failures but we were disappointments. His negativity has been ingrained in me. When I feel that I have done something wrong, his voice I hear. I allow myself to listen to his voice for maybe a split second. My little sister’s voice takes over. She tells me to be positive. Sometimes I wish he was still here so that I could ask him why he couldn’t be proud of us all. None of us smoked, did drugs, or got in trouble in school. There are just some things I do not understand when it comes to my father.

I am in school, at my age! I fear that I may fail a course. Sometimes I wonder if my writing is good enough. I have always wanted to be a writer. I often second guess myself about that. I am my own worst enemy. I can nitpick something that I have written to death.

I am ignoring his (Dad’s) voice more and more. I am learning to tell it to shut up and go away! I try to be more positive about my writing. I guess what I am saying is that I feel that I need validation.

Hope your day is full of sunshine and laughter!

Laurie Jackson :)

In Transit

I’ve only been in an airport terminal twice in my life time. Both times I found myself not liking it at all. I am one that does not like crowds. It feels like we are a bunch of soulless zombies fighting our way through the crowd. No one pays any attention to the others around them. Some have earphones in so they can’t hear the buzzing going on.

I was in a train terminal once- to pick up my son. The place was practically deserted. There were a few people mulling about, each in their own little world. Some were listening to music, and some were chatting amongst themselves.

Sometimes I sit outside on my porch and watch the train rumble by. I let my imagination flow. Where is it going? Where has it been? Why are there so many coal cars? Who is getting all that coal?

No matter where I am, I am a people watcher. I have learned to develop and create characters by people watching.

Hope your day is full of sunshine and blessings!

Laurie Jackson :)

Please feel free to visit my website.

Continuation of Third Time’s The Charm

This is a continuation of Third Time’s the Charm. In the last blog, I said something about a letter I had found in the bottom of the box.

It was a letter that I wrote to my sister after her passing. I had written that I miss her so much. I also told her that my son, Elmer, missed her like crazy. He was constantly asking where she was. (He was two years old when she passed.) In the letter, I was also thanking her for touching my life the way she did (and still does). I thanked her for believing in me and encouraging me to follow my dreams. I told her that I try to stay positive the way she used to be. (Even in her pain, she smiled.)

I had asked if she was enjoying her Barbie doll house and her Barbie car in Heaven. (Her favorite pastime was playing with her Barbies.) I asked her, too, if she was enjoying her healthy life and having fun with God.

I apologize for the “tease”. I did not realize I had done that.

Thanks for stopping by!

Laurie Jackson :)

Third Time’s The Charm

In the first post, I wrote about my little sister and the battle she had with cancer. The second post, I wrote about how I found myself. Thanks to my little sister and her encouragement, I found who I am truly supposed to be–a writer.

Think about the phrase- Lost and Found

I lost my sister but I found myself. I was going through some boxes that had been packed away. In one box, there were treasures of things Mindy had given me. There was a letter she had written to me and my son on his baptism. I found a plaster she had made during one of her many hospital stays. There was also a picture of a rainbow. She loved rainbows. In the bottom of the box, laid an envelope. It had Mindy’s name on it but it was my handwriting. I picked it up and turned it over. It was sealed. So, I slowly opened the envelope and pulled out the piece of paper inside. It was a letter to Mindy. By the time I read to the bottom of the paper, tears flowed down my cheeks. I felt better, though. I knew she was where she was supposed to be.

I have been working on Mindy’s story for many years now. It’s time to complete it. The pieces I found will be included in her story.

Love and miss you like crazy, Mindy!!

Hope your day is full of sunshine and blessings!

Laurie Jackson

Please feel free to check out my website. Thank you!

Welcome, Stranger

Alex and I have lived here in this town for a year now. It’s a small rural country town. (292 population). One thing strange I noticed was the pronunciation of the name— CALLAO. The natives pronounce it CALLEO. Okay, so change the spelling. We did not know how to say the name, so when we said it wrong, people were like Huh? Where’s that place?

The neighbors start putting Christmas decorations up the first weekend in October every year. At first, I thought how weird. What about Halloween or Thanksgiving? I found out he does this because his light display takes until Thanksgiving to set up everything. It is beautiful display. There are a ton of people who come to visit and see the lights.

We moved here so that I would have a quiet place to write. And Alex wanted acreage. For the most part, it’s pretty quiet. There is a post office, an elementary school, a few churches, a city hall and Callao has its own police officer.

Another strange thing are the ordinances. There’s at least 500 ordinances. No, I have not read them.

When Alex and I tell anyone where we live, the remark is usually, “Ohhh, so YOU’RE the ones who bought that place.” Their eyebrows go up.

The people we have met are really nice. Dogs bark, cats meow, and trains rumble by.

So, this is our “strange” little country town. I believe Alex and I fit right in.

Hope your day is full of blessings and sunshine!

Laurie Jackson :)

Please visit my website.

Big Day Ahead – Speech

I was in the eighth grade. In order to graduate from middle school to high school, I had to take a communications class. It was part of the English class credit. When Mr. Cheeks, (truly was his name) told the class that we had to give speeches, my heart sank. I don’t know what I thought communications meant but certainly not standing in front of the class and TALK! I am not one to talk a whole lot. I’d rather just sit and watch. But, nooooo, Mr. Cheeks said we all had to have a turn. How nice of him…

The night before I had to give my speech, I practiced in front of a mirror. I cried myself to sleep because I was so nervous.  The day of the speech, before I left for school, Mom gave me tons of encouragement and hugs. I had butterflies in my tummy. I took deep breaths when it was my turn to talk. I said a silent prayer. Yeah, those were the longest three minutes EVER! I was thankful that was over. Nope, I did not do very well. My speech was given in about one minute–was told I talked to fast. Go figure. To this day, I have learned that nothing really calms me down until AFTER the BIG DAY is over. By the way, I still don’t like to talk in front of people.

Hope your day is full of sunshine and blessings!

Thanks for stopping by!

Laurie Jackson :)

Please feel free to visit my website. Be sure to sign the guestbook or drop me an email. I would love to hear from you.

Your Voice Will Find You

I awoke wondering if this were to be another typical day in our house. I was in the kitchen preparing my kids’ lunches when it all started.

My youngest daughter waltzed into the kitchen. I looked up from the task at hand. I sighed and told myself, “Yep, another typical day.” I said to my beautiful daughter and asked, “What is that on your face?”

She just shrugged as she grabbed a bowl out of the cabinet. “It’s called make-up, Mother! Maybe you should try it sometime.” She smirked at me. Before I could reply, another of my beautiful daughters walked in. I looked at her and then I looked up at the ceiling. I mumbled to myself, “Please, if your listening, please help me keep my control.”

That daughter decided to dress like death warmed over. She was dressed all in black with her face as pale as a ghost.

“Why are you wearing that?” I asked her.

Her reply was, “All the kids wear this, Mom. May be you should try it sometime.” Well, by now my oldest daughter had danced her way into the kitchen. She decided to wear the shortest skirt ever made to school.

“Are you sure you have all of that skirt on? It’s pretty short!” I said to her.

She put her hands on her hips and said, “Oh, Mother, seriously! Yes, all the skirt is here. Maybe you should try wearing one sometime.”

Her response and the way she said it was the last straw for me.

I pointed to my youngest daughter and said, “You, go wash that stuff off your face! You look like a raccoon! By the way, you are too young to wear make-up! Now go!” I turned to my middle daughter and told her, “Have you looked in a mirror? You look like death!” Before I could tell my other daughter to change her clothes, she said to me, “What is wrong with you, Mom? Usually you are pretty cool about stuff.”

I said, “An evil force has entered my body! No daughter of mine will ever leave the house looking the way you three look. Now, do what I say! GO!”

As the trio left the kitchen, I told myself, “Yep, just another typical day….”

Thanks for stopping by!

Laurie Jackson :)

Feel free to visit my website.

Procrastinating

UGH!!! I have been avoiding doing my assignments for school. I do not feel like doing anything today, except maybe sit outdoors in the warmth of the sun. :) I have been doing everything else but what I am supposed to be doing! I SHOULD be replying to two peers on the discussion board. I SHOULD be picking out the elements (protagonist, antagonist, conflict, setting and turning point) of a short story I wrote.

I keep telling myself that I should get my assignments done so that I can continue to work on writing my sister’s story.

FINE!!! I will TRY my best to complete my homework.

Have a blessed, sunny day!

Laurie Jackson :)

Please visit my website.