“The ordinary arts we practice every day at home are of more importance to the soul than their simplicity might suggest.”- Thomas More
Author: Yecheilyah
Writing to restore Black historical truth through fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
Truth Is…
…foundational
no structure can exist without it,
and no tree can stand if its truth has not taken root.
Truth is not held captive to the dogma of religion….
held bondage within the framework of theology….
it is not trapped inside the walls of College classrooms,
oppressed by the lips of Baptist ministers,
and does not sing the hymn of Islamic melodies……
it is neither canonized nor done away with….
neither stolen away nor traded amidst the bowels of slave ships…..
truth is not lynched,
nor shackled against the cages of fear….
it refuses to shake hands with deception,
and will never embrace the arms of uncertainty
because truth is always certain.
It is sure to be like nothing you can ever imagine
but be everything you’ve ever hoped for….
it is accepted by the faithful….
and resisted by those who are afraid.
Is Regret Healthy?
“Make it a rule of life never to regret and never to look back. Regret is an appalling waste of energy; you can’t build on it; it’s only good for wallowing in.” – Katherine Mansfield
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Hmm…interesting perspective. I would love to hear your thoughts on this quote. Yay or Nay? Do you agree with Katherine? Is Regret unhealthy? Or are there exceptions to the rule? I’ll hold off on my thoughts for now. Plus, yours is way better. 🙂
Simmering Thoughts
I find that they are always best. Simmered thoughts. Anytime I feel the urge to transcribe my heart into the air I always find that it is best when thoughts have simmered a bit. A constellation of colorful expression brilliantly placed alongside a sea of feeling. A slow cooking of perfection, a lucent idea, crafty creativity, and steamy emotion kept just below the boiling point. Always showing up within those moments of contemplation and stillness. Somewhere between inspiration and writer’s block, a reflection on the world you carry inside of yourself is sure to produce a tasty remedy. A collection of thoughts, and experiences, and advice not yet given, boils down into a sudden birth of writing. We will see what becomes of it.
Writer’s Quote Wednesday – Non-Essentials
Today’s Writer’s Quote Wednesday is from Lin Yutang:
Have you ever known a pack rat? Are you the pack rat? The person who just cannot throw anything away? As such the garage, the storage room, the extra bedroom, or the closet overflows with all of your things. Not just anything, but things. Things that are no longer usable but take up space. This quote reminds me of that.
Anything in life that cannot be used for the benefit of moving forward is a non-essential and is just taking up space. If I cannot make use of this computer, if it is broken and it has proven to go beyond restoration, then it is no use to me. It must be undone. Left alone. I try to look at life in terms of value and quality. Anything that I add to my personal space: relationships, writing, goals, friendships, and even blogging, if it does not assist me in some way, does not add value to my life in some way, then it must be left undone. It is a non-essential. I cannot use it.
The Point of it all? Learn to do away with anything that no longer grows you.
Lin Yutang (October 10, 1895 – March 26, 1976) was a Chinese writer, translator, linguist and inventor. His informal but polished style in both Chinese and English made him one of the most influential writers of his generation, and his compilations and translations of classic Chinese text into English were bestsellers in the West.
Don’t forget to join us every week for Writer’s Quote Wednesday, Hosted by Silver Threading.
Poetic Soul
“Do not write poetry only for its music unless you wish to get lost in the song. Instead, see to it that life gives to life so that you are truly a deliverer, and not just a tool.”
Stella: Book #1
Born: 1845
Owner: Paul Saddler
ID: 637
Name: Stella
Height: 44.0
Sex / Age: Girl, 6
Mama says my feet ain’t little girls feet. Say I shouldn’t be akin like no boy. But I likes running and the way my toes feel wiggling through the mud. I likes the gooey wetness, even the way the red dirt taste too. And I watch the little dusty balls go up in the air and cover up the cotton I was too short to reach anyways. So’s I likes running through the fields to see how high I’s get. One time I’s made it wheres I touched the sun. It wasn’t even hot either. It didn’t feel like nothing but air. I told mama the sun was tricking us.
“And how it do that?”
“Cuz mama, I touched it and it ain’t burn my finger none. It feels hot but it ain’ts really.”
Mama laughed but that’s only cuz she ain’t touched it. And the next day all of us had sticky skin, peeling and sweaty like creepy crawlers running down our backs and foreheads. The grown people say something bout a heat wave, but yesterday mama laughs so’s I know’d it was jest the sun.
1864
Stella Mae, Age: 19
Words can’t explain my excitement. For the first time since befoe Mama died I was actually happy to finish the last of the chores. I think even Ole Marse Saddler noticed it. He commanded me to wipe that ugly smile offa my face. Said nobody’s ugly as me deserved to smile, but I didn’t care none. I’s jest couldn’t stop feelin good. I was ‘bout to leave this place.
– Stella
Stella never did leave the Saddler Plantation as she intended. Find out why in Book #1 of this short story and discover what’s really between slavery and freedom.
The PBS Blog 