Tag Archives: Life lessons

Reader Friday-Life Happens

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Simple question this morning, TKZers. Or maybe not so simple…

Inquiring minds want to know…

 

Life happens, right?

In your Reading/Writing life, is there a particular event from your own life that crops up over and over in what you write or choose to read? What “happening” in your own sojourn on planet earth flavors your stories? Something sad, or happy, or chaotic? Something that lifted you to new heights, or threw you down and stomped on you?

Each character is colored by my life experiences. Yours?

 

 

Not to be too gloomy or bleak, for me it was losing my younger brother and sister five years apart. Those dark years, as sad as they were while living through them, have formed my characters into people who know what’s important. And they teach me.

So, how about you? What about your life feeds into your favorite characters, either written or read?

 

 

 

 

Life Lessons from Geese to Writers

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The title of this post is not a play on words. As I might’ve mentioned a time or two, we can learn a lot from animals.

This time, the life lessons come from one of our feathered friends. Or enemies, if you’re Canadian. Winking at you, Garry!

Achieving Together

Geese fly farther together than apart. When a goose flaps their wings, it creates lift for the geese that follow, making it easier for the whole flock to fly. By flying in V formation, the whole flock adds 72% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone.

If a goose falls out of formation, they feel the resistance of flying alone and quickly retake their position to benefit from the lifting power of the group.

Lesson: We are all part of the same community (if you missed my post re: writing community etiquette, find it here). By working together — accepting and giving help to one another — we move closer to reaching our goals faster than if we traveled this road alone.

Collective Responsibility

Geese understand they all have a responsibility to take their turn to lead the formation. When the lead goose tires, it moves back into formation and another goose flies to the front to take its place.

Lesson: Like geese, we depend on each other’s skills, capabilities, experience, opportunities, and resources. When everyone plays their part and shares experiences, skills, and/or challenges, like we do here on TKZ, it benefits others in our community.

How many writers have honed their craft from this blog over the last 13 years? My hand’s raised. Is yours?

The Power of Positivity

When in flight, geese in the back formation honk to encourage those at the front to keep up their speed. Basically, they’re cheering them on.

Lesson: This positive reinforcement is a reminder to us all to give praise and kindness to one another. If one of us succeeds, we all should celebrate. If someone falls, we should be there to pick them up, dust them off, and encourage them to keep going — perseverance wins the race!

Support Every Individual

The instinct to care and protect is ingrained in every goose. The care of the flock is a fundamental need. When a goose is sick or wounded, two geese will drop out of formation and follow him/her to the ground to offer help and protection until they can fly again. The trio will then add their numbers to another formation or catch up to their flock.

Lesson: Though we write alone at the keyboard, we also need the care and attention of others in our community to help us get to where we want to go. So, support your fellow writers. They are your tribe, not your competition.

10 Fun Facts About Geese

(that have nothing to do with the point of this post 😉 )

  1. As goslings, geese will bond with the first suitable moving stimulus, no matter if it’s a goose, person, or object. They remain dedicated to that goose, person, or object as their surrogate parent throughout their lives.
  2. Geese are highly social animals. If they are raised around other livestock and fowl, they usually get along well with them.
  3. Goose is the term for female geese. Male geese are called ganders. A group of geese on land or in water are a gaggle, while in the air they’re called a skein.
  4. Geese eat seeds, nuts, grass, plants, and berries.
  5. They are the largest waterfowls, the other being swans. Though geese are waterfowls, they spend most of their time on land.
  6. Geese are loyal. They mate for life and are super protective of their partners and offspring.
  7. Geese grieve the loss of their partners and offspring. So, don’t shoot them for fun!

Ahem. Moving on…

  1. Geese enjoy preening their feathers, foraging for food in the grass, and collecting twigs, bark, and leaves to make home improvements to their nests.
  2. Geese form strong attachments and affection for others in their group.
  3. Because of their loyalty and love, geese make excellent guard dogs. The internet is filled with golfers who learned this the hard way. LOL

The next time you witness geese (or other birds) flying in formation, think about your fellow writers — fellow humans. Sometimes all it takes is a kind word to make someone’s day. With all the anger and hatred in the world, be the lift they need.

*I’m out of town today, and will respond to comments when I get home tomorrow.

All I Really Needed to Know, I Learned from my Parents

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Jordan Dane
@JordanDane

If you’ve never read humorist Robert Fulghum, treat yourself by buying his books. His most famous one is ‘All I Really Needed to Know, I Learned in Kindergarten.’ More than 17 million copies of his books are in print, in 31 languages, in 103 countries.

On the downloads tab of his website, he had a delightful offering – Argentina Tango Chronicles – tales from a solo traveler. Since I am traveling solo to northern Italy in the fall, I can’t wait to read how Fulghum makes the most of his trips where he reinvents himself in foreign lands. Yes, he even changes his name.

Robert Fulghum grew up in Waco, Texas. In his youth he worked as a ditch-digger, newspaper carrier, ranch hand, and singing cowboy. After college, he had a brief career with IBM, but he wasn’t satisfied. After completing his graduate degree in theology, he served 22 years as a Unitarian parish minister in the Pacific Northwest. He’s taught drawing, painting, art history and philosophy. He’s also an accomplished painter and sculptor and sings, plays guitar and mando-cello. Fulghum even marches in parades, playing cymbals and tambourine.

Now that’s a diverse resume. He’d be a blast to hang out with.

His good-natured stories about families and life lessons are told with subtle ‘feel good’ humor. I love reading his short stories at bedtime, particularly after a long, trying day. His humor, and his ways of structuring a short story, always makes me laugh.

Fulghum’s work makes me think about my own upbringing and what I’ve learned from my parents. I’ve been blessed with a loving family and wanted to share my parents with you, my TKZ family.

***

My parents (Ignacio & Kathryn) have been married 68 years. They had a picture-perfect wedding in San Antonio at one of the oldest active cathedrals in the United States, the stunning San Fernando Cathedral, founded in 1731. We are blessed that they are still healthy and active and thriving. Good genes.

My dad is 93 years old and still going strong. I call him ‘the renaissance man’ because there is NO TOPIC that doesn’t interest him or that he wouldn’t try. He gave me my love for art and self-expression. He also gave me a competitive spirit and a ‘never say never’ attitude at trying new things. In his career, he designed and built things – an architect who became influential in developing downtown San Antonio. He actually named the Riverwalk – the Paseo del Rio. He retired early, but that didn’t stop him from exploring his love for the many things that still interest him. He has a mind like a sponge, always learning. I hope I have a fraction of his ability. He loves to cook, especially gourmet food and exotic recipes. This is the guy who dug a pit in our backyard to cook game on a spit or who wrapped fish in banana leaves to cook in an underground oven.

To this day, my dad studies food and painting techniques as if he were a young man. He’s a constant inspiration on how to grab life and hang on tight. He loves mind puzzles and the strategies of playing chess. Despite having hearing problems–due to his stubbornness at wearing hearing aids–he’s quick with a joke that makes me laugh. I usually say that my worst habits, I got from my dad, but I’m thankful I inherited other things too.

My mother is 90 years old. From her, I learned my lifetime love for reading. I have many fond memories with my mom, but she literally taught me how to devour books and planted the seed for my love of writing. Summers off from school were spent at the library (in the stacks) and I came home with dozens of books to read. My mom’s compassion for people and her generosity helped me see the world in a different way. That certainly gave me the insight to write about the lives of others in my books. She’s my best friend. We talk several times a day and I am their primary care giver, living only minutes away. Quite a change from when I was an angry rebellious teen. Even with our age difference, she has an intriguing mind that has adjusted over the years. She accepts a great deal and tries to understand things. We have long talks about how everything has changed, but she is curious and I love it.

Both my parents have a great deal of humor, but they are different. That doubles down the fun. I buy my mom the latest in Youtube (she calls it U2) viral video-wear, like her ‘Honey Badger Don’t Care‘ shirt or the Weiner Dog tee she’s wearing in this pic. Dad tries not to be seen with her in public when she’s wearing them. (Isn’t she cute?)

But on a day of weakness, even dad can be persuaded to do crazy family stuff, like the time we did a retreat to celebrate Willie Nelson. Long story. Even my dogs have headbands and braids.

FOR DISCUSSION:
1.) Please share what you learned from your parents or your childhood that has influenced you as an adult.

2.) Any funny stories to share?

Now if you’ll excuse me. My tambourine lesson is in thirty minutes.

“In the Heart of a Child, One Moment Can Last Forever” – Share Your Moment

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Jordan Dane
@JordanDane

I hope you all had a great July 4th holiday. I hosted my parents for a ribs dinner for my holiday celebration. I’ve been on a ketogenic diet (more of a lifestyle than a diet) and have been feeling AMAZING. I’m more energized and have been sleeping well and waking up refreshed and ready to go. As I’m writing this, I’ve had my Keto Coffee, which is like a buttery latte with strong coffee. Yum!

For today’s post, I wanted to share the idea behind a book that a friend recommended me to read. JUST A MINUTE by Wess Stafford is based on a theme that touched me – “In the heart of a child, one moment can last forever.” Although this is a Christian-based book, it holds stories that can touch anyone. Its chapters are split into several categories: moments for rescue, to build self-worth, to form character, to discover talent, to awaken the spirit, to stretch the mind, and to realize one’s calling.

If you think back in your life, can you remember times when the special attention of an adult helped define who you became as an adult? These moments don’t have to be earth shattering. Just moments you have never forgotten, for a reason, because they meant (and still mean) something to you all these years later.

My parents have given me a lifetime of these moments. They recently celebrated their 67th anniversary and I wanted to share their wedding pictures with you.

My mother has given me many of these life-altering moments. She is the first person I think of when I ponder who I was as a child and who I became as an adult. My father had his influence, but my mom was in the trenches with us growing up while dad worked long hours to keep my five siblings in private school in a house he designed (as an architect).

Under the category of TO DISCOVER TALENT – my mom had the opposite effect. After it took me a few years to decide what my major would be in college, I called her to say that I had made up my mind and that I would be getting a B. S. (Business Degree) with an emphasis on Accounting. The first words out of her mouth were, “You’re not good at math.” Yeah, thanks for the vote of confidence, mom. In complete irony, I proved her wrong (sort of). I had 6 hours of deficiencies in math that kept me from taking a necessary course – Statistics. I was advised to bite the bullet and take the 6 hours in other math courses before I would be considered proficient enough to endure Stat. With my Irish dander up, I called B.S. on that and just took the damned Stat class. I finished with a B, one of my lowest grades. When it came time for my graduation, I realized I was still short those 6 hours before I could graduate. I went to the Dean of the school (someone who knew me well from all my hours on the Student Council) and asked him to waive the 6 hours. It obviously was a mistake if I could pass Stat. He agreed and said he would remove the deficiency if I could tell him a good joke. For the price of a good joke, I graduated with honors. Yes, my mom stirred up my competitive spirit and raised the Irish in me–a skill that has served me well.

Under the category of TO FORM CHARACTER, My mom once caught me sneaking out a small bottle of aspirin filled with liquor when I was going to a party of teens. I had planned to share that little bottle with a few of my girlfriends. When she found it in my purse, she told me I was busted and couldn’t go to the party. I told her I understood and was prepared to take my lumps. I didn’t make a fuss. But after a short while, my mom rethought her position and came to me with a moment that changed my life forever. She said that if I promised NOT to take a drink at the party, she would still let me go. She trusted me. That moment of trust made me feel like an adult. At the party, even though alcohol was present, I did not take ONE SIP of it. I told all my friends that I had made a promise to my mom that I would keep. That life lesson stuck with me. After that, I never lied to my mom. I learned that lies diminished me, then and now. If I couldn’t face the truth of who I am as a human being and had to resort to a lie to fake it, what did that make me? I learned to own my truth.

Mom also learned a lesson. If she didn’t want to really know something about me, she shouldn’t ask if she couldn’t handle the truth. I loved shocking her whenever she asked me about things happening in my life. This was the woman who said on my wedding day, “I’d tell you about the birds and the bees, but I’m afraid you’d correct me.” Reality isn’t in her wheelhouse.

What about YOU, TKZers? Who influenced the adult you have become? Please share some of your stories and what you learned from them.