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by Gwendolyn M Plano Every week author Ronovan Hester offers a Haiku Prompt Challenge of two words. This week his words are tart and sweet. If you are interested in trying this art form, please click on his name and you'll be led to his website where he describes the rules and offers encouragement. My poem focuses on desire, evoked by the senses. 
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by Gwendolyn M Plano This week, poet Ronovan Hester offers a Haiku Challenge Prompt of Zen and Noise. If you are inspired to try Haiku, just click on Ronovan's name and you'll be led to his site where he explains the rules. Having practiced Zen for a number of years in Japan, this was a particularly interesting challenge. I don't sit cross-legged anymore, nor do I focus on a koan (a special word or phrase). But, I do enjoy silence. I am drawn to prayer, to sitting quietly with the Divine; I appreciate nature, and to walking into its beauty; and, when I'm with a friend or loved one, there is a special silence that brings me into my heart. My poem is about the latter and is entitled My Zen Retreat.  by Gwendolyn M Plano We didn't know them, the children who died in Coral Springs, Florida. But, through our tears, we found them. One by one, we met Alyssa, Martin, Jamie, Gina and so many more as they lay lifeless on the school floors. Their friends cried out to us and showed us their faces. And now, they are strangers no more. Ronovan's Haiku prompts for this week are quick and slip. With the children in mind, I offer my poem.  by Gwendolyn M Plano Milton Berle once said, “Laughter is an instant vacation.” Well, I’m inviting you to take a vacation today. Truly. After you finish reading your Valentine’s Day cards, sit back and consider my discovery. On Monday, author John Howell published a list of Top 10 Gifts Not to Give on Valentine’s Day. Well, his number one not-to-give was a magnet for the dishwasher that indicates clean vs. dirty. What? I didn’t know these existed. Everyday without fail, my husband asks me, “Are these clean or dirty?” Sometimes I beat him to the punch and tell him his needed answer. It always makes me smile. Is it really that complicated? It turns out that it is. I went to Amazon and checked. There are 20 pages of magnets for the dishwasher that let a person know if the dishes are clean or not. AND, there are 1000s of reviews. 1000s! Who knew? Folks may not write a review for a book but they certainly write reviews for dishwasher magnets. I’m going to share a secret. I know how to have a best seller. Can you guess? You just need the right book cover.  by Gwendolyn M Plano  Three more days and it will be Valentine’s Day. For Hallmark Cards, online and local flower stores, and all vendors of chocolate, this is the day for trumpeting Love – new love, old love, healed love, remembered love. It is a time when hopes and memories meet at the hearth of life, and emerge either invigorated or scorched. For Jan Sikes, an award-winning author, screenwriter and songwriter, love is the heart of life. She learned this the hard way, after her fiancé was incarcerated for 15 years for a crime he did not commit. When he was finally released, they married and began the difficult journey of creating a life together. Music was integral to their relationship and livelihood, and remained so until her husband passed away in 2009. Jan has written a four-book series about her one love, Rick Sikes. In the books, she refers to Rick as "Luke" and herself as "Darlena." It was easier for Jan to write about their love through fictional names. The books follow the stages of their relationship. Flowers and Stone is set in raucous Texas honkytonks where Rick sang and played his guitar. The Convict and the Rose chronicles the time behind bars in Leavenworth Penitentiary. Home at Last captures the years after Rick was released from prison, and Till Death Do Us Part brings the reader to his final goodbye. I just finished the last book; it was a powerful, beautiful story. Jan is a friend and fellow member of the Rave Reviews Book Club. If you are looking for a real love story, this series is one to read. It will warm your heart and fill your senses.  By Gwendolyn M Plano With Valentine's Day just around the corner, Ronovan Hester offers a Haiku Challenge Prompt fit for the occasion: SHY and BLUSH. I've called my poem First Kiss, remembering back decades ago to that moment. Do you remember yours? Sweet, right? If you are inspired to try Haiku, just click on Ronovan's name and you'll be led to his site where he explains the rules. Happy Valentine's Day! ♥  |
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