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Another reason to write....

6/12/2016

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by Gwendolyn M Plano
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I’ve always enjoyed writing, even though I did not envision myself a writer until recent years. Busy with work and my growing family, there was little time for the play of words. Three years ago, though, I retired and decided it was time to write. On the surface, this was a simple decision, for I imagined that writing would be a process of connecting the stories that made up my life. But, I was mistaken.

I’d awaken in the early morning hours with scenes faded by time, and then would be guided through the corridors of my heart, where I wrestled with confounding flashbacks and elusive threads of connection. In my younger years, I had been in an unhealthy relationship and over time, I lost my sense of self. As I walked back into this experience, I felt the terror, felt the despair and my heart nearly broke. Then I realized—the tears and gasps came and went--because they could.

One story after another unfolded on paper, as sections from frayed journals and yellowed family photos came alive and spoke to me. The dramas that once controlled my life and held me captive were but ailing memories, soon to meet their demise. And as I gazed upon this human collage of struggles and apprehensions, a miracle occurred: I realized that my journey was everyone’s journey.

We all face challenges; we all struggle with adversity. Who doesn’t experience sorrow, fear or regret? And, don’t we all go through life trying to make sense of it all? When I realized the commonality of our collective quest, and saw how hardships shift our horizons, soften our hearts, and often bring us home to ourselves, I began to see the blessings inherent in life’s hurdles. And this, more than anything else, drove me to write.

The patchwork of memories that formed the outline of my book was ultimately given new life by the collective story of our human quest for the one Perfect Love. This is why walking through our past is a journey of the highest order. Not only do we redeem the broken remnants, we realize the hidden blessings.

Bishop Kallistos Ware wrote that, “at the Last Judgment, God will not ask me why I was not Moses or Abraham... God will ask me why I was not my own true self. That is our aim, to become truly ourselves…”

It seems so simple, doesn’t it? But, for me and perhaps for most of us, to become truly ourselves can be a lifelong journey. And writing? Well, it is one way to find that elusive self, but there are so many other ways. What is yours?

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...a glimpse of our journey to Alaska...

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Author Karen Ingalls shares her journey....

6/3/2016

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by Gwendolyn M Plano
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It is my pleasure to introduce author Karen Ingalls.  She is a retired registered nurse with a master's degree in psychology and human services. She is the author of the award-winning book, Outshine: An Ovarian Cancer Memoir. All proceeds from sales are donated to gynecologic cancer research.

Her first novel, Novy’s Son challenges the reader to examine the issues of alcoholism, sexual addiction, and family dysfunction. Her second novel,
Davida: Model & Mistress of Augustus Saint-Gaudens, is a very special love story.

Karen 
joins us on the first stop of her Blog Tour sponsored by 4WillsPublishing.wordpress.com  


      -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -     -    

THE FIRST BOOK....

 
It has been an exciting journey to my first published book. It was a dream I was not sure would ever come true. Sometimes the best things in life can come out of a tragic, sad, or negative event.
 
Here is my journey and I am grateful for everything, even the bad! I often learn the most from the not-so-happy events.
 
     *Due to my parent's divorce when I was but two years old, I grew up not knowing my father very well. I saw him for only a few weeks out of each year.
 
     *My mother married a second time to a man, who took advantage of my innocence through abuse. He did the same to my older sister.
 
AT NINE YEARS OLD I BEGAN TO JOURNAL...
       I WROTE POEMS, SHORT STORIES...
              I RELEASED EMOTIONS, FEARS, AND DOUBTS.
 
    *When I was 16, I moved out of my mother's house and went to live with my father. A new home, a distant city, and a different school were my new challenges.
 
    *I rarely saw my mother and my sisters were sworn to never mention my name in her house.
 
    *For the first time I started attending a church. I went there by myself, but I found God!
 
MY WRITING BECAME A BIGGER PART...
       MORE POEMS, SHORT STORIES & A NOVEL...
             I DID NOT SHOW OR TELL ANYONE.
 
     *I learned the powerful healing experience of forgiveness. I released my mother and stepfather and now found a new life.
 
     *I knew that I had a story to tell that could help others who have been abused.
 
I DEVELOPED A LIFE-THREATENING CANCER…
        I JOURNALED EVERY DAY, SOMETIMES OFTENER...
             I RESEARCHED AND WROTE ARTICLES.
 
     *A friend who read my journal said, “You must publish this.”
     *My first book was published in 2012...
     *It won first place in the category of women's health.
 
I STILL JOURNAL…
     I WRITE TWO BLOGS A WEEK...
           I AM PROUD OF THREE PUBLISHED BOOKS
 
SO MY JOURNEY AS AN AUTHOR HAS BEEN AN EXCITING ONE AND I KNOW THAT WHAT I WRITE COMES FROM MY HEART AND SOUL.
 
       I hope my story brings encouragement to other authors.



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To connect with Karen, please visit any of her sites:
www.kareningallsbooks.com 
www.kareningalls.blogspot.com 
http://twitter.com/KarenIngalls1         
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Karen-Ingalls/1473379352893458 
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/karen-ingalls/37/509/ba8 
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Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. ―Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning


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