Time rolls by, steadily, reliably,
hopefully not regrettably.
Jan1
Category Archives: DP challenge
Apr15
April is National OT Month and Poetry Month
Note: some posts deserve a second life. Here’s a repost from last April; what do you think, worthy?
April: Not a month for fools! Pull a prank on the first, but the rest of the month is National Poetry Month and National OT Month.
Most of us know what poetry is, but what is OT? An occupational therapist myself, I can say a little something about that!
Let’s start with some spring cleaning and air out the room with what occupational therapy is NOT:
Jan21
Serenity
This week’s photo challenge: Serenity
I’ve heard it said that serenity is most noticed in the midst of turmoil and chaos.
Yes, there is a certain tried and true beauty to this concept.
Sep20
Dark Chocolate to my Soul
First smile from my baby~
Fingertips at my back~
Purple hued sunsets o’er mountain or sea.
A word fitly spoken~
Laughing toddlers at play~
Secret gifts sent before there’s a plea.
Sep6
But I Don’t Wanna Go On a ‘Bencher!
Adventure.
There’s so much in a word. What’s your take on the word adventure?
Some say it’s about taking a risk, trying something new, or exploring new territory.
Some say life’s an adventure.
Here’s a little story, based on a real episode, involving adventure:
They passed the turn toward home, and Missy, though only three, knew they had missed it. “Wher’re we goin’?”
“We’re going on an adventure!,” Nana proffered, in her most excited tone.
“But I don’t wanna go on a ‘bencher! I want my mommy!”
Nana drew in a breath and considered her response. She knew the meltdown would only last a few minutes, but it broke her heart every time. She knew, by now–by the tone of Missy’s voice, the rate of her breathing, the look on her face–whether she was ready for an explanation, or comfort, or distraction, or whether words would only make it worse. This time she chose a brief explanation, followed by a time of respite for Missy to regain her composure. When the time was right, Nana brought in the highlights of the upcoming trip.
“We’re going to Tampa, to see Cousin Stevie, play in the pool, and visit a place with lots of pretty fish to see!”
“Stevie? Yay, Stevie! I miss him so much!”
Missy cheered up. The rest of the trip she counted cows and horses on the hillside, “loved” her new bedroom, devoured popsicles at the pool and hung on Cousin Stevie all through the exciting trip through the aquarium. It ended too soon.
Along the way
One Cool Chick
Checking out Giant Mr. Grouper with “Cousin Stevie”
On the ride back home, Missy’s love for adventure blossomed.
“I like Tampa. When can we go on another ‘bencher, Nana?”
Lookin’ for Adventure!
No matter the level of risk involved, all adventures are a little scary. We can’t always have our mommies with us. Sometimes we get stuck and afraid of stepping out. Sometimes outside forces launch us on adventures we’re not so sure we want to go on. When this happens, we can take time to process it, like Missy did, and end up embracing the experience. If we look for the good, there’s always something to gain. . . eventually.
With risks weighed against benefits, we can usually make good choices about our adventures in life.
That’s my take on adventures for today. What’s yours? Have you a little story of adventure you can share? It’s your turn now!
Joan T. Warren
With appreciation for this week’s WordPress Prompt.
Aug9
Feel with your Eyes
There is beauty all around us, if we look beyond the guise we can see it with our fingers we can feel it with our eyes we can smell it in a memory and appreciate the ties There are textures, scents and glories Whether near or far, the prize we can listen to its calling […]
Jul20
It’s not all about what’s inside.
These days we have disposable containers, because what matters is what’s inside. Right?
Besides, what’s inside is not the same as the container, right?
Not so, on either count. Often the two are so melded, so interactive, so mutually dependent, that we just can’t separate them. We can’t value them separately, either.
Take, for example, a good book and its cover. Oh, you don’t think so? Well, how about Uranium-235 and its core container? Or, here’s a good one: the inner self and its human body.
Successful grandkids: My granddaughter contained my grandson the troll, in an unexpected snare.
We are quite attached to these bodies, our containers.
Think about it; when we were little, we’d fall and scrape our knee, and it hurt. We cried. Our inner selves felt as if the world was coming to an end; at least until some sweet and very tall human kissed it, bandaged it, and promised, “No Mercurachrome.”
As children, we saw dead bugs, dead flowers, maybe even some dearly loved dead pets. Our inner selves realized those dead ones aren’t coming back. Most of us learned to be more careful with our bodies, to avoid the pain–and, hopefully, not go away forever.
I know I did. I wanted to grow up to be . . . alive! Then, when I grew up, I wanted to live to raise my daughter. Then, to see my grandchildren succeed. Still, I want to live, to create gifts for future generations.
Speaking of grandkids, I’ve seen this generation grow up playing war and street-gang video games, with avatars instead of real people. They don’t even flinch as they gun down innocent bystanders in the midst of the game. On top of that, the heroes get right up and keep going.
But life is for real, and so is death.
Many religions teach us about the inner person, the spirit, and a glorious afterlife. These teachings are inspirational. They are vital, compelling and comforting. Yet something about this begs more.
Maybe it’s the poor track record religion plays in war and peace.
Maybe it’s the impersonal way many religions try to comfort those who mourn.
Or maybe it’s the fallout of valuing inner, spirit-life as eternal, while considering the containers disposable.
Ask anyone who has lost a loved one; it’s not easy to separate the person from the container that now is gone. There is no one in their arms to hold. The loved one’s laughter no longer fills the room. Yes, the memory remains, and gives some comfort. A little comfort. To the grieving widow, child, and friend, though, the container is gone, and so the person inside.
Last year on this day we lost our beloved . . . been in a daze for over a year. . .
Containers are important.
With so much talk about what is in the container, what about the container itself? With such emphasis on inner life, and on the glorious afterlife, do we devalue the precious containers that are vital to achieving our purpose here on earth?
Just tonight, I opened my refrigerator to get a salad I hadn’t been in the mood for yesterday. Having not been sealed in a container, the salad had wilted. I regrouped, and slid it into the juicer with the other veggies. As the juice flowed out, I wondered: what if there were no container to hold the juice? That juice would have spilled out, rather than fulfilling its purpose– to nourish my body.
Our bodies–our containers–are important. They are more than avatars in a game! Take care of your body and treasure what it holds. Encourage others to nurture their bodies. Respect life in others. Feed your bodies with healthy, organic food. Exercise regularly in whatever way you can, building up to and maintaining your best physical state. Take care of the relationships and the planet we need for our containers’ survival. Live in balance: work, rest and play.
For without your container, how will your purpose here be fulfilled?
For we hold these treasures in jars of clay –II Cor. 4
Joan T. Warren
Heart to Heart in a Shielded World
This post grew from:
Containers | The Daily Post
http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/containers/
And further developed into a mystery ending with encouragement from:
Mystery Ending | The Daily Post
http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_writing_challenge/telephone/
Jul10
ROFLMAO
I can’t remember the last time I actually rolled on the floor, laughing my ass off. Maybe that would explain the slight but ever so definite widening of this writer’s derriere?
This week’s DP Challenge from WordPress prompts us to remember and share the last time we had a “real, authentic, tearful, hearty belly laugh.” Perhaps the editor is in need of a good laugh. Apparently, so am I!
It’s funny you should ask, WordPress. Just yesterday, I wondered aloud (to a confidant) if I may be getting depressed, maybe need a little medication. I’ve been pushing my mind toward gratitude, happiness, enjoyment, and it keeps sliding back into the gutter where sludge hangs out. Sludge like the PLOM’s (poor little ol’ me’s), BLAHS’s (Boy Look at Her Stuff’s) and the POINTY FINGER’s (Projecting Out In Negative Thinking: Your Fault I’m Not Getting Everything Right!). There’s been a lot of stress in life in the last year, oh, actually make that in the last fifty-six years (yes, I’ll be fifty-seven soon! Maybe that’s reason enough!). Stress, they say, can lead to depression by depleting the serotonin levels over time.
The prescription, so kindly returned, included practical things to improve my mindset, such as mentally rehearsing all I’m grateful for (check), getting enough sleep (un-check), exercising regularly (getting better, check), making time for friends (yeah, right), and, last but not least, laughing.
“Rent a comedy you’re sure will really make you laugh: belly laugh, can’t stop laughing, rolling on the floor laughter. It’s really good medicine!”
I slumped on through the day, the next morning, and then saw the WordPress challenge for the week. Maybe there’s something to this idea, twice in two days coming at me.
So, dutifully, I Googled movies that are sure to make me roll on the floor laughing.
Reading their reviews, I noticed something odd. All, without exception, had a dark side, a tragedy or relationship struggle, a cancer to battle, you know, really un-funny stuff, blended with “hilarious” antics. It made me wonder, Is it funny because we need something to be funny at that moment? Would it still be funny if you take it out of the context of contrasting misery? They say most comedians come from grossly abusive and dysfunctional families, you know. Anyway, I’m not sure that’s the sort of comedy I need right now. None the less, I selected a few that seemed lighter than most. Here’s my list:
Midnight in Paris
Greenberg
Kick-Ass
MacGruber
Seven Psychopaths
Sleepwalk with Me
This is 40
What do you think? Will any of these actually take me there? What funny movie or show do you recommend?
Hopefully at least one of these movies will get me ROFLMAO. Real. Authentic. Tearful. Hearty. Belly Laughs. Then I can tell you why it’s funny.
In the mean time, something happened to remind me that someone around me may need encouragement more than I. It only took a minute to give that person some positive feedback. Guess what? I feel better, for two days now. I think she does too.
So for now, I’ll be happy with feeling better, but I won’t turn down a hearty laugh as soon as it finds me.
Thanks, WordPress!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9_fjZHcs2bY
©Joan T. Warren
Jul8
Wife of Stone
A story of contrast, our WordPress photo challenge for this week.
As we toured our cruise ship last January, it seemed one gentleman found his companion for the trip and brought her a drink! Perhaps the cruise to Cozumel would soften her a bit?
Thanks to my sweet hubby for snapping the shot, and apologies that it may be a bit grainy; he took it from the level above, and I cropped it for today’s post.
Enjoy!
Joan T. Warren
Jun23
The Pause Between
Between back yard and front, is a place where I lay
things destined for garbage, things tattered and frayed
I pause there to notice
A beauty unseen
As nature embraces what I’d thrown away.
Joan T. Warren
For this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge, “Between.”
Jun8
Send me to my Room
“Go to your room!”
Remember when that was a punishment?
Not anymore! Now, when I get a quiet moment free, I sneak off to my room. It’s a quiet place. Cozy and clean. Room to think.
This week’s photo challenge is about room. Room has varied meanings and contexts. You may have noticed my love for open spaces. I usually share photos of oceans, shorelines and mountain ranges. At home, though, there are many wonderful places I enjoy. I chose my room today, as it is the perfect place to get away for a quick think. No one else’s needs or thoughts crowd mine. Just me.
I choose soft colors and fabrics, comfy bedding and treasured family heirlooms and pictures to create this personal haven of rest. Home and Garden magazine hasn’t knocked on my door–there’s been no designer to make it magazine-perfect–but the evening light visits through the woods out back. My comforter from Tuesday Morning cost a lot less than Pottery Barn’s, but it is soft and white just the same. The antique marble and mother-of-pearl inlay table has a crack in the marble and is missing plenty of mother-of-pearl, but my dad had it stripped of black lacquer when I was a little girl and I loved it so much that I’d polish in between the little bird carvings around the edges. He caught me taking care of it and promised it to me. The chair may not be the most modern touch, but it is a family heirloom from a relative who was more like a mother to me than my own mother could be. Each photo brings good memories with warm-fuzzies attached. The platter is an anniversary gift from the “copper” year. All in all, it is my room, and you can send me here anytime!
Where do you go when you just have a few minutes to recharge? How have you made it a special place to suit your needs?
Jun5
I Could Have Built a. . .
I could have built a …
Rainbow
Of the neatly folded laundry,
Or a tower made of
Dishes stacked in gleaming
Rows and columns.
I could have built a
Mansion,
Straightened cupboards,
Cleaned out closets–
Put toilet paper in the bathrooms,
Straighten towels and changed the lightbulbs.
I could have built a
Grand museum–
Carved a sculpture, worked the clay,
Or a masterpiece on canvas
Wielded paintbrush,
Seized the day!
I could have built a
Mighty enterprise,
Just by tackling my desk-work!
Or created global networks
On my twitter, blog or Facebook.
I could have built a
Perfect woman~
Washed my hair
And put on makeup. . .
Or at least a fitness model,
Walked the block and practiced yoga.
I could have built a
Three-course dinner,
Made the kitchen counters glow;
Or at least brewed gourmet coffee–
Drizzled caramel on the top,
Put my feet up, watched my show.
But you came in through the door, dear;
With your face so sweetly shining,
And your love so pure and true–
All I did was spend this hour
Hanging out, enjoying you.
Joan T. Warren
Many thanks to Girl in the Hat for a very creative weekly writing challenge: to write a list, then let it flow and change as it desired. This poem began as a list of things I put off to respond to blog writing challenges! It morphed nicely into something rather fun, uplifting, and, hopefully, something we can all relate to. To see other writers’ responses to her challenge, visit WordPress’ Weekly Writing Challenge.
May26
Life is Better with a Twist: Weekly Photo Challenge
This gallery contains 5 photos.
We may think we want to order our lives with predictable precision. We may think we can build protective fortresses to ward off suffering and pain. Life throws us challenges, though. How we choose to respond to these unexpected and unwanted difficulties makes all the difference in how we experience life overall. Will we build […]
May17
Weekly Photo Challenge: Work of Art or Clean-Up Time?
You know how some pieces of abstract art are the result of throwing paint on a canvas? Well, in response to this week’s photo challenge, to represent art in unexpected forms, I started thinking about some of the similarly-formed abstracts that typically annoy me every day at home. Hmmm. Maybe there is beauty and form and meaning in this mess! Maybe someday, when all the kids are gone, maybe — just maybe — I’ll miss these works of art.
Or, maybe not.
Clean-up time.
Joan T. Warren
May11
On the Move: Church for Introverts
Fading fast, treasured steps and memories.
Church for introverts.
For WordPress Weekly Photo challenge,On the Move
Joan T. Warren
Randy’s iphone
May11
On the Move: Kids and Water, Unstoppable
Two unstoppable forces that are always a part of my days: kids and water.
For WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge, On the Move
Taken with my iphone.
Joan T. Warren
May9
Lessons Without Walls
Blue succumbs to brilliant washes of orange, raspberry and violet–each tipped with glowing
golden aura. Not just above now, but reflected in the sea. Completeness. The sun melds into
the horizon with a final burst of resplendence, as a lover gives an extra squeeze to bid
adieu, “Remember me. I will return.”
Courtesy of Denesia Christine on Flicker
I believe. I will see you on the other side.
Night begins.
White. The presence of all colors, gentle light bears witness to the sun. Lifting dark veil,
illuminating field and glistening dew-tipped petals, smiling moon lights the way home. A
beacon, as a parent’s consolation to frightened child, “I’m here, baby, it’s okay.”
Courtesy of DenesiaChristine on Instagram
I believe. Safe, secure, through dark of night.
And the sun rises.
Sun and moon, seasons, cycles. Seed to tree, decay, fertile soil bears life again. Teachers,
all. Eager student, I, in wondrous reception, hoping to relay these glorious lessons, teacher,
student, teacher. Breathe in, breathe out. . .
Selah.
©Joan T. Warren
In response to this week’s WordPress writing challenge, to share our experience as
teachers, as students. Appropriately, for teacher appreciation week, too.
May2
Weekly Photo Challenge: Spring
Joan’s iphone cam, Martha and James’ woods.
Stretch. Breathe deep. Unfurl
fronds, heart, mind; a new phase. Say
yes. Begin again.
©Joan T. Warren
Gladly prepared for WordPress’ Weekly Photo Challenge, to represent what spring means to me, in pictorial form. My deepest apologies for the quality of this photo; if I were a true photographer, it would be sharper, the background in B&W, the fern fronds in green. To make it up to you, world, I offer a little something extra for you, haiku to accompany.
Apr30
More Than Words
Pen in hand, released to the floor; chicken scratch.
“I. . . I. . . I. . ,” sputtered Vera, summoning strength from the tips of her toes and fingers, as they squeezed the foot and armrest of her wheelchair. A polite and apologetic smile took backstage. Vera forced her thoughts and intentions out of her eyes to the kind woman sitting across from her, giving her all.
“It’s okay, I know you’re in there. I know you’re having a hard time getting your words out. I’ll try to ask questions so you can nod yes or no.”
Vera settled and wiped a tear. She nodded yes.
Tessa breathed in, out, and laid her clipboard aside. This occupational therapy evaluation won’t be as easy as checking the boxes. None are. She quickly regrouped. “Is it okay with you if I ask your husband about things that are important to you so I can make our therapy sessions as meaningful as possible?”
Vera shook her head no. Then her eyes opened widely, she reached for Tessa’s hand and nodded yes. “Yah. . . no. . . . yes.” Eyebrows burrowed in at the sides and raised in the center, she looked pleadingly at Tessa, as if to say, “I can’t even control my yes and no answers!”
It was a left cerebral infarction with expressive aphasia. Tessa understood Vera’s condition from the textbook. Vera’s stroke spared her ability to understand language, but blocked her ability to speak–and to write. Now it was time to understand it from the eyes of a dear woman looking pleadingly to her for help.
Vera understood her condition from the textbook as well. Forty-five years a speech-language pathologist, now it was her time to understand it from the inside, reaching out.
Photo borrowed from gradydoctor.com
*********************************
In honor of National Occupational Therapy Month and in response to WordPress’ Weekly Writing Challenge (Flash Fiction: 300 words or less)
Joan T Warren
Apr26
Weekly Photo Challenge: Letters
For the back story, check out this poem about OT:
April is National OT Month and Poetry Month
Oh, and thanks, WordPress, for this week’s challenge. Check out other responses here:
http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/letters/
Joan T. Warren
Joan T. Warren: Heart to Heart 