Imagine the Possibilities

The email came yesterday in the early afternoon. I was at my computer catching up on a few things when I saw the alert: ILA Distinguished Award Notification.

Yes! We did it!

I’ve been part of the Keystone State Reading Association’s Board of Directors for a few years now. We’ve participated in the International Literacy Association’s Council Achievement awards for the past two years. One winner is selected in each of three categories – teacher empowerment, community engagement, and public awareness – with an additional overall winner selected on excellence in all three categories. KSRA has won in the individual categories, but this year we had our sights set on the overall Distinguished Council Award, the most prestigious of them all. The application involves submitting a narrative and a video, and this year the job of writing the narrative fell to me.

I can do that! No problem!

At least that’s what I thought until I sat down to write. In three hundred words or less I had to find a way to showcase KSRA’s accomplishments in the three categories and how these accomplishments work to help fight illiteracy in our state. And did I mention that documented measures of success and any press coverage should be part of that narrative? A tall order indeed, but I wrote, revised, shared, revised…and came up with something that worked. I think I can honestly say that writing my slices for TWT was instrumental in the success of that narrative.  Three to four hundred words is what I aim for in my slices (less if I’m writing poetry). Keeping that number in mind helps me narrow my focus, decide on my point, and write concisely. So thank you, TWT community, for giving me a forum and helping me become a better writer.

Yes! We did it!

    For riding in the car, I’ve almost always been a music person. Most of the time my choice is classic rock, but I’ve also listened to my share of kid songs, morning DJs, classical CDs, movie and show soundtracks, even campy Christmas music during the season. I used to complain about having to listen to sports talk whenever Allan drove, and lately I fear I am turning into him. Not sports talk exactly, but talk. More and more I find myself changing the station to NPR for “All Things Considered” or podcasts of Serial and S-Town.

And then there’s the audio books. I’ve become a regular Overdrive customer, and often add the Whispersync feature to books I buy for Kindle. I appreciate it when I can listen to a sample before I purchase or borrow, because the voice does make a difference. What a pleasure it was to listen to Claire Danes’ voice as the narrator of The Handmaid’s Tale, a book I reintroduced myself to in light of these troublesome political times. Several years ago I was listening to The Shoemaker’s Daughter read by an actress with a beautiful Italian accent and lyrical voice. I was halfway through when the narration changed to the author. While she wrote beautiful words, her voice just didn’t do them justice, and it changed my whole experience.

I listen while walking the dog, running errands, and of course on those longer car rides. During the last two weeks I did so much traveling that I was able to finish Cheryl Strayed’s Tiny Beautiful Things and Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad.  My audio books have become so important to me that I get a little nervous if I don’t have one waiting in the wings. Like now. I am on the wait list to borrow the audio versions of The Sun Is Also a Star and The Hate U Give (thank you Clare and Tammy), two YA novels I am looking forward to “reading.”

I know listening to books is not for everyone, but for me it greatly increases the titles I get through. I read lots of print books, too, but there are so many books and never enough time, so why not capitalize on every minute you can steal to read…or listen.

When I come home after being away for a few days, there are always tasks (and sometimes few surprises) waiting for me in the garden. Yesterday I spent some time inspecting and weeding. It was work I was glad to get back to, and as always, there were highs and lows among the things I discovered. I was happy to find the balloon flowers and black-eyed susan I planted last year. The peonies are budding profusely, so it won’t be long before they burst into color. I noticed that all of the bird houses are occupied, or at least have nests. Sadly, I didn’t identify any of them as bluebird nests. Hopefully the one in the back belongs to the tree swallows who come every year. The change in my bird population started last summer and will probably continue this summer, so I will just have to remain open to the change.

As I worked, I thought about highs and lows in other life situations. The good news, the bad news. The “been there, done that, never again” balanced with the “been there, done that, I’m ready for another round.” There are highs and lows in everything, but when we are able to find more of the good in something, we stay. It happens to me all the time when I play golf. It’s that one good shot among the many bad ones, the spending time with friends, the enjoyment of being outdoors, that keeps me coming back.

Last weekend I was at the Highlights Foundation for the Eastern PA SCBWI Retreat. It was a wonderful weekend filled with comradery and learning and fun. I can honestly say there were many more highs than lows. In fact, probably the only real low was that I had to leave a little early and missed the last great meal (the food is always fabulous!). That is, of course, unless you count hearing your work in progress read aloud in front of an editor, two agents, and an art director who could pinpoint the strengths and potential problems by hearing only the first 65 words. And even that wasn’t a low, just a little heart-pounding.

This week I hope you have more highs than lows, more good than bad, in everything you do.