Meaningful March

Chicken Soup for the Soul, Autoimmune Awareness Month, and An Ode to Books

Friends, how are you?

I find that “How are you?” is a super difficult question to answer; I never know quite what to say. Plus, it feels like most people don't really want to know the answer as they don’t stop and wait for you to reply. And when you live with chronic pain, I don't want to say the same thing all the time, even when it’s the truth — I hurt. My leg hurts. I feel lousy.

Thank goodness for books, for the escape they provide. For the reassurance in knowing it’s not just me.

In case you missed them, I’m including links to my last two blog posts:

March 11th: Chicken Soup for the Soul: Being Grandma

March 18th: Books for Spoonies

Writing Prompt:

This time around, I turned to Barbara Abercrombie’s 2007 book, Courage & Craft: Writing Your Life Into Story, for our writing prompt. There are many prompts on this page, which I hope you’ll find helpful. Here’s one to try:

“Find a quotation that moves you and copy it into your journal. Why does it move you?”

Something I’m Wondering About:

Who made the rules about words and how they can be used? I’m thinking of words that can be both a noun (a thing) and a verb (something you do). You can own a ski, and you can ski down the mountain. You can own a purple bike, and you can bike to work. You can own a four-door car, but you can’t car to the beach. Who was in charge and decided humans would drive a car (I’m going to drive to the mall) instead of I’m going to car to the mall? Anyone know why this is? Any thoughts? I’d love to know if anyone else thinks about words in this way or is this just another example of me over-thinking things?

Wendy Stamp of Approval:

I randomly found this video on YouTube and was absolutely delighted by it! It is clever and fun and impressive. It’s called “The Fate of the Librarian” and is a parody of Taylor Swift’s video “The Fate of Ophelia.” Have you seen Marnie Steele’s video? Do yourself a favor and watch it. These children have a fantastic librarian and a gorgeous school library!

This Date in History:

2026 is the year Reese Witherspoon and I turned 50! She was born on March 22nd, 1976 and I was born two weeks before her. Her influence extends so far beyond the films she makes and/or stars in. I’m thinking of Reese’s Book Club and Hello Sunshine.

And, James Patterson was born on March 22nd, 1947. Along with being a prolific author, Mr. Patterson is an incredible philanthropist. Because of his belief that reading changes lives, he has given millions of dollars to libraries, booksellers, and writing organizations and has funded scholarships at universities throughout the country.

Until Next Time -

I hope the next time you have the opportunity, you’ll pause to watch a butterfly and/or hummingbird, and the experience will soothe your soul.

Reminder: My next blog post publishes on Wednesday, March 25th. If you haven’t already, please visit my website to sign up. You can expect my next Substack to arrive in your inbox on Sunday, April 5th.