No More Hiding

 All, Trauma/Survivors, Writing/Publishing  No Responses »
Jan 102011
 
When the Japanese mend broken objects, they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold. They believe that when something has suffered damage and has a history it becomes more beautiful    ~Barbara Bloom~

 

The Christmas season is over. I worked myself to the bone setting up booths at craft and vendor fairs on weekends and seeing clients during the week. It was an uphill climb just to make my table fee and cover my costs. But I’m determined to keep going. That is one thing about me. I’m tenacious. I believe if I keep trying I will succeed at selling my book, writing my next one and becoming a profitable crafter. It isn’t easy but I firmly believe hard work and integrity eventually pays off, if not in this world, then in the next.

The story I tell in Not of My Making is a compelling read. Fellow survivors, teachers and mental health professionals who have read my book have gained insight into the dynamics of bullying and its long term impact. Through my personal example, they have learned how to not only survive but to thrive.  My training as a psychologist is reflected in by my inclusion of the books I read as I desperately tried to understand what was happening and why. I included my reactions to these books within my narrative and there is a reference list at the back. 

There are people who have criticized me for telling “too personal of a story” and/or have called it “victim’s lit”. They believe it is uncivil to share your pain with others. In fact, during the struggle with the church I was told on two occasions I should stay home and not attend church services until I could keep my pain and grief private. This, of course, benefited them, since it relieved them of their responsibility to care for me while I was depressed and grieving. That their abandonment and attempts to silence me exacerbated my suffering, well, that was my problem, not theirs. 

Other survivors, of course, have also been told similar things. Fearing further abuse they don’t tell others they have been abused while maintaining a façade of health and happiness. When I’m at craft fairs, I have seen other survivors circle my booth, whisper to me that they too are survivors, leave, come back before they will purchase Not of My Making. Often they prefer to buy my book anonymously from Amazon or Barnes & Noble even though have to pay a higher price for it plus shipping and handling. 

I’m reminded of the days when people with cancer or parents of disabled children hid this information from others. It was their deep, dark shameful secret to be whispered and gossiped about by neighbors and acquaintances. Finally people with cancer had enough and they went public. They, too, were criticized for burdening others with their problems. Now people shave their heads in solidarity with a friend or family member who is undergoing radiology. 

Just like people with cancer did a few decades ago, I am asking other abuse survivors to come out of hiding, tell their stories and confront those who try to silence us. I am also asking good people to listen to survivors and help them prevent abuse.

 Posted by Margaret at 3:29 pm

Blog Tour: Not of My Making: Bullying, Scapegoating and Misconduct

 All, Religion, Trauma/Survivors, Writing/Publishing  7 Responses »
Apr 212009
 

The first week of my blog tour is over. Sitting in front of a hotel window overlooking Lake George in the Adirondacks I have some time to reflect on how it went. At the end of Day 1 Deena of A Survivor’s Thoughts on Life emailed me asking me if it turned out okay and expressing the hope that my other stops would turn out better. I replied:

I think the blog stop worked out fine. It gained some exposure for both of us. I know several people read the post even if they didn’t write comments. Some people emailed me privately. One has asked me to write a book with him on friendship. You cannot tell right away how successful a marketing campaign is or isn’t. Some books sold.

Book marketing is hard work. I had to take time to read my hosts’ blogs and write a post for them to use on their blog. My hosts read my book, wrote a review and helped moderate the comments. During the blog stop I monitored comments and responded to readers as close to real time as possible. I also twittered about it motivating people to read the posts and comment. I offered the incentive of a drawing for a free book. Mary Morgan won the drawing for re-tweeting the announcement and Cat M won for writing a comment.

Day One of the tour I stopped at Aida Calder’s Forgetting the Former Things and at Deena’s A Survivor’s Thoughts on Life. Both women posted reviews of my book on their blogs. I then posted my reaction. Several women followed me at Forgetting the Former Things, commented and retweeted my messages about the virtual book tour. Deena asked me questions throughout the day and I responded.

My third blog stop was at The Apostle Wive’s Club. A few women who had commented at Forgetting the Former Things followed me there. Before “meeting” the owner of the blog I had never given any thought of how the Catholic Church responded to priests who broke their celibacy vow and married. Their reaction appears hypocritical. Over the past decades the Catholic Church has covered up sexual abuse and reassigned offending priests. Why are they so forgiving of pedophiles but not of priests who fall in love and marry?

The fourth tour was at Book Hookup where Donna Sundblad asked me to write about what inspired Not of My Making. Read The Healing Journey

The blog tour has gotten me out of my comfort zone and I have “met” several interesting people. That has been one of the unplanned benefits of book marketing. Immediately following my de-churchings I became mildly agoraphobic and withdrew into myself. Book marketing forced me to be assertive and outgoing. I wasn’t going to sell many books if I withdrew into the safety of my home.

If you missed the blog stops you can still read the posts about Not of My Making, spiritual abuse, friendship and book writing. They are located at:

Forgetting the Former Things

Haunted by the Ghosts of Spiritual Abuse

Aida Calder’s Review of Not of My Making

A Survivor’s Thoughts on Life:

Interview with Margaret W Jones, Ph.D.

Is Shunning a Form of Emotional Abuse

Deena’s Review of Not of My Making

Not of My Makng, Part 2

Not of My Making, Part 1

Not of My Making, Initial Reaction to Book

I Met Someone Today – Divine Appointment?

The Apostles Wives Club:

Margaret Answers Your Questions

Book Hookup:

What Inspired Not of My Making?

Week Two of the Tour will start May 2nd. Please join me. The schedule is:

Date

Day

Blog

2-May

Sat

We Survived Abuse

2-May

Sat

John’s Grace Walk

3-May

Fri

Truth in Ministry

4-May

Mon

Under Much Grace

4-May

Mon

Futurist Guy

TBA

What Really Matters

 Posted by Margaret at 10:52 pm  Tagged with: , , , , , , ,

Conversations about spiritual abuse

 All, Trauma/Survivors, Writing/Publishing  4 Responses »
Mar 302009
 

With the help of my virtual assistant, Lee Drozak I have been planning a virtual book tour for Not of My Making: Bullying, Scapegoating and Misconduct in Churches. The tour will start on Monday, April 13th at Aida Calder’s blog, Forgetting the Former Things.

In setting up the tour I have had the honor to correspond with and talk to a number of wonderful people dedicated to helping fellow survivors overcome abuse. Read Deena Springer’s post about our phone conversation at A Survivor’s Thoughts on Life

As I wanted, my book is promoting a discussion about abuse in churches. Below are my responses to some issues raised by John Weaver of  Against Biblical Counseling:

John wrote:

I think what your book does do well is provide an insight into the kind of doctrinal and internal in-fighting that goes on in mainline churches. I was shocked to find that Unitarianism can be so divisive. Coming out of the evangelical tradition, I had no idea that Unitarian belief – which many evangelicals (not me) believe is too vague to provoke disagreement – can provoke such profound disagreements among its members.

My response:

People argue about whatever they feel passionate about. While Unitarians insist they have no doctrine, in fact, they do. Some of its tenets are: man is good, there is no sin, morality is relative, all value systems are equal except Christianity which is the cause of most wars, homosexual behavior is biologically determined and is not a sin, it is wrong to be a Republican etc. If you step outside of this even a fraction of an inch you will be accused as I was of not being a real Unitarian. Unitarians tend to be far left ideologues who play with religion picking and choosing what makes them feel good from the world’s religions while condemning or ignoring the parts that they find too challenging. Often Unitarian churches are no more than left wing political organizations masquerading as religion.

John further wrote:

The situation you describe in your book is hard for an outside reader to judge accurately, especially when only presented with one side of it.

I replied:

I asked my adversaries to share their perspectives on the events I wrote about in my book. They refused. From what I can deduce, they believe I am unreasonable and bad and it is better not to help me. I hope and pray that they know at some level that what they did was wrong and are ashamed to have it out there in print. Maybe some day they will apologize just as my high school classmate has. You can read about that in my blog post, “Facebook Redemption”? Be sure to read Jeff Fisher’s comment. It corroborates my high school experience and will give you a glimpse of how I was viewed when I was a teenager.

John wrote:

I am not saying your church(s) did not scapegoat you, just that it would be impossible for me or any other blogger to be able to honestly say they knew the ‘truth’ of your story, even if the sole guidepost they were using is your text. In this, it differs, from, say, Renee Altson’s book Stumbling Toward Faith, where it is obvious to any reader that Altson underwent extreme abuse at the hands of evangelical church leadership. Similarly, too, the Mercy survivors I cover obviously were abused by their exorcists, as careful research into Mercy Ministries clearly demonstrates.

My response:

I suspect you and/or your readers are having difficulty accepting that emotional and relational abuse can cause as much damage as the severe sexual and physical abuse and/or you do not believe people who share your values are capable of being abusive. Psychological research has discovered it is the emotional abuse that accompanies most sexual or physical abuse which causes the most harm. That is why you can have a woman who has been raped by a stranger on the street and whose family rallied behind her, not develop PTSD while someone who has been neglected and emotionally abused by their parents develop severe PTSD. As for who is capable of being abusive, we all are. It is part of our animal natures. Watch videos on great ape groups. Alpha males will kill the infants of competing males. Physical abuse of weaker apes is the norm. As human beings we get to choose. We can be beasts or we can develop a sense of morality and learn to protect those weaker than ourselves. As a Christian I do not believe we can do this without God.

John:

Please note that I am not saying you were not scapegoated or abused by your church. I believe your interpretation of these events is very likely the correct one, especially after reading some of the crueler comments fellow church members made about you. But I simply can not prove this conclusively from the text, as I can with Stumbling Toward Faith.

My response:

I read through the reviews of Stumbling Toward Faith and see it is a memoir just as my book is. I do not see any mention that she presented any corroborating evidence to her story. So I am puzzled that you find her story more credible simply because the abuse she describes appears on the surface to be more severe.

John:

I also think you create a strong bond of sympathy with your readers. I felt greatly worried for your past and present mental health after I read the book.

My response

I am puzzled that you “felt greatly worried” for my present mental health. If you read through to the end of my book you should realize that I was on the road to recovery and that I received treatment from a competent and well trained therapist. I suspect you see me as weaker and sicker than I am now or ever was. This is a common error. To quote Elie Wiesel: “Their experience has set them apart: they are neither better nor worse, but different, more vulnerable and at the same time more hardened than you.”

John:

Please feel free to use any excerpt from this e-mail to help advance your book. I do think there are many good aspects to it, and the pre-Unitarian section is particularly strong.

My response:

Thank you for taking the time to read my book and providing me with a critique. I wanted to learn more about you but couldn’t find any information about your background. You will see from my websites I strive for openness and transparency. I want there to be no mistake as to who I am and what I stand for.

 Posted by Margaret at 3:19 pm  Tagged with: , , ,

What do Book Reviews Reveal about the Reviewer?

 All, Religion, Trauma/Survivors, Writing/Publishing  2 Responses »
Mar 072009
 

Part of the journey of writing and publishing a book is putting yourself out there and asking for reviews. This can be a little nerve racking and a rollercoaster ride for ones ego. When Not of My Making received excellent reviews from Midwest Book Review, Joanne Carnavale (A Reader and a Writer Reviews) and others I was ecstatic with pride, joy and relief. There was no difficulty deciding what to do with them. I just basked in the warm praise happy I succeeded in writing a compelling story well.

Reviewers brought something of themselves when they read my book and when they wrote their review. Those reviewers who wrote the book was outstanding understood its central theme and identified with having been bullied and mistreated. Those reviewers who were less positive either could not identify with my experience or were expecting something that I did not promise. One reviewer, for instance, wanted to read more about my childhood and the impact of the church conflict on my marriage. I don’t think I promised to do that in my advertising blurbs and in my view, was not central to the story I wanted to tell.

This reviewer also wrote that I espoused a belief in a distant but noble God. That is not something I actually said and that he inferred. It is not how I would characterize my faith. He also appeared to treat my faith as something that was static and unchanging rather than a journey of moving away from and then back to Christianity. During the experiences I wrote about I was confused by the failure of my former friends to walk their talk. The paradox is that while I do not speak the traditional Christian talk, my tenacity and perseverance in the face of rejection and abuse demonstrated significant faith in God and Jesus. I didn’t give up on church. I am finally a member of a church where there is a sincere emphasis on leading an authentic Christian life. It is not just a Sunday feel good hour.

Another review appears to be more about the reviewer’s misperceptions about me and anger rather than about the quality of the book. She accuses me of holding onto anger and failing to move on. As a psychologist I can’t help but wonder if she is projecting her own fears, hurts and repressed anger onto me. She fails to recognize the long-term impact of neglect, verbal and physical abuse when she describes my parents as merely “very critical”. When survivors such as myself tell their stories, it is their fervent hope that by doing so they are helping to prevent others from being abused and are providing comfort to those who are still struggling with their own victimization.

Writing Not of My Making was a painful journey of discovering why my parents, classmates and former friends were so cruel. I am grateful to everyone who has taken the time to read my book. I pray that their knowledge and understanding of survivors has increased and they are less likely to blame the victim. I also pray they will support groups who are trying to end abuse and care for survivors.

 Posted by Margaret at 6:01 pm  Tagged with: ,

Book Reviews and Internet Trolls

 All, Writing/Publishing  No Responses »
Feb 232009
 

Now that I have poured out my heart and soul into writing and producing Not of My Making, Bullying, Scapegoating and Misconduct I needed to get the word out that my book is available. Following advice gleaned from books and the internet I submitted my book for review and was pleased to receive outstanding reviews from Midwest Book Reviews, TCM Reviews and Lightword Reviews. I even received an unsolicited review from Joanne Carnevale of A Reader and Writer Reviews. I was ecstatic. I was surely going to succeed and sell all the books I printed. But just as I was riding the wave of my success an individual who hasn’t read my book posted a comment to Midwest’s review of my book challenging their credibility and implying either I or Pluck Press paid for the review. Neither of which is true.

Now why would someone out of the hundreds of books Midwest reviews pick on the review of my book to disparage? Why not go directly to the reviewers profile page and challenge her directly? Were they somehow connected to the antagonists I wrote about in Not of My Making? I checked their profiles. One person had his or her name as Ghost, another just an initial and last name. They provided so little information about themselves that it has not been possible to find out anything more about them.

I was uncertain how to handle it. I wondered what kind of impact if any it would have on book sales. I decided to explain Midwest Book Reviews policies and inform Ghost and the others that I had not paid and will never pay to have my book reviewed. They always had a come back. I found myself talking about the credibility of Midwest Book Reviews and a reviewer who I never met instead of about bullying in churches.

I didn’t want to be arguing about the veracity of book reviews. The publishing industry established its customs and procedures long before I came along. I have to use them to my best advantage to accomplish my own goal. I want to share my story and make people aware of adult bullying in churches. I love church and want to help make it a safe place for all.

Read my book and judge for yourself. I invite you to participate in the discussion about bullying in schools, work and churches. Have you ever been bullied? Have you bullied someone? Did you watch someone get bullied? If so, did you intervene or did you do nothing? Why did you do what you did? How can we decrease bullying and help others find a place within the communities to which we belong?

 Posted by Margaret at 9:58 am  Tagged with: , , , ,

the cat that lost it’s meow

 Trauma/Survivors, Writing/Publishing  No Responses »
Dec 162008
 

The weekends have been busy. Too busy. So when Susan Epstein announced on Twitter she and her co-authors would be signing their book the cat who lost its meow at the Sun Up Gallery on Saturday and Sunday I hesitated. I recognized it could be useful to meet another author and see how successful the book event was. However, I had been on the go for days and I really needed to get some rest.

I was still undecided when I sat down at my computer and squeezed in one last task before going to bed Saturday night. As part of my marketing plan for my book, Not of My Making, I searched Facebook for classmates from my high school. I came up with a couple of dozen names. I didn’t recognize any of them. I pulled my yearbook off the shelf and looked up the men. The faces were familiar but I didn’t remember a thing about them. The women were more difficult. Facebook didn’t list their maiden names. So I sent them all invitations to join me on Facebook and went to bed.

In the morning among several replies I found “Your memory is better than mine. Who did you hang out with?”

Who did I hang out with? No one. Absolutely no one. No one would be caught dead being seen with me. I was a reject. At best I was ignored. At worst I was teased and bullied. There were a few kids who were kind and who spoke to me occasionally. But no one was openly my friend.

“Who did you hang out with?”

I took a deep breath and typed in the names of a few classmates. Maybe this will convince her I am really a former classmate.

Within minutes I had a reply. “Sorry about the last post.” She and several other women sent me their maiden names. With my yearbook on my lap I linked up the names with the faces. As I turned the pages my stomach churned and I felt confused. Who were the bullies? I couldn’t remember. Kids either teased me or stood silently by while I was demeaned. There were a handful of kids who were kind. I do remember them:Hattie, Gioimia, Steve, and Rose. But the names in front of me I didn’t remember. Faces were familiar but there are no memories to go along with them.

“Mom.” My daughter was standing at the door to my study. “I’m ready.”

“Okay.” I put on my coat and picked up my bag. Driving to church I told my daughter about Susan Epstein’s book signing.

“Why don’t you want to go?” she asked.

“I’m tired and need some rest.”

She sighed. “Me, too, but it could be a good connection.”

During the church service I felt tears welling up. I just wanted to stay home where I was safe. Worried I was going to start weeping I swallowed and prayed. A peace descended over me. I would make the drive to Westerly to meet my Twitter friend.

After the church service, I dropped my daughter off at our house and drove to the Sun Up Gallery alone. I plugged in my iPod and listened to Christmas carols as I cruised south on Interstate 95. I felt safe.

My decision to go to the book signing turned out to be a good one. Sun Up Gallery was a lovely upscale gift shop. There was a guitarist playing holiday songs. The owner of a local winery was handing out free samples. I found Susan with her co-authors, Antoinette and Richard in the next room. After I introduced myself Susan became excited, “This is my first Tweetmeet.”

“Mine, too,” I said as we hugged each other.

Richard handed me their book, the cat who lost its meow. The cover was a photo of the artist cloth that inspired the story. It had the same texture. I ran my hand over it. Richard proudly showed me the actual cloth Susan and Antoinette had found on the beach. I skimmed their book as we talked. Proceeds from the sale of their bookmarks were going to National Association to PROTECT Children. It became obvious we had a lot in common. I suspected I was not the only survivor turned thriver in the room.

I read the cat who lost its meow when I returned home. I read while I made mashed potatoes for Sunday’s night dinner. At first, I didn’t get it. Did I miss something? Perhaps my fatigue prevented me from giving it the attention it deserved. Monday morning I re-read it.

Oh! I get it now. I’m a cat that’s lost its meow. Abused, neglected, abandoned and unloved I lost my meow. With God’s grace I got mine back through writing and publishing my own story. I have found love and acceptance with my husband and children. In my current church I have found people who strive to do what God has asked them to.

the cat who lost its meow can be appreciated on many levels by adults and children. It was lovingly crafted by three beautiful and caring individuals. I will certainly read it to the children I work with in my therapy practice. When my grandson is old enough to understand, I will read it to him, too.

 Posted by Margaret at 1:30 am  Tagged with: , , ,

Did I Enjoy Writing Not of My Making

 All, Writing/Publishing  No Responses »
May 152008
 

I have been asked if I enjoyed writing, Not of My Making. Yes and no. Writing Not of My Making was a lifeboat that I clung to. My very survival depended on it. My former friends had done everything they could to prevent me from telling my story to others. While they were successful within our church community, they couldn’t prevent me from talking to others outside of church nor keep me from writing a book about it. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution protects my right to report the facts and express my opinion. I developed a deeper appreciation for freedom of speech and a greater awareness that without the First Amendment those with more power would silence those weaker and more vulnerable themselves.
 In order to write Not of My Making I rearranged my schedule so I would have four hours on Monday mornings to focus on the task. When I first started writing the book I would type until flooded with anxiety. I would then spend the rest of the time curled up on my couch in a fetal position. Eventually as I wrote and processed the events leading to my dechurchings the anxiety became less crippling. I could use the entire four hours plus any other free moment to work on my book.
So the answer to the question is that writing Not of My Making was hard but necessary work. I am glad I did it. The process helped me clarify issues and find my voice. It has also given me a new career. In addition to being a psychologist I am now an author and publisher. I have come full circle. I am now more of myself than I have ever been.

 Posted by Margaret at 5:51 pm  Tagged with:

Learning to Write

 All, Writing/Publishing  No Responses »
Mar 222008
 

A couple of years ago I was struggling with my memoir, Not of My Making. I knew something was wrong with it. So I read Your Life as Story by Tristine Rainer and used what I learned to revise my book. While I was rewriting my manuscript I learned a local college was offering a four session class on Saturday as part of their continuing education program. With some trepidation I signed up.
Attending the class was a bit of a stretch for me. I had become mildly agoraphobic following my dechurchings. But writing my book was important enough for me to risk joining a class of complete strangers. I decided I would sit in the back of the class removed from everyone. When I arrived I was relieved to find a small lecture hall with desks on risers. I climbed to the top row and took a seat. From that vantage point I could hear and see everyone in the class while remaining isolated. I relaxed a little.
A thin, young woman with black hair entered the room. “Don’t get too comfortable,” she said. “I am going to find a better classroom.” She then left. I hoped she would be unsuccessful. I felt safe where I was. The young woman returned and told us to go upstairs to the room directly above us. I waited for everyone to collect their things and file out before I stood up and followed. The new room appeared smaller. The chairs were arranged in a circle. It would be difficult to be invisible there.
The young woman returned and introduced herself as Hannah R. Goodman. First, she said, we needed to warm up. She asked us all to take off our shoes and stand with our eyes shut. She then led us through a guided meditation. What was I getting myself into, I wondered. I felt uncomfortable. I took some deep breaths. After the meditation Hannah asked us to sit down and write. Several people had trouble with this. “Write what?” someone asked.
“Whatever you want,” she said.
After approximately five minutes, Hannah asked us to share our “warmups.” This wasn’t what I had expected. My heart rate increased. I looked around the room to see if escape was possible. I would have to walk across the room in front of everyone. Hannah said we could pass if we wanted to. I considered this but I was there to learn, wasn’t I? I took a deep breath and read. It wasn’t so bad. Hannah made some positive comments about everyone’s work. Hannah then began talking about writing from the body. I groaned. It sounded like a strange mix of yoga and New Age mumbo jumbo. This is hokey. I won’t be coming back, I thought. But I am not the type to waste my money. I wanted to get everything I was promised. So I returned. During the second class I noticed my writing had improved. Something about Hannah’s enthusiasm and acceptance of everyone’s writing had fostered positive growth. So I completed the class and kept signing up every time it was offered. When the college discontinued their continuing education program I hosted a four session class at my house but there wasn’t enough interest to keep the group going. Several weeks after the class ended I received an email from Hannah announcing the start of Saturday classes at the East Bay Chamber of Commerce in Warren, RI. It was the same distance from my home as the college but in the other direction. I signed up immediately.
WheneverI take a class with Hannah I write more often and my skills improve. Her energetic and provocative style challenges and inspires me. Instead of looking for talent she assumes everyone can learn to write well and everyone has something important to say. I hired Hannah to do a content edit of Not of My Making. One of the first things she noticed was that I hadn’t chosen what voice to write my book in. Parts of the book were written in the detached professional style that had been fostered in graduate school while other parts taken from my journal were more emotional. Hannah encouraged me to write in my own voice and to show not tell. It took me a year and a half to finish the recommended revisions but I now have a book that I am proud of.
Thanks, Hannah. You are a great writer instructor, editor and friend.

 Posted by Margaret at 7:03 pm  Tagged with: ,

My Writing Rules

 All, Writing/Publishing  No Responses »
Mar 112008
 

Recently my writing instructor asked everyone to reflect on what their rules for writing were. Some of those rules hinder writing while others encourage it. Most of my rules have been helpful.

  • 1. Use your journal to vent feelings, process thoughts, practice writing skills etc.
  • 2. Never destroy anything you have written in your journal. You can’t predict when you might have a use for it.
  • 3. Don’t edit while writing your first draft.
  • 4. Record the date and time of each journal entry.
  • 5. Don’t worry about who is going to read your journal entry or what you are going to do with it. You can decide that later.
  • 6. Always travel with your journal but if you forget it, then use any piece of paper. You can always glue it into your journal later.
  • 7. Cross out or scribble or curse if you feel like it.
  • 8. Keep writing until you feel satisfied.
  • 9. Start your book or piece at the easiest point. You don’t have to start at the beginning. I started Not of My Making in what is now the middle of the book, went back to the beginning and then wrote the end.
  • 10. Don’t be afraid to adapt and change with circumstances. Before the birth of my grandson I would have suggested you set a specific time to write each week or day. I would have also said to turn off the television and find a quiet, private place. Now I agree with Hannah, my writing instructor,

“Don’t wait for the perfect moment to write.”

I am now learning to write even when I am watching my grandson or my husband is watching sports or even while I am cooking.

Some final tips: I like to use different color pens for writing assignments, letters, spiritual entries, summaries etc. I also use a highlighter to mark key words and/or I title an entry after I have written it. When I am looking for something specific in my journal it makes it easier to find.

 Posted by Margaret at 9:04 pm  Tagged with:
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