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Hip Hip for Valentines Day

One of my ten favorite definitions of love is: that marvelous state of being in which your own well being is dependent on the well being of another.   Just think for a moment.  Love is probably the only emotion that we deem worthy of its own celebration day.   There are no cards sent for Hate or for Anger’s special day.  No champagne corks pop for Fear Day.  No one gets chocolate in celebration of Greed.  (No.  Election day does not count.)  The reason is markedly simple: we love to love.  We love to be loved.  And romance, well, it makes us joyfully lose our mind.  (Personal examples excluded.)

Those of you who have stumbled across my biography will note that this scribbler’s most prized writings are the poems he has written to his beloved, which stand published on the north wall of our house.  So, if you will, allow me to share a brief segment of the Valentine poem, “Fortune Smiles,” penned years ago for my bride…

Love is a chalice

From which each one may sip,

Thereby enriching all.

Hate is a bowl,

In which unfortunate souls wallow

In vain hope of staunching their pain.

The Fates have sent me Sweet Lorraine

My Soul overflows

I have no need of the bowl.

Happy Valentines Day 

The Challenge Read Everyday in February

Thanks to generous folks funding medical miracles, Cancer has been transformed from death sentence to a combatable disease.  People afflicted are conquering and surviving cancer every day.  Recently, the American Cancer Society has launched a fundraiser that simultaneously helps heal our bodies and strengthen our minds.  Their Read Every Day In February Facebook Challenge is a participatory fundraising event guaranteed to prove enjoyable, enlightening, and rewarding.

Step 1.  Select a stack of books and articles that you plan to spend time reading each of the 28 days this February, 2025.  Make the commitment.

Step 2.  Go to the American Cancer Society’s Facebook page, and register yourself as a reader.  (You can also join a reading group to gain a little company.)

Step 3.  Spread the word around to your friends and coworkers that you would like them to help battle cancer by sponsoring your reading effort.

Step 4. To get all the Challenge’s details and answer your questions, visit

https://challengedocs.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ACS-Read-Every-Day-Feb-24-FAQ.docx.pdf

If you’re like most of us, you have a stack/list of fascinating reads you never seem to get around to delving into.  Well, here’s your chance.

And if you are looking for more fascinating reads, visit www.BartsBooks.com.

Thanksgiving Thoughts – Hidden Treasures

This past week, as we plunged full glut into the holiday season, I’d been asked to give a talk on Mocktails – those cleverly concocted, non-alcoholic drinks that are so invitingly tangy that you barely miss the booze buzz.   So, as our tasting started, here I mingled amongst a sea of strange and smiling faces, sipping strangely muddled mixtures, and Boom!  I caught the feeling – the atmosphere glowed with festivity.   Laughter swirled around us just as freely as if we’d had 80-proof in the glass.  And slowly the light dawned.  Right here before me swarmed an oft-ignored blessing – the treasure of our fellow humans, face to face.

There comes a real joy in being a herd animal – rubbing shoulders, swapping tales and lies with old friends and new.  Each of these folks I had yet to meet held a wealth of experience, waiting to be tapped.  And the best part?  This inspiring nectar surrounds us daily, ready to be poured out through the simple act of convivial conversation.   Yes, it may sound a bit sappy, but I’ve always felt that learning’s more fun when done in the first person.

As we gather around the table this Thanksgiving Thursday, doubtless, each of has a long list of favorable items and individuals that rightly deserve our sincere gratitude. But if I may, allow me to share my own thankfulness for all those fascinating people miraculously set around me – those well known, and those I’ve yet to explore who will enrich my future days.

Wishing you every Joy this Thanksgiving,

Bart Jackson

Snippet from my new book: Fellow Travelers

The waves slammed him jarringly onto the sand, but the waters had been kind.   He emerged filled with more fish than he could hold.  From the dune above came his wife’s unmistakable voice, hopeful, but with a pleading urgency.  In response, he joined his fellow commuters, heading on up to home.  Crouched in our perch in the twilight, Lorraine and I emitted softly whispered cheers of support as he stormed the steep sand cliff.

 

See More:  Writing – Bartsbooks.com