BELOVED LOVER: Thinking inventively about who I am right now

BELOVED LOVER (art by Hallelujah Truth)

Hallelujah everyone! Speaking inventively, I will answer this question: Who am I today? 

I am the lover of of the beloved, Baby New Soul (see yesterday's post). I support and nurture this newly birthed self and in doing so, I am fully present to the cycle of life--the wheel that turns back and forth between death and life.

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! SOUL BLOG and tell me how you are going to think inventively about yourself. 

BABY NEW SOUL: Shanah tovah, happy birthday, welcome the new!

SHANAH TOVAH BABY SOUL! (art by Hallelujah Truth)

Dear Pilgrims, I have been evoking change throughout 2013, and how perfect it is that the beginning of September, brings two forms of NEWNESS!

First of all, it is the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, so Shanah Tovah, or have a good year! This high Jewish holiday (or "hi ho" as my friend Audrey calls them) begins the Jewish high holy days. Rosh Hashanah commemorates the creation of Adam and Eve (a story rich in symbolism). Although I am not Jewish, I share a place on the calendar at the beginning of September in a significant way....

My birthday! Born on September 9, I have always seen Rosh Hashanah in close proximity to my birthday. It has either occurred before, on, or right after the 9th. Happy birthday to me, Ruth Schowalter, aka Hallelujah Truth. Significantly, Happy Birthday to BABY NEW SOUL, who emerged this morning from my pen.

It is my practice to draw first thing upon waking when the subconscious is in close communion with the conscious mind, the one that wields the pen. Long ago, I established a routine of drawing with micron pens in order to forgo the multiple erasings that would occur if I were using a pencil. There is absolutely no erasing with these permanent pens! In the Natalie Goldberg fashion of daily writing, I trained myself not to cross out but rather to repeat the mantra:

NOT GOOD. NOT BAD. JUST IS.

NOT GOOD. NOT BAD. JUST IS. This is the original drawing I did this morning. No erasing. No mistakes. No photoshop. (art by Hallelujah Truth)

This morning BABY NEW SOUL asked to be drawn, and I imagined her with wings so she could fly and reptile like feet so she could grasp rocky surfaces and go into water. In place of the reptile feet, an American alligator emerged in BABY NEW SOUL's arms. Resurrection ferns emerged to surround them. Did you know that the resurrection fern can survive long periods of drought, perhaps up to a hundred years, and still return to life! What a wonderful symbol of life for BABY NEW SOUL. My drawing concludes with a circle enclosing her to create a portrait and to contain her precious resurrection energy. Honoring my decision to be truly present in my life in my current geographic location, I wrote the name of my city and state at the base of BABY NEW SOUL's portrait.

Shahan Tovah! Happy New Year! Hi Ho! Happy Birthday. Welcome BABY NEW SOUL! Let's eat apples soaked in honey!

Thank everyone of you readers of my blog and viewers of my art for being here and witnessing my journey. SOUL BLOG with me and wish me Happy Birthday. Share resurrection stories of your own!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY (art by Hallelujah Truth)

ACKNOWLEDGMENT: Thanks to Kat McNally of the blog, I Saw You Dancing, who announced her successful pregnancy and wrote about the creation of a new soul. Congratulations Kat. For those of us who have not had the good fortune to have children of our own, I hope all of you understand that we can honor the "child within" and perhaps create new symbolic souls.

PILGRIMAGE: What is it we want to know during the course of our lives?

MY GOOD SHIP PILGRIM.  Yes to the journey! My good ship PILGRIM arrived at my door this morning. It asked me to draw and then to paint to see what I might discover about the NOW of my situation. So here is my story for the NOW. Mother Mystery, on the bottom right of this image, appears to be waving me good-bye, or is she reaching for me? Why is the Bogey Man, representing the scarey side of the unknown stepping on her? My animus-- symbolized by the Wandjina at the center bottom--is either resting or recovering.  Wallaby in the upper right corner is watching me instead of providing comfort as she usually does. My two kitties want to come along on the adventure. Leaving my job of almost 2 decades has given me the opportunity to climb aboard the PILGRIM. What do I want to learn from this journey. What is it I want to know? (art by Hallelujah Truth)

What is it we want to know? What is it we want to learn during the course of our lives? I don't know. Do you?
For now, I am practicing saying, "Yes." I will climb aboard the PILGRIM enjoy the ride. For NOW, I am declaring that CURIOSITY is my state of BEING and course of ACTION. How perfect to bring along two curious cats!

That's Coffee with Hallelujah. SOUL BLOG with me. Tell me what it is you want to discover and learn on your life's journey.

SOJOURNING DOESN'T MEAN SOLITUDE: We need each other on this creative journey

SOJOURNING DOESN'T MEAN WE ARE ALONE.  (art by Hallelujah Truth)

Lighting fires in other pilgrims' souls warms me. Seeing smoke rising from a distant pilgrim's fire also warms me. We sojourners are not alone. We need one another, virtually or off-line. It is imperative that we establish communities to share our ideas, problems, solutions, joys, sorrows, and CREATIVITY. 

ME with TY!

Today, Ty Butler, a talented photographer who invented and patented his own lighting system phoned me to tell me, "Thank you." He wanted me to know that the Facebook group that I created--THE DAILY CREATIVE PRACTICE, was catalyzing his CREATIVITY. It motivates him to have an online CREATIVE community who will see his photos, read his philosophical explanations of them, and ask questions about his CREATIVE process or leave comments.

In recent weeks, I have met two new CREATIVE friends in Atlanta, who are both in the early stages of blogging. And it is through their writing and posting their blogs on THE DAILY CREATIVE PRACTICE that they are becoming part of my CREATIVE community. Let me introduce them to you.
  
I met Jes Gordon through one of  C4 Atlanta's TechsmARTs meetups. We both had attended John Saddington's presentation, "Blogging for Artists(see my blog)." When I found out Jes is also a member of Women's Caucus for Art Georgia, I stopped to found out what more we had in common. It turns out she is an INTUITIVE painter, and the sound of that is intriguing. I believe I am one too! I decided to interview Jes for my Spiritual Art Pilgrim Interviews to find out and was delighted when she agreed. Please visit her blog, Buckets of Color.

INTERVIEWING JES GORDON. Today, September 4th, 2013, I went to Jes' studio at Sycamore Place Gallery and enjoyed listening to Jes explain the philosophical underpinnings and sojourn to her INTUITIVE painting and being surrounded by her colorful art. Be looking out for the upcoming Spiritual Art Pilgrim Interview!

Another new CREATIVE friend who is quickly becoming a member of my CREATIVE community is Christine Nichols Gautreaux. After meeting her at Jennifer Denning's Atlanta InterPlay "playshop" in August, we became Facebook friends, and then she asked to join THE DAILY CREATIVE PRACTICE (DCP). It through the DCP, that I discovered Christine hungered to be blogging. And, before I knew it, she has started blogging daily at It Is Safe for You to Love Them, and sharing her links on the DCP. Is this CREATIVE community? You bet! The next time I see Christine in person, we will be much more familiar with one another based on our virtual exchanges.

ATLANTA INTERPLAY PLAYSHOP.  I met Christine at the August playshop. In this photo, Christine is stretching between Jennifer (yellow shirt) and Mary Jane  (pink shirt). InterPlay is a fun way to meet someone for the first time. (photo by Hallelujah Truth --do you see my Chiboogamoo on the left?)

I am so happy to be connecting with fellow art pilgrims across the blogosphere! Cecelia Kane has been in my blogging community for a while now. Check out her blog, The Interwoven Heart. Darlene Sperber and I have been weaving ourselves into each others lives through our blogs. She has two: Musings of a Mixed Media Artist and Words. And then there is Kat McNally, who has engaged me in three daily blogging fests in one calendar year. Her blog is I Saw You Dancing. I long to have other friends blog! You know who you are!

Hallelujah for you all! Hallelujah for SOUL BLOGGING and developing communities across distances, times, and lives. Thank you one and all for the fire! We are on one of the most marvelous journeys!

MISTAKEN POINT ECOLOGICAL RESERVE: THE MOST IMPORTANT AND SPECTACULAR EDIACARAN FOSSIL ASSEMBLAGES IN THE WORLD!

CELEBRATING NEWFOUNDLAND'S EDIACARAN FOSSILS!: Hallelujah for ichnologists who can read the rocks and interpret the patterns imprinted on their surfaces! Hallelujah for deep time and strata that holds the presence of life from millions of years ago! Hallelujah for the best record of Ediacaran fossils in the world located in Newfoundland! (Art by Hallelujah Truth, aka Ruth Schowalter and wife of the brilliant ichnologist Anthony Martin)

ANCIENT ENIGMAS. Along the coast of the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland, Canada, one can see fossils from more than 500 million years ago. For more information about this topic, go to Liam Herringshaw's blog entry: East Coast Trails: Mistaken Point Just May Be The Place Where Animals First Got Going.  (Photo by Tony Martin and photoshopped by Hallelujah)

Hallelujah for superlatives in ichnology and witnessing the most important and spectacular Ediacaran fossil assemblages in the world firsthand. On the last day of a three-day field trip for Ichnia 2012 in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, our group happily climbed into our bus from our hotel in Trepassy to JOURNEY to Mistaken Point Ecological Reserve (See Day 1 and Day 2 of the Ichnia field trip).

FIRST THINGS FIRST. Before we arrived at Mistaken Point our bus halted, and Jack Matthews catapulted out of the bus to climb atop an outcrop containing pizza-shaped Ediacaran fossils.

SIZE AND VARIATION IN FORMS. Jack (white shirt) leans on the table of the Ediacaran pizza parlor. He wanted us to observe how large this "animal" had been and how the shapes were different. He hypothesized that what we were looking at were the decayed remains of the original organisms. 

CLOSE UP OF ONE OF THE "PIZZAS" APPARENTLY MISSING PEPPERONI. The Canadian flag scale is 5 centimeters (2 inches) long, thus indicating this Ediacaran organism was the size of a small personal pizza.

DEEP MARINE BED TILTED FROM ITS ORIGINAL HORIZONTAL POSITION. I am standing with two women in the forefront of this photo (wearing the rust shirt and hat) on really old rocks, which are about 570 million years old and containing the Ediacaran fossils. The rocks were originally soft sands and muds on a deep seafloor, but they became solid and are now are on land and tilted after so long ago.

ONWARD TO MISTAKEN POINT. Because of the preciousness of the Ediacaran fossils on Mistaken Point, visitors, even scientific ones, need to be accompanied by guides/interpreters.

HIKING IN TO THE EDIACARAN. Walking along the green meadows high above the sea cliffs, the Newfoundland landscape awed us with its beauty. It took close to an hour of hiking to get us to the superlative Ediacaran fossils. (Photo by Tony Martin)

BAMA BOOTIES. To reduce the likelihood of damaging the surface of these ancient sea floor fossils, visitors are asked to take off their hiking boots and to put on soft-felted booties. Here, three Spanish paleontologists - Zain, Francisco, and Jordi - eagerly don their protective gear: protective of the fossils, that is. (Photo by Tony Martin)

ARTISTIC DEPICTION OF THE ANCIENT ORGANISMS. Before visiting the ecological reserve of Mistaken Point, visitors stop at the interpretive center so they can better understand the fossils that lived on the floor of the sea hundreds of millions of years ago. Here, the artwork and corresponding photos acts as an identification guide for anyone wanting to know "who" was "who." (Photo by Tony Martin)

PLANT OR ANIMAL? As these organisms are studied, paleontologists are still debating which life forms these are most related to: plants or animals? The Ediacaran fossil you see above resembles a dense frond, but was it a plant?

PHOTOSHOPPED EDIACARAN FOSSILS.  Why not play around with these images of ancient life forms, which evoke something familiar yet unidentifiable to the average non-paleontologist?

PLANT OR ANIMAL? Ha Ha, just kidding! Here, Chiboogamoo (Tony Martin), clad in his stylish Bama Booties, kneels to worship the Ediacaran fossils, and tries to "read" the rocks with his fingers. (Photo by Hallelujah)

MISTAKEN POINT IN THE MIST. Although the mist makes the Newfoundland coast look mysterious, the lack of sun shining on the rocks meant poor visibility of the most important and spectacular Ediacaran fossils in the world! We were fortunate enough, however, to have another location to explore. (Photo by Tony Martin)

CLAN OF ICHNIA.  As our time on the fossil-laden surface dwindled, we realized that we needed to commemorate our time together in such a special place. So we posed for a group picture. (P.S. Do you see Paleontologist Barbie in the photo? P.P.S. This was the last time we were in the field with Jordi Maria de Gilbert - fourth from left in the back row - who, sadly enough, died unexpectedly shortly after arriving back home in Spain.)
(Photo by one of the ecological reserve guides)

OUR FEARLESS FIELDTRIP ORGANIZERS AND LEADERS. Hallelujah for Jack Matthews (left) and Liam Herringshaw for their clarity, good cheer, and plummy British accents. They were solid companions during the long bus rides between stops and motels, and enjoyed having something intelligent to say about the Ediacaran as occurring in Newfoundland. (Photo by Hallelujah)

LOVERS BELOW A HIGHER PLANE. As Chiboogamoo, Paleontologist Barbie, and I posed for a photo at Mistaken Point, much scientific debate raged above us. We seemed oblivious to it, just taking in the happy sense of belonging in such an ancient place. (Photo by one of the ecological guides)

MISTAKEN POINT IN THE MIST. Once the investigations were made, the photos taken, we trekked out of the ecological reserve, away from the misty cliffs, and the ancient sea floors with their evidence of burgeoning life from more than 570 million years ago. Because of the mists, perhaps, we did not view these Ediacaran fossils at their best, but by golly, we had a good time trying!(Photo by Tony Martin)

HALLELUJAH FOR THE EDIACARAN IN NEWFOUNDLAND AT MISTAKEN POINT. (Art by Hallelujah Truth, aka Ruth Schowalter and wife of the brilliant ichnologist Anthony Martin. Here I have photoshopped the image at the top of this blog entry to evoke a different feeling, perhaps one of celebration instead of enigma!)

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! SOUL BLOG with me and tell me what you think of these Ediacaran fossils from more than 500 million years ago. Be sure to take a look if you haven't already at the two other blogs about looking at these fossils in Newfoundland: Day 1 and Day 2. 

Note: This blog entry was completed more than a year after the journey to Newfoundland. Reflecting on Ichnia 2012, from my home in Decatur, Georgia, at the beginning of September 2013, I found it difficult to recall all the wonderful ideas I was going to report on. Therefore, I called upon the exceptional skills of Chiboogamoo, the resident ichnologist in my household, to help me complete this blog. I wish to express gratitude to said ichnologist for his patience and knowledge. Oh and thank you for the beer at The Marlay while we pieced together our expedition to Mistaken Point.

MY SCIENCE WRITING HUSBAND: Writing science right and speaking about it engagingly

TONY MARTIN SPEAKING ENGAGINGLY ABOUT SCIENCE (photo by Ruth Schowalter, aka Hallelujah Truth)

Hallelujah for husbands! Hallelujah for my husband, whom I affectionately call Chiboogamoo (aka Tony Martin). Hallelujah for his bright spirit endeavoring to write science "right" and to speak engagingly about his expertise of all things paleontological and ichnological!

This weekend, these two endeavors, writing and speaking, merged for Tony Martin as he was a featured Atlanta author at the 2013 Decatur Book Festival (DBF), the largest independent book festival in the United States--and it took place in our hometown of Decatur, Georgia, within walking distance from where we live!

SCIENCE WRITING WORKSHOP

Tony and I both began the DBF weekend by taking workshops on the Agnes Scott campus, also located in Decatur. Tony took the workshop, "Science and Storytelling: Creating a Chemical Reaction," with Sonya Collins, which was down the hallway from my workshop, "Good Book, Bad Book," with Susie Wilde (see my blog entry about her workshop).

Here is the description of his "Science and Storytelling" workshop:

Maybe you've heard of science writing or science journalism, but as a creative writer, you wonder, "How creative could science writing really be?" You're interested, but you wonder if it might be a little dry for you. You wonder if it could really scratch your "writerly itch." In this workshop, learn how science writers use metaphor, character, scene and other creative literary devices to tell stories about science. And then try the tools out for yourself.

And the man that I am married to who has authored more than three science books and 35 peer-reviewed papers, emerged from his workshop classroom all smiles, pronouncing, "Yes, I learned something," and, "It reaffirmed what I'm doing right."

Hallelujah for Tony's openness to ongoing personal and professional development, for leaving his desk computer and going out into the world of the DBF and engaging with other science writers and gaining from their expertise.  

Not speaking at the DBF until Sunday afternoon, my Chiboogamoo and I had all of Saturday to enjoy the DBF writer venues and book vendors. An Emory professor, my honey wanted to make a stop at his university's tent to see how his newest book, Life Traces of the Georgia Coast, was being displayed. He was not disappointed when he saw it figured prominently in a collage about Emory authors.

EMORY UNIVERSITY AUTHOR-TONY MARTIN! At the Emory University DBF tent, we were delighted to see Tony's book, Life Traces of the Georgia Coast, represented in a lively populated collage of other Emory University authors. "An embarrassment of riches," is the way Tony describes the hundreds of books written by Emory faculty, which were unavailable for purchase at the festival. How could you cart all of the books to sell, or even worse, which books would you choose if you were to represent only some of the authors? (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

Our Saturday slipped away pleasurably and smoothly like hourglass sand as we attended events, looked at books, stopped at the hospitality suite for authors, mingled with authors and friends, and celebrated at the evening gala. Opera singers, costumed creatures, light displays, gourmet cocktails, and "haute" street food swirled around us. Fun was to be had on this hot humid night in Georgia at the DBF.

Floating about in a delirium of heat and pleasure, we bumped into Brian Switek, a DBF-featured Atlanta Science Tavern writer and, not surprisingly, an acquaintance of Tony's via Twitter and professional meetings. Arriving in Atlanta to speak about his book, My Beloved Brontosaurus, he was enjoying the celebratory atmosphere surrounding authors, their books, and the people who love them. 

As it was my first time to meet Brian, I was feeling slightly shy about talking with this accomplished science writer. That is, until he accidentally splashed the feet of U.S. Poet Laureate, Natasha Tretheway, with a spilled cocktail. All was forgiven and I was then completely relaxed in his presence. (As an aside, I might add that my husband had the privilege of teaching introductory geology to Dr. Tretheway when she was an undergraduate and he was a graduate student at the University of Georgia.)

Sunday arrived. My honey and I went to the first science talk at noon, which began with Brian Switek's talk about his book. Good science that is well written can be spoken about in an entertaining fashion, and Brian excelled at engaging us. He even explained the genesis of Bookzilla (DBF's monstrous mascot)? Can you believe it?

HMMMM...GETTING READY TO ENGAGE. Meet the motley crew that began the Atlanta Science Tavern's speakers for the DBF on Sunday at noon. You recognize my Chiboogamoo on the left, preparing to introduce Brian Switek (center), author of My Beloved Brontosaurus, getting in the groove to speak to the Atlanta audience. Then there is the magnificent Marc Merlin, one of the organizers of the Atlanta Science Tavern. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

But before Brian spoke about his book, My Beloved Brontosaurus, Tony gave an informative and thrilling introduction. Yes, he did. Taking the time to craft the introduction, he wrote a draft by hand, typed it, revised it, rehearsed it, and was ready to create a heightened sense of fun for the audience. Is that writing science right and speaking engagingly?
 

TONY MARTIN IS PURE THEATER.  When introducing Brian Switek, Tony donned a dinosaur hat to engage the audience. He succeeded, and they were disappointed when he took it off. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

BOOK SIGNING AND LUNCH WITH BRIAN SWITEK. Thanks to the organizers of the DBF, who provided $10 coupons in the author swag bag. These coupons were redeemed for food and drink here at the Brick Store Pub (and at other times during the weekend at Twains and Leon's), and allowed for an affordable and congenial way for authors to share information and get better acquainted. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

Following Brian's talk was book signing and lunch with Brian, but then it was TA-DA time! Tony's talk about Life Traces of the Georgia Coast in the DBF's Atlanta Author division. For us, this was the climax of the DBF! 

And I watched while Tony incorporated in his talk what he had just learned from Sonya Collins on her Friday afternoon workshop. He created a cast of characters, asking the audience to imagine them in a Flannery O'Connor novel or a movie. Time was too short for him to pursue and develop this character idea in any depth; however, I am curious to see where this idea will go in the future.

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SCIENCE SPEAKER EXTRAORDINAIRE! Think about a science writer asking you to "IMAGINE"! (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

All good things must come to an end. And so did the DBF. But not before I got to witness my husband's continued engagement in learning how to be better at what he does, as well as his deep and abiding interest in entertaining people about the science he knows. 

CHIBOOGAMOO AND HALLELUJAH TRUTH. Here we are pictured together at the Decatur Book Festival with our DBF logo coffee cups, Tony Martin, science writer and engaging speaker with me adoring wife, artist, and blogger. (photo by willing DBF attendee)

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! SOUL BLOG with me. Tell me what you are Hallelujahing today. Or tell me what you think about our experience at the DBF and writing science right and speaking engagingly!

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:  Enormous applause to Daren Wang, one of the co-founders of the Decatur Book Festival. Much appreciation to Brian Switek and the time we spent together getting to know him better during the DBF. And to U.S. Representative John Lewis, who has given so much to this country, the United States, towards creating equality for all. He gave a wonderful keynote speech Friday night of the DBF.

JOHN LEWIS, KEYNOTE SPEAKER FOR THE DECATUR BOOK FESTIVAL 2013. John Lewis, Georgia Congressman and Civil Rights advocate, split his keynote speech into thirds to allow his two collaborators equal time. He is standing in front of the slide with the cover of his newly published graphic novel, MARCH. Andrew Aydin, seated behind the Congressman, co-authored the text. Then seated left on the stage is the graphic artist who illustrated the text, Nate Powell. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

 

GOOD BOOK BAD BOOK: A quickie workshop with Susie Wilde

GOOD BOOK BAD BOOK. What criteria would you use to determine if a children's book is "good" or "bad"? Yes, until this workshop, I really thought this kind of judgment was based on personal preference. I will no longer look at a children's book the same way after engaging with Susie Wilde. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

Hallelujah for learning, especially from experts in their fields. On Friday, August 30, 2013, Atlanta folks had the opportunity to partake in workshops from notable, successful writers at the advent of the Decatur Book Festival, the largest independent book festival in the United States!

DECATUR BOOK FESTIVAL WORKSHOPS.  We had the good fortune to attend the workshops on the Agnes Scott campus with its beautiful historical buildings. My workshop with Susie Wilde was in Buttrick Hall (pictured above).(photo by Ruth Schowalter)

And, I, well, I decided to join Susie Wilde's workshop, "Good Book Bad Book," to see what I could glean for the current children's book project that I am beginning with Jenifer Hilburn. And I did come away with some take-aways and will share them here with you!

First of all, here is a description of the workshop:

In over thirty years of reviewing children’s books, Susie Wilde has built a fabulous collection of really bad picture books. To set the mood of this workshop, she slices and dices a few of her best worst favorites. Then participants examine, discuss, and determine what makes children’s books succeed, or fail. Does message ever work ? What’s sure to hook young readers? Writers and illustrators will leave armed with a collaborative list of children's book criteria.

After pronouncing "I adore chidren's books!," Susie Wilde, advised us all to join the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators and to form our own writing/illustrators group as a story appears differently on paper, computer screen, image, and when read out loud. Then we started by looking at books with her while she dialogued about what worked and what didn't.

SUSIE WILDE IN ACTION. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

Here are some of the criteria we established in no special order (This is not a complete list as the first half of the discussion, I was a volunteer taking notes at the front of the room):

1. Reach don't preach
2. Write the subtext of the story is knowingly and with awareness
3. Make sure the text is culturally authentic and rings true
4. Match the illustrations to the text (images should be appropriately serious or funny)
5. Illustrate the words well
6. Fit the age group the book is intended for
7. Keep the reader's curiosity

Of course writers need to have believable characters, use "verse" wisely if not at all, make smoothe transitions between fantasy and reality, and establish the tone needed for the story.

Oh we had fun! After establishing the criteria, we got to investigate the children's books she had brought and were displayed haphazardly on the classroom table top and open review copies she had been sent by publishers. Using the criteria, we voted GOOD BOOK or BAD BOOK! Wow! Hallelujah for new knowledge!

Susie Wilde concluded that the most important thing writers need to do is to find their own voice. Also, when writing a story from your childhood, make that story's ending happier for you! 

"The trick is finding your authentic self," she concluded! Authenticity is one of Hallelujah Truth's #1 Values! Thank you Susie Wilde! You are one authentic woman! It was a joy spending two hours with you.

THANK YOU SUSIE WILDE. Here I am with Susie Wilde, holding a copy of one of her books that she wrote collaboratively. (photo by workshop attendee)

That's Coffee with Hallelujah! SOUL BLOG with me and tell me what you think about GOOD BOOK, BAD BOOK, and do you have any favorite children's books? Bad or Good!