• Man looking at goals checklist
    Essays,  General Thoughts

    Can High Goals Get in the Way of Contentment?

    Having hopes and dreams for ourselves is healthy. But at what point can high goals get in the way of happiness? Dreams vs. goals It’s natural for humans to have dreams. They start when we’re little kids, dreaming of being a ballerina, a pro athlete, or just like Mom or Dad. It’s good to have dreams because they’re one of the things that set us apart as a species. Later in my childhood and early teen years, I dreamed of someday being a writer—an author of published novels. Goals are a bit different and less easily forgotten. As a child, I wanted to be all sorts of different things, but…

  • Essays,  General Thoughts

    Quitting: Is it failure?

    Quit can be such a negative word. I’ve heard messages my entire life of “don’t quit” or “don’t give up.” Is it acceptable to quit? I use the word “quit” with my kids almost every single day in the form of “Quit fighting!” I laugh at that because they’re never going to stop fighting. When they really get into an argument that won’t let up, I make them do more chores. I figure if they’re going to fight, they might as well do something productive while they argue. We encourage our children to stick with sports or their music, dance or karate lessons that we may or may not have…

  • Essays,  General Thoughts,  Novels (my writing updates)

    What am I doing?

    Right now I am playing the waiting game with Caroline’s Lighthouse. I received word today that the manuscript has passed the initial review process. It is with Archway Publishing undergoing content review and I expect to hear back within one month. Basically, they are checking for copyright violations, hate crime depiction or evidence of plagiarism. Since I have done none of those things, I am not worried. While I am not worried about those things, I am worried about some blatant error that I might have missed in the manuscript. Waiting is difficult because I am not a very patient person. In the meantime, I am working on my next novel,…