For All Time

(Photo credit-Terri Mills)

My life has changed beyond my wildest dreams and I have so many people to thank for it, I can't even begin and it's going to take a while. 

It is truly amazing how a life can change in the blink of an eye. Mine did. Two weeks ago, I felt alone and lost without a notion of how I was to get along. I had a change in circumstances which made things look rather bleak. First I got mad and then I got busy. 

I was able to not only change things but for the better. I am in disbelief at how keeping my faith and my head has made things so much better. 

'For All Time' is the name of my first ever full-length novel. I have always been extremely fascinated by the story of the Titanic and have dutifully watched every documentary I could about this ill-fated vessel. The movie 'Titanic' is possibly my favorite movie of all time. 2012 was the hundred year anniversary of the sinking and in the back of my mind was a niggling of an idea that would not rest. The small voice grew louder and louder until it was impossible to ignore. 

Images were coming to me in bits and pieces. They displayed themselves in my dreams and also in those silent contemplative moments when they would scurry across my mind like grey clouds across a storm-filled sky. 'For All Time' was begging to be written. And so in July of 2012, I began. 

'For All Time' centers on a young British woman named Lillian Spencer Graham, who is aboard the Titanic on its first and only voyage. She is a newlywed who loses not only her dear husband Freddie on the ship but also her in laws and her own parents. She seems to have lost everything until her luck changes in a most unexpected way. 

This story focused on those deep friendships one has that have spawned the expression 'family of choice'. Lily, now all alone in the world, must depend on her newly created family of choice who offer her all the world has. The theme of love in all its forms is also a central theme to this story. 

Lily has left behind one world to grow into yet another and in the process grows into the person she was meant to be. 

Inspiration for this story came via the Titanic and the rich history of this wonderful ship. I also drew inspiration from the following:

Robin and RJ Gibb's gorgeous 'Titanic Requiem'. I listened to this soundtrack over and over again. It kept company with me as I uploaded my manuscript into NOOK Press. 

Find out more here- 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01pjrt3 & here https://www.facebook.com/thetitanicrequiem

The influence for the artistic life of Lily was inspired with love and gratitude by the members of the Pinellas Park Art Society. The book was dedicated to them for all they've given me as a means to develop as an artist. The dedication is my way of showing them my deepest appreciation for their support. To find out more about this organization and the wonderful people within it, please visit them here- 

http://www.pinellasart.com/  and here 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/106669949374066/

**Note, when the book is made available for World Wide sales, I will post the info within this blog.**

Happy New Year to all! Here's to a wonderful 2014!

Well, my entirely different new life has taken another path already. Recently, I had taken a job within an industry that I'd never tried before. It turned out that I was not a good fit to do this no matter how much I twisted and forced my nature to accept this sort of work. I just came to the sad (happy?) conclusion that it just was not for me. I'm not a quitter. I will hang in there even in jobs that other people don't like or say are awful. I have a very good knack for taking a situation and tailoring it into something really good. But this one was just beyond help. With my decision to leave, I felt a pinch of guilt and a little fear. But I'm pressing forward anyway because just within a few day's time, things are starting to change for the better.My only regret was the time I wasted try to be something I wasn't.

But not all is lost. When in training for this job, I learned a lot. Not only about what I was going into as a career but about myself as well. I learned that when I want to change my life, if I pour my heart and soul into doing it, I can attain it. But to accomplish this, I can't sit back and expect things to happen for me. I need to be the one to get up and do it myself. While doing the prep, training and courses to succeed in the new job, I also learned that when it's time to hunker down and learn something, I can.

There's an old saying in Recovery groups, take what you need and leave the rest.

I don't believe in New Year's Resolutions per-say but will tell you a few things I've already started doing before the stroke of midnight-

1-Keeping an open mind
2-Surrounding myself with only the good in life. This means not watching the news, not listening to negative mindsets and aligning myself with people that are making their lives and others' lives better.
3-Counting my blessings
4-Being more mindful with my money, only spending it on things that will serve me
5-Becoming more willing to put myself out there in terms of sharing my talents with the world
6-Saying yes to what I really want and not wasting my time with things I don't want
7-Choosing who to spend my time with (See #2 above)
8-Knowing that I am valuable and people want what I have to offer
9-Learning from my mistakes
10-Listening to my intuition a bit better

So having said all that, Best of luck to all of you in 2014! May this be your best year yet!