My Mom Intentions

September 13, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

The Art of Momming

Image for post — Photo by Sai De Silva on Unsplash

This months intentions I’ve set for mothering are spending quality time with my oldest, creating and being aware of teachable moments with my youngest, but most importantly taking time to enjoy motherhood everyday.

Spending planned quality time with my oldest is one of the best things I started investing in. It allows me to step away from all my responsibilities and just listen to her stories. (And let me tell you, she’s got stories for days which is amazing since she never really talked as a kid.) I love hearing her stories. I want her to know she’s invested in in more ways than one, not just fed and housed, but really focused on and paid attention to. So I started putting one day a week aside for just us two to bond. She always seems a little brighter after we are done with a planned hang out. I say planned because I feel last minute hangout session don’t really serve the purpose. I have to mentally prepare myself to focus on our time together or else I bring my work with me. So when I set aside the time ahead it really makes a difference. It allows me to be fully present.

The other intention I have is being aware enough to take advantage of teaching moments for my youngest. These are my favoritest moments of motherhood. Seeing my babies learn something new, lights up my life. She’s happy. I’m happy. Sometimes we celebrate. Sometimes it’s a silent understanding. But it’s always a good feeling to see my babies grow. Especially because I can get so wrapped up in other things.

I get wrapped up. I get wrapped up in my kids meeting their milestones. I get wrapped up in getting them to where they need to be. I get wrapped up in chasing my own dreams. I mention all that because it’s normal and I know every mom can relate to it. I forget to take time to enjoy my life with them. So the last thing on my list is also one of the most import, to enjoy momming. I try to get on the ground with them, share funny moments with them, and do things to create joyful moments. I like to remind myself the good things about being a mom.

I never really thought of setting intentions for momming. I used to just make lists of things I wanted to get done around the house. They were never really things to build intentional relationships with my girls. I assumed it would just happen naturally. And yes, I do think in many ways relationships get built naturally, but I think this way gives our relationship more value. I do value my family very much. So they’ve been added to my monthly intentions and I hope they grow and evolve into deeper and even more meaningful relationships.

I mean we have a entire world to survive here might as well make the strongest connections I can with the people I love most.

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Dear Writers, Keep the Faith

August 31, 2020 Jayne1 Comment

“Faith is a knowledge within…”

Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach of proof. — Khalil Gibran

We are left here alone to create, to edit, to choose the choices our characters decide to take. Someone has to trust in us. Someone has to believe we are going to get somewhere with this. So we, us writers, must do the believing. We must have faith in ourselves and our work even when no one else can see the value. Even when we have nothing to prove, we are at our best when we believe and have faith in ourselves.

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How To Connect With Other Writers

August 22, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

It’s important to connect with people who enjoy similar hobbies as you. It helps to have writers around that know how to support you. There are many reasons why it’s beneficial for writers to connect with writers. However, with writing being a solitary and time-consuming thing, it can be hard to get out there and make strong connections with other writers. So, here’s some tips on how I connect with other writers.

Facebook Groups

I have found Facebook writing groups to be a great place to get support and give support to other writers. It can be overwhelming once you get in there but speak up. Talk about your work, ask questions, and give your opinion. This is the best way for your people to find you and you to find them. Think of your comments as beacons sending light out to those you’ll have as friends for a lifetime or even a short time. Friends who understand the demands of writing are good to have with you on this wild ride.

Writing Workshops

I have made some great connections going to a writer’s workshop at my local library. We all are good friends and we get pretty connected to the stories that are shared in the group. It’s only once a month so I can plan it into my schedule. This helps to both improve your writing skills and slowly connect with other writers in person. Some people like to make friends they can meet in person rather than online. Writing workshops help to meet that need.

Hash Tags

Hash tags help to narrow down your posts to a specific community. If you want your posts to be geared towards writers, #writers is the way to go. You can also google the best hashtags for writers on specific social media websites. I have made friends who I adore, and we feed off each other for encouragement and growth. I think this one has worked best for me so far.

Blogs

Blogging about your interests helps to find other writers who may not be blogging about the same interest but who are still interested in what you have to say. This is a great way to get your work out there, keep my brain fresh, and to connect with other writers. I think blogging or even

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Here’s Your Freedom

August 20, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

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“The man who has no imagination has no wings.” ―Muhammad Ali

Freedom is can be a complex topic. I mean, does absolute freedom really exist? If it did, it could only be freedom for one person because it’s impossible for a man to be completely free without infringing upon another mans freedoms. Unless of course if we each had our own islands, but that’s not the case.

Thankfully, we’ve been given an imagination where there is no limit to what we can do. We can fly, walk around candy gardens where little men sing scary songs to a catchy beat, have super powers, there really is no limit.

Why don’t we take advantage of this more? Are we too tired? Overworked? Not bored enough? Probably a combination of all of these things. We spend too much time trying to keep busy and not enough time letting our minds imagine the things that make our spirits soar.

“Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire…

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My Abandonment Issues

July 8, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

I grew up as a dreamer in a single-family home. I wasn’t that different from my peers. However, most TV shows depicted two parent families or co-parenting which involved parents that were separated but did whatever they had to do to make it work out. The sad thoughts that come with the idea that someone that should want you like they do on TV, starts young. It’s not an obvious thing. The TV parenting style sat in the back of my mind while the humor was in the forefront. But at bedtime right before I’d fall asleep, I’d wonder why no dad would fight that hard to be in my life. Why no man at that point would do anything to ensure that I grew up with a mom and a dad.

That’s a glimpse of where my abandonment issues began. Everyone has at least a small dose of abandonment issues in their blood because people leaving us high and dry is a part of life. Some may have lost a loved one from death, some from a heartbreak, or some from losing their best friends when they got into high school. Loss isn’t easy on anyone and it looks different for everyone.

Yes, sad sad, but I grew up and slowly began to understand

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Solipsism

June 29, 2020 Jayne2 Comments

She’s gone

snuffed out with just a thought

not a person could save her

or her body

or her works

dead and gone

the gift of being mortal

the gift of life

to gift your body into the hands of another

because there is no fight

there never was

pain is an act of life

death is the grand-finale

but there’s no going out with a bang

it will be far less extravagant than that

-Saschia

Where My Ambition Came From

June 24, 2020June 24, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

I was not always ambitious. I grew up in a single parent home with a mom battling depression. She, with the help of my family, made sure we had everything we needed while prioritizing a deep rooted relationship with Christ. I was blessed with a father who loved me and did the

The Creative Process is Internal

June 21, 2020June 21, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

The creative process isn’t a thing that’s visible because it’s created in our own minds. So we shouldn’t expect it to be understood by anyone else.

We have secrets, us creators, but the truth of the matter is,

Conceived Ideas? -The Creative Process

April 18, 2020April 18, 2020 Jayne4 Comments

The truth is once a piece is finished, most ideas conceived will have no place of origin. Plus, some things are meant to be kept as an artist’s secret, and I respect that.

However, Henry James left us a list of places that ideas come from and it’d be my pleasure to share that with you.

Curiosity

Curiosity killed the cat but created a writer. I try my best not to push away the things that I’m curious about especially when it keeps returning to me. I like to dive in and find the answers I’m looking for. Then, I find new questions to explore.

Variety of attempts

If at first you don’t succeed try try again. I definitely don’t always get it right the first time and that’s ok. Art thrives on failure. I’m not going to give up on writing because I messed up a couple hundred times. I keep writing! And If I have to scrap an idea, I don’t throw it away, I always try to tuck it away in case I can incorporate it into another piece. Or even use it to inspire new ideas.

Exchange of view points

Hearing someone else’s perspective of the world is so interesting to me. It helps to see things from outside of the box that I sometimes live in. It can definitely spark ideas after a good conversation with a friend.

Experiment

Experimenting and tinkering with different styles, plots, genres, or whatever else helps me to get out of the monotony of it all. Experiments are uncomfortable, they don’t have a home, and they take a lot of time and focus which is all great because there’s something about getting out of my comfort zone that gets my creative juices flowing. You should totally try it.

Comparison of standpoints

I love to use conflict to inspire my writing. Passion fuels a lot of my poetry and the purpose for a couple novels I’m working on. Comparison of standpoint helps to conceive new ideas because it make me want to give my audience a story that helps to explain my perspective.

So there you have it. The five places ideas are conceived.

I challenge you to try a couple of these (or all) then spend time just brainstorming a bunch of ideas. Or use them create new ideas to add to a story you’re currently working on. I’ll be doing it with you.

We discussed Why Understanding the Creative Process is important and What the Creative Process is. Now, let’s get writing!

Saschia Johnson On the Creative Process, Conceived Ideas