Tomorrow will be a better day!

Hello,
Now that summer is almost over and the heat and humidity have decreased, I have found myself looking back over the past year. The beginning of the new year was difficult with joint replacement surgery and the financial burden that placed on my already screaming wallet. But as I look back over the past nine months, and the years behind me as well, I realize that recovering from anything, be it surgery, loss through death of a loved one, divorce or financial problems, it is all in how you feel about yourself whether you come out of it with painful scars that cause perpetual remorse or lessons learned and move on with your life.
Many of you who know me know that I lost my husband to lung cancer nearly nine years ago; this was the most painful time of my life and I didn't think I would ever get over it.  With the memories that Don and I made to sustain me and the unconditional love he had shown me for the thirteen years we were together I made it through those years. This past weekend I found some pictures of some of those memories and it reminded me of where I had been and where I am now; the people that have passed through my life and those who still remain. I will always be grateful to everyone who has touched my life for I have gained something from each and every one of them; the good and the bad made me what I am today: a strong and independent woman of middle age perfectly capable of taking care of herself come what may.
In my youth I lacked self esteem and feared being rejected, feeling that I was unworthy of being loved and thinking that I had to do what ever I was told to make sure I was loved.  This drove me to marry the first man that said he loved me at the age of twenty.  What a disaster that was!  We were separated within a year and divorced by the second year.  As I mentioned earlier the good and the bad helped shape the person I am and how you feel about yourself will determine how you handle a given situation.  Over the years I have learned this one truth: "TOMORROW WILL BE A BETTER DAY SO DON'T LOSE HOPE!" If tomorrow isn't what you want it to be, then do something about it and the next day will be better.
There is no reason a person must settle for less than what they truly want.  Not even the lack of financial support should stop you.  If you need money and you can't find a job, use your own imagination to create your own income whether it is as simple as baby sitting your neighbors kids, taking in outside laundry or offering to cut your neighbor's grass on Saturday evenings or as complicated as starting your own home based business, there are ways to improve your situation.
If money isn't your problem and human companionship is what you crave, try keeping a smile on your face even when you don't feel as though you have anything to smile about.  A simple smile and a cheerful "Good Morning" will be more readily accepted and appreciated by friends and strangers alike than a constant frown and foul language. The old saw "Misery loves company" is so true, but the opposite side of that coin is "A smile is more contagious than the flu"

A friend once told me something that literally changed the way I felt about myself and I am going to share that bit of advice with you in hopes that it will help you feel better about yourself:
"People will treat you the way you teach them to treat you."
Huh! Imagine that! If you treat yourself badly others will pick up on that.  If you treat yourself with love and respect, they will pick up on that as well.

I hope my little ramble has helped you have a better day.
Lots of love
Kate

A taste of "Secrets"

I had a brainstorm this morning, or perhaps it was a brain fart but I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the results are from this "idea" that popped into my head.  I've been mulling it over all morning and I have come to the conclusion that I have to stop limiting myself and just put it out there for any and all to catch a glimpse of; to see if there might be a spark of interest that could be fanned into a hungry flame with the potential of a raging inferno.  I'm talking about posting a very small passage of my completed manuscript titled Secrets in Bethlehem on this blog. 
As this is my baby, and I its mother, I am very proud of my finished work. Seeing as how it is the first of my creative endeavors I realize that a published author with years of successes under their belt would beg to differ.  I am a novice; I admit it.  I have no resume to speak of and this is my first foray into this arena but I have been told that I am very tenacious.  I will accept any and all creative, and constructive suggestions from those who have been in the business and have learned what is needed to become a successful published author. I have taken fiction writing classes, creative writing workshops, correspondence writing courses and read insatiably.  I know that writing a best seller right out of the gate is not an every day occurrence and I have no delusions of this happening. I do, however, intend to see one of my fiction creations in print.
A word to those who suggest a "Vanity Press" or self publication: NOT IN THIS LIFETIME!!! My ego is healthy and I may be a little obsessive when it comes to my writing, but not to that point and my wallet doesn't allow for that type of self-indulgence.  I have more respect for my gift as a writer even if no one else does at this point.  Perhaps I am being naive about it  in this economy but there you are.
Anyway, here is a little snippet of one of the several high impact scenes:

                                                              Secrets in Bethlehem
                                                                      Written By:
                                                                     Kate Donns

. . . Travis broke through the closed door at the end of the hall like a human battering ram.  Leading with his shoulder the wooden door, weakened by age and neglect, splintered and gave under the brutal force. He stopped dead as though he had hit an invisible wall.  A tall, powerfully built man with a scar slashing his left cheek from eyebrow to chin stood behind Janey, one arm around her neck, holding her close to his chest the other holding a gun to her temple. An ugly purple bruise was starting to form on her cheekbone.  The sight of that evidence of abuse had Travis’s blood seething, hissing an oath between clinched teeth.

 Her head was tilted slightly to the side at an unnatural angle and Travis could hear the breath as it heaved out of her lungs fast and harsh.  In the dim light he could see the courage in Janey's eyes where he had thought he would see fear; not in his Janey, he decided and it filled him with wonder. It filled him with the need to put his hands around the throat of the man who held her and squeeze the life out of him for putting that gun to her head. For putting his hands on her.

            “Drop the guns on the floor and kick them to me.  All we want is the kid.”  Bogarde said.  “Give him to me and you can all go free.  No harm done.” Bogarde knew that Jasper had to be dead.  The two gunshots he’d heard and the two men standing in front of him were proof of that and realized his chances of getting out alive had drastically decreased.

            “Don't hurt her.”  Travis begged as he lowered and carefully set Jasper's gun on the floor in front of him. “Look.  I'm putting down the gun.  Now let her go.” Do what he says, Travis thought, and keep him distracted.  There had to be a way out of this; he couldn’t lose Janey. Not after all they had been through.

            “Just tell me where the kid is.”  Bogarde demanded as he pushed the gun hard against Janey's temple.  “All I want is the kid.” Sweat beaded across the man’s forehead, dripped down his face.  Travis could almost smell the fear emanating from the man holding Janey and that wasn’t good.  Desperate men tended to take desperate measures.

            The soft, sweet voice saying, “Travis?” came from behind him.  It broke through Travis's concentration.  He whirled around to see Jesse standing in the door way and sick dread lodged in Travis's throat, terror and fury such as he had never known before, gripped him stopping time, all but stopping his heart. . .

Hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think.  I'll be looking for your comments and suggestions.
Thanks again,
Kathy

Thank You! In remembrance

Hey, y'all,
Just a quick update to let you know what is happening here in the great state of South Carolina; Greenville, to be specific.
The weather has cooled a great deal and is now very pleasant in the mid to high 70's and lower humidity with sunshine and an all in all perfect Sunday afternoon.
The memories of 9/11/2001 are all around us today and I have seen a lot of respectful salutes to those who have lost their lives in the war against terrorism.
For instance: I went to Waffle House for breakfast this morning and I was very pleased and comforted to see that the Waffle House employees had replaced their usual uniform of blue with the patriotic choice of red, white and blue as a salute to the hero's of this day in history. I, myself, donned a tee shirt with a flag emblazoned across the front, and flag earrings as well, to show my support also. We all remember that black day ten years ago and we all remember the horror as we watched the towers fall in a cloud of black smoke knowing that there were so many who did not make it out alive. The World Trade Center, The Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania are all sites to be remembered as well as the battle fields of the Middle East. The anger that fueled just about every American still has not calmed in many of us and even though Osama Bin Ladin is dead, his fanatical zealots still are reeking havoc all around the world.
It is a sad thing that in the twenty first century we still have this type of thing going on because we don't believe as others do and therefore should not be allowed to live in peace and worship our own God or follow our own beliefs. When does it end?
This is a day of remembrance and to say "Thank You" to not only our soldiers fighting now, but those who fought for our freedom since this country was founded.


Thank You!


P.S. Just a little personal footnote; I have started a new book,the first in a series to be exact, and I have decided to write under the pen name: Kate Donns. The new book is about a team of vampire slayers based in the historic city of Charleston S.C. I can't wait to get it finished. I am still working on getting the other one, "Secrets in Bethlehem" published so wish me luck on that front too.