Category: Family

A Gratitude List (Long Overdue)

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

I have not done this in a while. I would have posted it as I wrote it in my journal, longhand, but I made a mistake. You need not see such a thing.

I am grateful:

For every day given me, each today.
I can read, learning stories told by varied minds.
I can write, encourage, inspire, illuminate, touch the lives of others.
Even with its aches, pains, infirmities, my body is a wonderful gift to me.
I have a storehouse of words I gathered over time, in varied places, and the skill to employ them.
My family and friends are precious and help shape me into the being I am meant to be.
God is real, present to me, at all times.
My home, the shelter protecting me from the elements and containing my things.
Technology helps open the world to me in creative ways.
I am growing, becoming, and even though it is a mystery, I believe that the future will be bright.

Prompt: Write your gratitude list. You may do it as you will, with embellishments that please you, or without any.

Thank you for visiting Haphazard Creative. There is a follow button, or come back as you may. Comments are much welcome.

Be of good cheer; God is near. He will never forsake you, for He has plans of prosperity, protection, and unlimited blessing to pour into your life. This season of toil and trial shall not forever last.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

Vacant Places

We were sitting around the table
Almost ready for the feast,
A little one said the blessing,
Then we raised our eyes from prayer;
My heart skipped for a moment,
I could not help but see
The absence of the ones who
Should properly be seated with me.
Over the years, the chairs have emptied –
Much too often, much too soon,
Some went away, others to their tombs,
Tears puddled my eyes, my breath a stitch,
I only wish I could mend what is missing,
Bring all of them back where they belong,
But only Heaven holds such power, its King,
To redress the deprivations of time’s seizure.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

What Good’s In You?

The Journal Writing prompt today is: Make a list of 20 things you like about yourself.

Believe it or not, this is going to be a difficult assignment. The thing is, according to my mood, I can tolerate myself or hate myself. The tendency toward antipathy is strong.

Here goes:

  1.  I am creative.
  2.  I love deeply and extravagantly.
  3.  The son I raised is an outstanding success.
  4.  I am a writer.
  5.  I am an artist (perhaps not a very good one, but I have some gifts).
  6.  I choose never to stop learning.
  7.  I want to be like Jesus.
  8.  I made my Mom’s final years bearable and kept her at home.
  9.  I do not allow Schizo-Affective Disorder to defeat me, though sometimes it is touch and go.
  10. I have excellent taste.
  11. Animals love me.
  12. Children love me. (Ah, geez, I am running out of things to say. Whatever else?)
  13. I am generous.
  14. I sing.
  15. I work with technology despite the fact I never got the hang of typing very well.
  16. I am an early-adopter.
  17. I am capable of teaching things I know.
  18. I have empathy.
  19. I have overcome most of my worst habits.
  20. I have a wide variety of friends.

Bonus: I am still here, even though I fight suicidal ideation more than I like.

Okay, I did it. Can you? Can you step out of the negatives that often besiege us, and count yourself a blessing? I suggest you do it. It might brighten your day. Appreciate yourself. 

The Bible says we should love others as ourselves. It implies the prerequisite that we love who we are to love others better.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

Missing My Peace

Across the ocean between
I wonder
Do you wait, or do you go on;
Forgetting you were
The starch that stiffened my spine,
Enough
To stand when I only wanted
To run away and hide.
Now,
Without, I can hardly face
The rising of the sun,
All the troubles we worried,
Surely,
They have come, and without
You, I am drowning
No one to throw a raft.
Mama,
I am supposed to be grown,
But standing here alone,
This world seems less than ever,
My home.

Yet, I am thinking of how I wish
I could make you proud,
Show that what you taught,
I finally learned
Well enough that others could see
The magic you often said
Existed in me.
My courage seems settled –
With your ashes in that urn.
I wilt like a rose denied a drink,
But Mama,
Do you know? Do you know how
I miss you so? Sometimes, just
To hear you say I love you,
To have you give me a hug.
Ah, what comfort it would give.

I cry, and wonder why, because
I was
Taught to be reliable, to hide hurts.
Sometimes I do, but God knows,
I need you, and I can hardly get
A grip on why He took you.
Some have said I can stand
All I must do is work
A plan.
My plans keep washing away
In a deluge of troubles
No barrier erected by me
Can forestall.
I know, I know there is no call
To give up, but I have almost,
Then I remember how you said,
“Believe that you can,” and I try
Again.

I guess if I could reach
Across the divide
Seeing you,
You would remind me
To keep doing my best,
Never give up, study myself,
For the rigor of each test.
You would say, “My love is
With you no matter how far
Apart we seem. Trust in
Love
To feed your heart
And strengthen your mind.
Keep living, you are my dream.”
Okay,
Okay, even though it is harder –
Than, I imagined it could ever be,
I will live, for you gave life to me.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

As a prompt, create something about a loss that has affected you deeply and changed your perception. It could be a person, pet, thing, or a time. You choose. You are endowed with creative power, use it.

I hope you will follow or return to Haphazard Creative. I am in the midst of a Creativity Project and would love your input and your continuing support.

Thank you for taking the time to visit. May God richly bless you and all you love.