writing

Never Say Never

Posted by Barbara Techel
Never Say Never
My First Author School Visit April 2008

What a curious few days it has been.

I’ve been working on updating my bio, book order form, and letter of agreement.  All things I had in place five years ago when I did over 400 school and library appearances with my dachshund, Frankie.

For so long, I couldn’t imagine a day I’d do an author visit without my faithful, steal-the-show, wheelie dog, at my side. Even when my friend Mary mentioned that I could still continue to do author visits after Frankie died, I just couldn’t imagine it–it didn’t feel right to me. And honestly, I was burnt out.

But time has a way of sometimes changing one’s thoughts.

And it isn’t something I planned. But when a friend contacted me, who recently took a new principal job at a nearby school asking me if I’d come visit their school and talk about the writing process, life as an author, what empathy is, plus a lunch and learn with the teachers, I found myself curiously open to it.

Working on updating my forms I find myself excited about doing this visit in either January or February, which will be a morning session with k-2 and then an afternoon session with 3-4 graders.

I find myself smiling as I think about Frankie and how, because of her, I was able to gain the confidence to speak in public – and as you likely know that is most people’s number one fear!

I also find myself in sweet reflection recalling a reading I had done with Frankie with my friend, Dawn, who is an animal communicator. It was the day before Frankie passed away.

During that reading Frankie shared how she loved how I’d become much more relaxed as we did more and more presentations over the years. And how I’d learned to go more with the flow and not be so anxious and overly uptight about being oober organized – which I can tend to be – and something I never verbally shared with anyone. And Frankie was spot on!

So much I learned from that little dog who flew through the school hallways on her wheels, oftentimes looking like she’d take flight!

It was such a beautiful time in my life. And so it is now, too. Opportunities and possibilities to ponder and consider and take advantage of when it feels right.

While I could never imagine sharing Frankie’s story without her, here I am, ready to do just that and feeling happy in heart about it. While she won’t be with me, and I shall stand alone, it is the loving memory of her and all she taught me that I am never, ever alone…

And what a lesson in never saying never.

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What Makes For a Creative Life?

Posted by Barbara Techel

What Makes for a Creative Life?

Yesterday I helped John load and unload two trailer’s full of wood for our woodstove which we burn during the winter months. We have a furnace, but enjoy trying to be more self-sufficient when we can. Besides the ambiance of a woodburning stove is so soothing to one’s soul.

But as we loaded and unloaded the wood I was fascinated by some of the shapes of the pieces, such as this one above. It’s an an art statement just as it is.

It had me wondering what it is that makes a creative life. I always used to closely associate it with what medium we may work with or try out such as writing, painting, drawing, or sculpting to name just a few.

When I think about my life, so much of it is creative in the way that we make choices for what works for John and I. Neither of us work in the corporate world having left there over 20-years ago. John with his own construction business which lends itself often to his own sense of creativity, and me with my writing, animal advocacy, and SoulCollage® workshops I teach.

But it’s more than that really. To see life as one big creative playground no matter what you are doing.

Like yesterday setting out with John to travel about 20 minutes on a sunny Sunday morning to get the wood. Feeling blessed to have the life I do with John who is so good to me and makes me happy.

Working with our hands, throwing the pieces into the trailer, being out in nature listening to the birds, feeling the wind in our faces and the sun on our backs.

Seeing the beauty in each piece of wood, imagining how it started out as a seedling and grew into a magnificent tree, then chopped down for many different purposes.

Creativity is all around me at all times. It’s in the way I plan our meals, decorate our house, hang out with my dogs, talk with John, go for walks, practice yoga, and meditate. This is, in part, what makes my life feel so creative.

It’s about being open to how we see the world through our own eyes and feel into it into the depth of our hearts. It’s about making the conscious choice of staying in awareness of this thing called life and accepting all that we can see, but also the mystery of it, too.

It’s about following your hearts calling even when times feel tough. It’s making it work despite the odds stacked against you at times. It’s really, to me, about listening to the inner truth that is there if you wish to hear it.

And I think it really is about pausing often, listening to that inner realm, and capturing what it is that matters most to you… and then living from that place within that makes your heart sing.

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Silence and Stillness. Crucial to Living a Meaningful Life.

Posted by Barbara Techel

silence

I ran across this quote this morning. It really spoke to me, especially as I continue to work on the fourth draft of my second memoir, Wisdom Found in the Pause.

This book, in part, about my paralyzed dachshund Joie and her short life with me ultimately led me to not wanting to write (or talk much) after she passed away. As someone who loved to write and share my passion about special needs dogs, this felt very odd and scary.

Taking a sabbatical from everything I had known and loved to do for the prior six years, from keeping up my blog, interacting with my audience on social media, writing books, and public speaking gigs for children and adults, to now plunge into what felt like nothingness felt like the scariest thing ever.

While it was true I was craving stillness, silence, and a slowing down, I was afraid to be with my own thoughts. I was afraid to hear and examine what I knew to be true – that I wanted to let go of a chapter in my life I had so enjoyed, which at the time really didn’t make sense. The scary part also was that I didn’t know where I wanted to go next.

And being in silence can seem daunting and overwhelming to face all those fears.

While I was very restless at the beginning of my sabbatical, oftentimes feeling like I wanted to jump right out of my own skin, I’m so glad I stuck with it.

It was in that silence and stillness that the gifts started to make themselves known…and where being in the presence of silence and making friends with it I could gain more clarity. Silence and stillness is now an ongoing practice in my life, even when I veer a bit far from it I hear that inner voice calling me back – to find balance.

I believe it is crucial to pay attention to it in order to live a meaningful life.

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