Ink & Fairydust Newsletter

I thought some of you might be interested in subscribing to "Ink and Fairydust", which is the magazine of the Fairy Tale Forums (a forum for fans of Regina Doman's books). It has lots of fascinating, entertaining, and beautiful articles, stories, poetry, essays, and artwork, including a serial story (whenever I hear "serial story" I think "serial killer", but anyways... :)) written by me. Here is the header (made by moi)for it:

The first installment of "Past the Ends of the Earth" was in this past issue (October 2009), which can be read here. It has been redesigned into a magazine format, and you can click here to see the lovely new front cover!

To subscribe to this FREE on-line magazine, simply send your email adress to inkandfairydust@yahoo.com with "Subscription to Ink and Fairydust" in the subject.

Of animals, and a place in this world.

I was reading "The Wind in the Willows" earlier this week (one of my favorite books, by the way), and this last paragraph of the chapter "Mr Badger" jumped out at me:

As he hurried along, eagerly anticipating the moment when he would be at home again among the things he knew and liked, the Mole saw clearly that he was an animal of tilled field and hedgerow, linked to the plowed furrow, the frequented pasture, the lane of evening lingerings, the cultivated garden plot. For others, the asperities, the the stubborn endurance, or the clash of actual conflict, that went with Nature in the rough; he must be wise, must keep to the pleasant places in which his lines were laid and which held adventure enough, in their way, to last for a lifetime.

That brought to mind something I'm sure we've all heard at some time or another - that we must be content with what our place in the world is. We can't all be heroes, and for some of us, the most heroic thing we will ever do is accept that we will not fight any battles or be admired for the wonderful things we have done. No, many of us will simply exist in the small struggles and joys and adventures of everyday life.

This may sound unappealing. Like Eowyn in The Lord of the Rings, we may cry out that we want to battle and be held in renown, not be sent to help the women and children. Where is the renown in that? But is renown all we should seek? Perhaps the most important thing we could be doing at the moment is insuring that others are safe and comfortable, working for the common good in whatever way we're most capable of, and not falling to the temptation of pridefulness.

Very possibly one is fully capable of fighting a battle, of doing brave and glorious things. But if that is not what we're called on to do, it's a valuble thing to learn to be content with "...the pleasant places in which (our) lines were laid and which held adventure enough, in their way, to last for a lifetime." We must be wise.

So here I promised a reflection on one book and gave you one on a different one! Ah well...the Casablanca/Jane Eyre/parable of the workers in the vineyard post will be coming soon! I won't set a date, though, because I always feel guilty if I can't meet it. ;)

Oh, and another thing I noticed in this reading of The Wind in the Willows is that each of the four main characters are very much prototypes of the four temperaments! We have the courageous, confident, take-charge Ratty (choleric); the home-loving, peaceful, thoughtful Mole (melancholic); the cheerful, gregarious, cocky Toad (sanguine); and the reclusive, wise, peace-making Badger (phlegmatic). Interesting...I wonder if Kenneth Graham did that on purpose.

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And, just for the fun of it, here are pictures of all of our pets!

Jack Sparrow the cockatiel, commonly known as Jack, Jacky Boord, or Mr Baby.

Ratty, the enormous (22 lb, 13-inch long tail!) blind cat, also known as Piggy, Toad, or Mr Baby (among other things!).

Smoky, the big chubby cat, usually known as Moky or Gub-Gub.

Sophie, the prittoo little puffball.

Our Lady's Lamp

I'd been meaning to post about praying in front of the Family Planning center on Thursday morning! It was really cool being out there so early in the morning.

We got up at 5:30 am, which turned out to not be early enough, since we got there about halfway through the first rosary. It was cold (my feet especially were freezing, since I was wearing leather boots), and still dark. Our priest and about half a dozen people from our church were there, standing on the sidewalk next to the building, and we quickly joined the line.

I watched the almost-full moon - Our Lady's lamp - as we prayed. It would occasionally pass behind the clouds, but always reappeared eventually. As time passed, the sky slowly lightened from pitch black to dark blue, and from dark blue to gray. You could see already that it was going to be a cloudy day.

We prayed an entire 15-decade rosary (Father asked me to lead the Glorious mysteries), and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. Three people honked as they drove by - the first time that happened I jumped about a foot in the air! haha Unfortunately, someone also gave us the finger. But the negative responses are always outnumbered by the positive ones.

Just before we finished at 7 am, I looked up and saw that the clouds were faintly tinged with pink. I was very happy - I love seeing the sun rise! It was such a beautiful sight as we all warmly greeted one another and then dispersed to the various callings of our days.

Each time the moon vanished behind a cloud, I thought, "Okay, it's not going to come back out," but it always did, and was still there after the sun had risen. Our Lady had hung out her lamp, and was keeping her motherly eye on her courageous children who were praying for her voiceless ones.

It was a beautiful way to start the day.

The dinner, and other random things.

The fund raising dinner at church was last night, and it was very enjoyable! Neither the prep work nor the actual dinner quite so "fun" as they used to be, but I still had a good time! It seems like that's how it's been going as I get older, though...things that used to be so wonderful and magical and fun have lost that quality. It's that I don't enjoy them anymore, it's just that it's not that all-consuming enjoyment. I guess it's just a part of growing up...rather unfortunate, but unavoidable. You seem to become less attuned to your surroundings, in a way - or maybe more so. I can't really tell. Well, anyways...back to the dinner.

I think that part of the reason I didn't have as much "fun", per say, was that I actually did a lot of work this time. *rolls eyes* heehee All the previous dinners there had been a surplus of helpers and I usually got sent out of the kitchen, ending up just hanging out with my friends most of the time, but this time there were only 5 people so I did quite a bit! That was fine with me...I don't like feeling like a slacker! And now I have a burn, a stab, a slice, and a blister to prove my non-slacker status. :D

One humorous conversation between the seminarian at our church who was in charge of the dinner and me:

S. (noting my hands that were stained orange from cutting up carrots): Orange hands are happy hands!

Me: Pft, when they have blisters they're not!

S: Oh, they still are.

Me: Well, I suppose they like the color.

S: They do. It's a very productive color.

We worked all afternoon for three days, and by the end of the last day I was exhausted! That was partly just because of 5 hours of ballet that morning, and my incredibly painful feet (I'll post a picture of the unlovely things pointe shoes can do to your feet when I get one. ;)).

My sister and I served the punch before the dinner started. I always enjoy doing that! It gives me something to do other than stand around, and I get to talk to lots of people. When the food was ready to be served we went and sat with in our places by some friends of ours. There was also a young couple with two young children sitting next to me...I'd seen them around a lot, but never talked to them, and we had an enjoyable conversation!

The food was soup, pork, rice with roasted red peppers and corn, green beans, salad, and pound cake and ice cream. It was all pretty good, especially the rice!

I was sitting with one of my friends and we were talking a lot about all sorts of things - weird dreams, movies, books, etc. I'd never really talked to her in person terribly much, but we'd been talking over Facebook lately and I know we have several things in common, such as loving Regina Doman's books! :D It was a lot of fun!

The dinner didn't get over until quarter to 10, much to my surprise! In addition to the food, there was a drawing for 7 beautiful Brazilian agates (our priest is from Brazil), and the drawing of the raffle tickets (for which Father played the bugle!).

A Brazilian agate - beautiful!

It was a nice surprise that the guys ended up doing the dishes after the dinner! They almost always disappear and the girls and adults are left doing them (and there usually aren't enough of them), but the kitchen was chock-a-block full, so I was like, "Hey, I won't even try to go in there!" We got home around 11 pm.


Oh, and on a completely different subject, while messing around at ballet class I found out I can do this!

I'd seen pictures of people doing that and always thought "How on EARTH?", but I guess I can do it. :)


Here are some pictures I put together - you can use them for whatever, just give credit where credit is due! Thanks!

And finally, here is a slideshow I made of Sunday Mass at our church from the beginning to the Gradual. I'm working on Part 2.

Coming soon: what do Casablanca, Jane Eyre, and a parable in the Bible have in common? You'll find out.

Nope, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth...

Just wanted to make sure you all knew that! I've just been lazy and not posting as much as I should, and this won't be much of a post either because I've been on the computer far too long today and should be getting off!

I'm reading Narnia out loud to my mum and sister...it is so much fun. I love reading books out loud and reading with expression...it's very enjoyable to experiment with! We're about half-way through "The Magician's Nephew" and I am really looking forward to reading "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" and "The Silver Chair" again. Love love love those books...tonight I'm going to start a review of each of them, which I'll post when it's finished. I have lots of other ideas for posts, too, so stay tuned!

The fall fund raising dinner at church is this Saturday - I can't wait! We'll help with preparations on Friday and Saturday, as usual. I let you all know how that goes...it's almost always the best part!

I must away.

La musique

I posted this on the FTN Forum, and I thought I'd share it here too! Maybe you'll find another artist whose music you enjoy!

*Coldplay (my favorite band...I love their latest CD, but I really like their old style too. Current Alternative)
*Loreena McKennit (AH. She is AMAZING! I remember thinking when I first listened to The Book of Secrets, "Her voice matches and melds with her music so perfectly." It's amazing that she writes all her own music, and reading the notes in the booklet is fascinating. I love all her CDs, and my favorite song is "The Mummer's Dance". Current Celtic/World)
*Rob Thomas (I really like a lot of his songs...some of them have a bit of language, but they're mostly good. I really like his love songs, especially "Ever the Same" and "All That I Am". Current Rock/Pop)
*Simon and Garfunkel (We have the CD The Best of Simon and Garfunkel, and I love every single song on it! 1950's through 1980's Folk/Alternative)
*Phil Collins (I gotta say, I love 80's music, and he has a great voice. 1980's Pop)
*Kate Bush (Amazing singer!!! Now, not everyone would like her...her style is a bit odd, but if you like odd you will love her. My favorite song by her is "Wuthering Heights" - the new version - "Running Up That Hill", "Breathing", "And Dream of Sheep", and "In Search of Peter Pan" are good too. I like most of her songs. 1970's through 1990's...not sure how to classify her!)
*Rihanna (Pretty much every song by her that comes out on the radio I love, and I also love her style in clothes! Current Pop/HipHop/RnB)
*Black-Eyed Peas (They have some TERRIBLE songs, but I really like a lot of the ones they release as singles! I like "I Got a Feelin'". Current HipHop/Rap)
*Laura Nyro (More people should know about her! I like "And When I Die" and "Upstairs By a Chinese Lamp". 1970's through 1990's Folk/RnB)
*The Beatles (Pretty much everyone likes the Beatles.)
*Hayley Westenra (She has such a beautiful voice, I love it! My favorite CD by her is Pure. Current Classical Pop/Modern)
*Sarah Brightman (I don't always like her voice...it can get kind of squeaky... but she was brilliant in Phantom of the Opera and I love her CD Eden. 1980's through present Classical Pop/Broadway)
*Taylor Swift (Mmm, I don't like her as much as I used to not - I'm not at all a fan of country music - but I love "Love Story"! The music video is awesome too, I love the P&P look! Current Country)
*Chicago (I listened to them at the house of some good friends when I was 10, and I've liked them ever since. 1980's-90's Rock)
*Josh Groban (Need I say a word? ;))
*Regina Spektor (I started listening to her after hearing "The Call" at the end of Prince Caspian, and I really enjoy her unique voice, inventive lyrics, and beautiful piano playing. Current...not sure how to classify her either.)
*Imogen Heap (I started listening to her after hearing "Can't Take It In" at the end of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe - I'm eager to see what great artist will do music at the end of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader! I love her beautiful voice and all the really cool instruments she uses - one of my favorite songs is "Headlock". Some of the songs do have objectionable lyrics, but a lot of them are so poetic you can't really tell what she's saying. haha Current Alternative/Techno)
*Camera Obscura (A Scottish band my sister discovered...they have a really neat sound...sort of vintage, in a way. I like "Lloyd I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken" and "Let's Get Out of This Country". Current Alternative)
*Alicia Keys (She has a beautiful voice and beautiful songs. A lot of people I know think she's sort of boring, but I like her a lot. Current RnB)
*The Killers (They certainly have a strange name and some of their songs have not-so-great lyrics, but they also have some good ones. I really enjoy their sound and the lead singer's voice. I like their song"Romeo and Juliet". Current Rock)
*Linkin Park (Some songs have language, but they have so many that I like, especially "Shadow of the Day", "In the End", "New Divide", etc. Current Alternative)
*Red Hot Chili Peppers (I like their sound, and the song "Dani California". Current Rock)
*ABBA (Of Mamma Mia fame. My mum thinks their music is cheesy, but my sister, my dad, and I love it! I have this guilty fondness for disco music. haha 1980's Pop/Disco)
*The Cranberries (A band from Ireland...I haven't listened to them much but I like what I heard! 1980's-90's Alternative)
*Jukebox the Ghost (I love this band, especially the song "A Good Day"! They have a really cool sound with a lot of piano and a lead singer who can sing reallyreallyfast! Current Alternative)
*Feist (I've listened to her CD Live and Let Die - some of the lyrics are objectionable, but a lot of the songs are really nice. My favorite songs by her are "Mushaboom" and 1234". Current Alternative)
*Keane (I've only listened to their CD Hopes and Fears, but i hope to listen to the others soon. They seem to change their style a bit with each CD - I like the style of Hopes and Fears a lot, it's very dream-like. My favorite songs from it are "Sunshine" and "Somewhere Only We Know". Another band, though, with lyrics so poetic I can't understand them! haha Current Alternative)
*Clannad (I've just started listening to them...can't understand how I missed them before! I love their Celtic-meets-80's sound. They're naturally good, being Enya's family! 1980's-90's Celtic)
*Billy Joel (I've only heard his music from the musical Movin' Out, but I really like it! I need to listen to one of his actual CDs. 1970's-80's Rock)
*The Fray (They have a beautiful sound and I really like the lead singers voice. Their songs are mostly very good and interesting. I really like "You Found Me" and "Cablecar". Current Alternative)

I also like a lot of musicals, especially Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, Fiddler On The Roof, Cats, Peter Pan, Movin' Out, The King and I. I also like the soundtracks of movies such as LOTR, Narnia, King Arthur, North and South, Chariots Of Fire, Master and Commander, Ever After, and Pride and Prejudice.

Classical music is something else I enjoy...my favorite composers are Debussy, Faure, and Tchaikovsky. I really like Debussy's "Le Mer" and "Burgamusque Suite" (I really want to learn it on piano!). A good CD of choral music is Choral Moods, performed by the choir of Trinity College. The only problem I have with it is how they sing Gregorian chant incorrectly. Other than that, it's beautiful!

40 Days For Life

I'd like to call your attention to the upcoming fall campaign of 40 Days for Life, a wide-spread pro-life outreach. Through the combined prayerful efforts of over 200,000 people (this fall, the campaign will be present in at least 212 communities in the U.S., Canada, and Denmark) in the past 5 years, 1,561 lives have been preserved from abortion, 18 abortion clinic workers have left their jobs, and 3 abortion clinics have closed their doors completely. Through much prayer, fasting, and peaceful picketing of abortion clinics and family planning centers, many dedicated people have helped effect a wonderful beginning of change.

Would you like to be a hero and a voice for God's voiceless? Click here to find out if your community is hosting a 40 Days for Life campaign. It will start September 23 and end November 1.

What exactly is involved in participating in the campaign? You will sign up for one one-hour period a week (although signing up isn't strictly necessary - it can be difficult to know your schedule that far in advance, and for that reason you can also just show up) to pray in front of an abortion or birth control provider. You might hold signs, and if you're Catholic you will most likely pray the Rosary and perhaps the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.

People can get upset about seeing picketers, even if they are just peacefully praying. They may shout and be a bit abusive - for that reason, it's often good to pray in groups and if you're by yourself, always have a cellphone handy. Just remember to always be kind and charitable to them, and redouble your praying efforts!

To avoid getting unwanted attention from the media for being "disturbers of the peace", there are a few things to keep in mind. One, stay off the grass - if you're on their property, the clinic can legally have you arrested. Two, don't put signs too near the road or in a place where they could obstruct the vision of oncoming traffic. Three, don't argue with people - it will give the completely wrong impression of our movement!

Praying outside of clinics can be an emotionally draining experience, for sure. Once last spring a man came and began shouting obscenities at our group. It was also very upsetting to read the terrible things people had written about us and the pro-life movement on the website of our local newspaper, and the biased opinions of the media. Father, forgive them - they know not what they do! Please grant us patience!

Of course, there are also the good reactions! Countless people drove past and gave us the thumbs-up sign, even some very unlikely looking ones! This has never happened to me, but several people have said that passers-by have stopped and shared some personal story with them. For example, a young man told a lady I know that his mother had almost aborted him, and had later gone on to have 2 abortions - the mother is now a mess emotionally and physically. He was very thankful to see people praying.

All in all, participating in the campaign is a wonderful thing to do. You are helping to bring about a greater respect for life, to restore some sanity to our world, to preserve beautiful innocent lives. It's worth all the rude comments, frozen fingers, and early mornings. If you're young, it's especially inspiring for others to see you out there. Let's show the world that teenagers are not selfish beings, incapable of controlling themselves. We are the future, and we will fight a good fight to save lives and bring our world back into the light of God!

To learn more about 40 Days for Life, visit their website.