The Invitation
It doesn't interest me what you do for a living
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dreams
for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life's betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.
I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your
fingers and toes
without cautioning us to
be careful
be realistic
to remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand on the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
"Yes."
It doesn't interest me
to know where you live or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after a night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.
It doesn't interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the center of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moments.
Oriah Mountain Dreamer
Canadian Teacher and Author
Sunday, 14 July 2013
Thursday, 11 July 2013
Please visit me at ... https://www.facebook.com/#!/MysteryAtDeadMansRidge
If you yearn for the simple country life
Peace and tranquillity
Then don’t visit Dead Man’s Ridge
for you simply won’t believe ….
Just what goes on in a woolshed
or what’s hidden in the bush clad hills
and if you meet a boy named Tom
there’s bound to be some thrills.
... He’ll give you a clapped out bike
drop his trousers on a barbed wire fence
teach you how to burp the alphabet
fend off a hawk in self defence …
If you like a bit of gore and guts
The country’s the place to be
There’s plenty of maggoty road kill
Just ask Maggie Mackenzie ..
Peace and tranquillity
Then don’t visit Dead Man’s Ridge
for you simply won’t believe ….
Just what goes on in a woolshed
or what’s hidden in the bush clad hills
and if you meet a boy named Tom
there’s bound to be some thrills.
... He’ll give you a clapped out bike
drop his trousers on a barbed wire fence
teach you how to burp the alphabet
fend off a hawk in self defence …
If you like a bit of gore and guts
The country’s the place to be
There’s plenty of maggoty road kill
Just ask Maggie Mackenzie ..
An extract from ... Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge, by Mandy Edwards.
“Blast,” said Tom. “Quick, I’ll be grounded for a month if we don’t get home before Mum and Dad.”
“So what?” scoffed Maggie. “You don’t have any social life anyway!” But nevertheless she reached her bike first, swung her leg over the bar and took off, with Tom in hot pursuit. She was in the bad books already with Uncle Ted, and she didn’t want to have her name heading up yet another page!
They were two kilometres into their ride when they heard the shots.
Maggie slammed on her brakes, and Tom, who had been following close behind, crashed into her back tyre. Maggie’s wheel spun out behind her, and she somersaulted over her handle bars, and flew into the ditch. Her bike fell on top of her. And there she lay, moaning; completely unable to move!
Shots in the Night
Tom regained control of his bike, as he watched his cousin’s spectacular fall. He leapt off his seat, and almost got tangled in his own bike spokes, in his haste to reach her.
“Jeez Mags, are you okay?” Tom carefully lifted the bike off her and tossed it to one side. He let out his breath in relief as Maggie groaned and struggled to sit up. She fingered the huge rip in her jeans and winced as the blood dripped slowly down her leg. Both her elbows were grazed and she had a small bump appearing on her forehead.
“Thank god you were wearing a helmet,” said Tom. “You could have knocked all the sense out of you!”
“Shut up!” Maggie snapped. “My jeans are ruined!” Just then, another shot rang out and both children ducked. Tom scanned the darkness and could just make out the pinprick of light way in the distance.
“Hey someone’s out hunting on the McGregors’ farm. Do you think …?” But Maggie was trembling with shock, in no condition to think. Tom took one look at her white face and wondered what on earth he was going to do. The front wheel of her bike was knackered; several spokes had broken and the back tyre was punctured.
“Jeez, you sure know how to wreck a bike,” he teased. “Let’s heave it into the bushes, and you can ride on the back of mine. Are you up for it?” Maggie nodded wearily and climbed on behind Tom. It was obvious her knee hurt like hell, but she said nothing. Tom gave her an admiring look. Maggie sure had guts, even if she was a girl!
Read Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge ... and find out who fired those shots ... and why! http://amzn.to/149v0A4
“So what?” scoffed Maggie. “You don’t have any social life anyway!” But nevertheless she reached her bike first, swung her leg over the bar and took off, with Tom in hot pursuit. She was in the bad books already with Uncle Ted, and she didn’t want to have her name heading up yet another page!
They were two kilometres into their ride when they heard the shots.
Maggie slammed on her brakes, and Tom, who had been following close behind, crashed into her back tyre. Maggie’s wheel spun out behind her, and she somersaulted over her handle bars, and flew into the ditch. Her bike fell on top of her. And there she lay, moaning; completely unable to move!
Shots in the Night
Tom regained control of his bike, as he watched his cousin’s spectacular fall. He leapt off his seat, and almost got tangled in his own bike spokes, in his haste to reach her.
“Jeez Mags, are you okay?” Tom carefully lifted the bike off her and tossed it to one side. He let out his breath in relief as Maggie groaned and struggled to sit up. She fingered the huge rip in her jeans and winced as the blood dripped slowly down her leg. Both her elbows were grazed and she had a small bump appearing on her forehead.
“Thank god you were wearing a helmet,” said Tom. “You could have knocked all the sense out of you!”
“Shut up!” Maggie snapped. “My jeans are ruined!” Just then, another shot rang out and both children ducked. Tom scanned the darkness and could just make out the pinprick of light way in the distance.
“Hey someone’s out hunting on the McGregors’ farm. Do you think …?” But Maggie was trembling with shock, in no condition to think. Tom took one look at her white face and wondered what on earth he was going to do. The front wheel of her bike was knackered; several spokes had broken and the back tyre was punctured.
“Jeez, you sure know how to wreck a bike,” he teased. “Let’s heave it into the bushes, and you can ride on the back of mine. Are you up for it?” Maggie nodded wearily and climbed on behind Tom. It was obvious her knee hurt like hell, but she said nothing. Tom gave her an admiring look. Maggie sure had guts, even if she was a girl!
Read Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge ... and find out who fired those shots ... and why! http://amzn.to/149v0A4
Saturday, 6 July 2013
Ever wished you could just 'disappear' for a while and have no demands on your time?
The Art of
Disappearing
By Naomi Shihab Nye
By Naomi Shihab Nye
When they say Don’t
I know you?
say no.
say no.
When they invite
you to the party
remember what parties are like
before answering.
Someone telling you in a loud voice
they once wrote a poem.
Greasy sausage balls on a paper plate.
Then reply.
remember what parties are like
before answering.
Someone telling you in a loud voice
they once wrote a poem.
Greasy sausage balls on a paper plate.
Then reply.
If they say we should
get together.
say why?
say why?
It’s not that you
don’t love them any more.
You’re trying to remember something
too important to forget.
Trees. The monastery bell at twilight.
Tell them you have a new project.
It will never be finished.
You’re trying to remember something
too important to forget.
Trees. The monastery bell at twilight.
Tell them you have a new project.
It will never be finished.
When someone
recognizes you in a grocery store
nod briefly and become a cabbage.
When someone you haven’t seen in ten years
appears at the door,
don’t start singing him all your new songs.
You will never catch up.
nod briefly and become a cabbage.
When someone you haven’t seen in ten years
appears at the door,
don’t start singing him all your new songs.
You will never catch up.
Walk around feeling like a leaf.
Know you could tumble any second.
Then decide what to do with your time
Know you could tumble any second.
Then decide what to do with your time
Monday, 10 June 2013
Love Letter
Love Letter
You transformed my life.
took me from a place
of loneliness
to one of happiness
so gentle, so understanding
you laid aside my fears
held my hand
wiped away my tears
finally, I had awakened
to my true self
made a soul connection
I need never walk alone
again.
took me from a place
of loneliness
to one of happiness
so gentle, so understanding
you laid aside my fears
held my hand
wiped away my tears
finally, I had awakened
to my true self
made a soul connection
I need never walk alone
again.
Mandy Gayle Edwards 2013 (c)
Sunday, 2 June 2013
Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge ... has arrived.
When I first began this blog, I was preparing to launch my first children's novel - Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge ... set in Otago, New Zealand, involving a spate of sheep rustling, cannibis growing and a bit of friendly, cousinly rivalry ... when city born and bred, Maggie Mackenzie is forced to spend part of her summer holidays, with country relatives she doesn't know - including her irritating, cousin Tom. Maggie's Mum is in hospital, preparing for tests for skin cancer, and possibly needing further treatment. The stress of this, adds to Maggie's drama, as she prepares for the bordom of living in the country. However farm life proves to be far from boring ...
It is designed for the 8 to 12 year old age group, but could be enjoyed by a variety of ages, depending on their reading ability, or whether they have a keen parent or older sibling, willing to read it to them.
It is very exciting to have published my first book, and I look forward in the years to come, to look back on this and think - this is where I started, and I have loved writing ever since.
A big thank you to Janis van der Laan and Des Hunt for their proofreading and editing advice; Des for formatting it into an ebook for me; and all my friends at NZIBS (New Zealand Institute of Business Studies) who encouraged me along the way.
Des Hunt is a well established author; both traditionally published and electronically published - and I thoroughly recommend his books for children; and for adults who enjoy reading engaging, interesting books that reflect who we are, and how we connect with each other; that are 'true to life', and extremely entertaining.
Here is the link to Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge. Why not download a sample, and see what you think!
It is very exciting to have published my first book, and I look forward in the years to come, to look back on this and think - this is where I started, and I have loved writing ever since.
A big thank you to Janis van der Laan and Des Hunt for their proofreading and editing advice; Des for formatting it into an ebook for me; and all my friends at NZIBS (New Zealand Institute of Business Studies) who encouraged me along the way.
Des Hunt is a well established author; both traditionally published and electronically published - and I thoroughly recommend his books for children; and for adults who enjoy reading engaging, interesting books that reflect who we are, and how we connect with each other; that are 'true to life', and extremely entertaining.
Here is the link to Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge. Why not download a sample, and see what you think!
Mystery
at Dead Man's Ridge - Kindle edition by Amanda Edwards, Des Hunt, Janis van der
Laan, Amelia Hamilton. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC,
phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting
while reading Mystery at Dead Man's Ridge.
The cover illustration was painted by Amelia Hamilton, aged 15 who is the daughter of an old school friend of mine. She was one of the first children to read my book and was inspired to paint a cover, and draw some wonderful illustrations for each chapter. One day I hope to publish this book in the traditional way, and make full use of Amelia's talents. Thank you so much Amelia - you are amazing and I loved discussing the book as if it were a 'storyboard', using your illustrations. It gave me so much enthusiasm to get this finished.
The cover illustration was painted by Amelia Hamilton, aged 15 who is the daughter of an old school friend of mine. She was one of the first children to read my book and was inspired to paint a cover, and draw some wonderful illustrations for each chapter. One day I hope to publish this book in the traditional way, and make full use of Amelia's talents. Thank you so much Amelia - you are amazing and I loved discussing the book as if it were a 'storyboard', using your illustrations. It gave me so much enthusiasm to get this finished.
Saturday, 11 May 2013
A poem for Mother's Day
A mother’s gift.
You treat me like the miracle
I am
the door to your heart
is always open
your love never fails
to shine through
The moment I was born
you transfixed me
I studied your face
with earnest devotion
as you did mine
I looked into your eyesI am
the door to your heart
is always open
your love never fails
to shine through
The moment I was born
you transfixed me
I studied your face
with earnest devotion
as you did mine
and saw my reflection
mirrored in your Soul
I demanded so much from you
expected you would grant my
every wish
And this you did for meexpected you would grant my
every wish
without question
You gave up your identity
for me
Set aside your dreamsfor me
so I could dream
Dedicated yourself to me
so I could be free
you taught me life-long valuesso I could be free
to say please and thank-you
respect my elders
strive to be the best me
I could possibly be
Of course as I grew older
I knew better than you
Or so I thought
I knew better than you
Or so I thought
but now
now that I’m a Mum
I understand your infinite wisdom
to let your children knownow that I’m a Mum
I understand your infinite wisdom
no matter what they do
or what they say
or what they believe
you will love them
unconditionally
that's the gift you gave to me
Mandy Gayle Edwards 2013 (c)
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