Never Caught by Erica Armstrong Dunbar

 

Never Caught

by

Erica Armstrong Dunbar

The story of Ona Judge is an amazing one and this non fiction book is nothing less than a artisan craft of the telling of that story.   The audio book is expertly read by the narrator.  It captures black American History in a way that makes one feel like the people involved are known to the reader.  Ona Judge is the personal slave to Martha Washington.  She is an accomplished seamstress.  She is living in Philadelphia during the last term of President Washington when she learns of Martha's plan to give Ona to Martha's granddaughter as a wedding gift.  Fearful of the changes that will bring to her life, Ona Judge runs away.  She is pursued by the Washington's but manages to live the rest of her life a free woman.  I first learned of this book when listening to a podcast that can be found HERE.  This book is extremely good reading.  I highly recommend it.  It would be an excellent choice for a book group.  There is also an elementary student edition.  The story is a heart warming one.  Please click on the book title and author's name above to follow the links to more information.  And enjoy listening to the author talk about Ona in the video below.  You don't want to miss out on reading this book!

The Town by Conrad Richter

 

The Town

by

Conrad Richter

The third book in Conrad Richter's American classic trilogy about settlement in Southeastern Ohio he named "The Town".  It is the longest of the three books and takes our heroine Sayward into old age and onto death.  In this book her children grow to adulthood and she loses them one by one, some to death and some follow their own path.  Her husband dies in this novel.  She struggles with aging.  All this takes place against the backdrop of the mid 1800s on Ohio's frontier.  This series is extremely enjoyable and a must read for anyone who is interested in the settlement of the midwestern United States.  Although fiction it describes life in that era.  In this novel the canal is dug and used and the first railroad engine arrives.  Sayward hides blacks in her basement for the underground rail road as her son is editor owner of a newspaper calling for peace in the beginning days of the civil war.  She grieves for the trees in the first novel that she moved into the midst to as a child and fought all her life to conquer.  She never gives up searching for the small sister she lost when captured by Indians and she finally finds her in this third book.  Please click on the book title and author's name above to follow the links to more information.  And enjoy the video that follows.  It is about the village at The Ohio History Center in columbus which would bring the reader into the world the way it was as Sayward passed away.  

What Does It Mean To "Deal With It"?

 

Sometimes it is best to just be quiet and not say anything.  Since November, I have tried to be sensitive to the feelings of the people in my country who disagree with me and are disappointed and hurting at this time.  I know that four years ago I was broken hearted on so many levels.  I realize that it isn't a good feeling to have a candidate that you believe in lose.  It isn't a good feeling to no longer have the leadership you are convinced is the best choice.  Four years ago I was in agony.  I threw up in my mouth when they announced who won the presidential election in 2016.  But you know,  sometimes you have to lean into it.  I tried to do things that I felt were positive for the ideals that I believe in.  

Aligning myself with others that shared my values proved to be crucial to my survival.  Backing off from trying to convince anyone of the value of my ideas who had other political persuasions became a path of least resistance.  I decided to build myself up and preach to the choir for awhile.  I ventured out a bit with my ideas in public but overall stayed quiet and didn't try to engage the opposition. 

I took the time as an opportunity to grow and mature.  To learn stress management when laws were passed that threatened the progress I felt had been made in the past.  To practice things to quiet anxiety when our national parks were at risk due to public policy.  To read and grow and learn about the complicated race problem in my country.  

I came to grips with the fact that I live in a country where everyone has a right to their opinion.  A country where we each get to vote for whomever we want to vote for.  We don't always get to have our candidate win.  But we always have the right to disagree.  One of my ex husbands frequently wore a t-shirt which had the words "deal with it" on it.  Sometimes we have to deal with it.  For me that means to do positive activities that are in my best interests.  Turn what I perceive  as a a bad thing upside down and make it into as  positive of a thing as possible.  

The following videos are  a couple of favorite songs.  They are meaningful to me.  I am not unsympathetic to the pain that half the country is feeling, even though I disagree with them.  But it is time for people to get a grip and begin to engage in a positive way.  It is time for people to figure it out.  It is time to "deal with it". Or as my mother used to  say "Straighten up!". 

Raising our Frequencies

 

Vibrations are something that have been a part of my life view since childhood. "Good vibes" was a common reference during my teenage years.  Now I am learning more about the energy of vibration.  

Everything around us has energy.   The vibration or energy given off by other things affects us.  Whether it be the rhythm of our favorite popular song, or the terse tone of an unhappy friend, our mood and interactions are impacted by these frequencies.  Raising our frequencies results in attracting more positive experiences.  One way I raise my frequency is by using essential oil.  The above chart, which I found on Pinterest, illustrates the different frequencies of various essential oils.  White Angelica is a blend by Young Living that is a favorite of mine with a high frequency.  The following graphic, created by my RCD, explains the oils used in this blend.  

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In addition to breathing in essential oils such as White Angelica there are other ways to raise our frequencies.  Click HERE to find an article with some suggestions for activities to raise your vibrations.   To join me in using oils to raise your vibration please click HERE where the blend White Angelica can be obtained.   In closing, how raising your energy to a higher frequency or vibration works is explained in the following video.  It is a delightful TED talk and well worth the listen. 

My Ten Best Reads Of 2020

 

My Ten Best Reads of 2020

My reading achievements were down in 2020.  I only read twenty books.  So it was not quite as hard to rank in the top ten as it has been in years that I have read many more books.  But here is my list and I enjoyed all ten of them. I hope you do too.  Click on each one to follow the link to the blog I wrote about each of them.

1. I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong
2. Orphan #8 by Kim Van Alkemade
3. The Book Woman Of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richarson
4. The Trees by Conrad Richter
5. The Fields by Conrad Richter
6. What Unites Us by Dan Rather
7. Calebs Crossing by Geraldine Brooks 
8. Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin 
9. Talking To Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell
10. Daring Greatly by Brene Brown