Mood:  hug me

Kids with Difficulties

Under any circumstances, being a kid is hard work. There are so many things to deal with. Early on the children learn the rules of the home. It starts with how to speak to parents, evolving into keeping the bedroom picked up. There are rules of who a child may speak with and often, when to speak. Then they start school and a whole new set of rules comes into play. Now there’s the teacher’s rule, peer pressure and soon, homework.

Add to all of the above, emotional disabilities. Some of these are controllable with medication while others cannot be. Unfortunately, even though medication is available and diagnosis possible, it all too often takes a long time, if ever. Let me explain that better.

Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD is the most common of the emotional disorders. This is often used as a catchall diagnosis that isn’t always correct. By doing that, the real problems may not be discovered for years. ADD and ADHD symptoms are very similar to another disorder that is harder to properly get diagnosed. This is because doctors do not like to brand children with the label of bipolar disorder. By not accepting this possibility, full diagnosis isn’t performed and treatment not offered. The child loses.

Even when bipolar is medically recognized, too many parents refuse to accept it. Thus, no treatment is given. Instead the child may or may not receive medication for ADD/ADHD and keep getting in trouble when he/she ‘acts up’. The only way to prevent this is education.

If parents, medical personnel, and teachers knew more about bipolar and ADD and could understand the differences, maybe a more correct diagnosis could be made at a younger age. There is no cure, nor is it anyone’s fault, that these disorders happen. But, correct diagnosis and proper treatment gives these children a much better chance of a happy and productive life.

Posted by theessaywriter at 7:38 PM CDT

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Mood:  happy

Aftermath

”See mom, that strip of red proves there is a Dairy Queen for fish!”

The Cedar River is a quiet body of water. It flows through the middle of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. There is an island big enough to house the city government buildings. Sometimes snow runoff up north and/or rain brings the water up to flood level. But the seawalls and levees are designed to a height to protect everything from these annual high water levels.

Then came the Spring and Summer of 2008. No one knew the water could get that high. The island disappeared. A railroad bridge with a string of loaded cars collapsed. This created an artificial dam. Add to the mix the fact that it rained enough to make Noah proud.

At its height, it all but covered the Dairy Queen on First Avenue. That opening statement is not an exaggeration. There was, at most, two feet of its famous red roof above the water line. This business is five blocks from the river on the west side.

The damage was extensive. Here is a very short list.

Main Library: At least eight feet deep on the main floor. It’s one block from

                      the east side of the river.

Clark Gas Station: A partially filled tank broke through the concrete and

                      floated away. This business is located five blocks away on the

                      west side.

Major furniture store: Water to second floor, located right on the east side

                      river bank.

County Jail: Located on the island, will take a year to repair. It is less than

                      ten years old.

Mercy Hospital – Water covered first floor. Building had to be evacuated.

                      It’s located nine blocks from the river on the east side.

8,000 – 9,000 buildings have to be razed. There are broken windows and doors in all the downtown buildings. The buildings are standing but otherwise it looks like ground zero. There were few if any fatalities, little or no looting.

Maybe by next year, it will again look like home. Cedar Rapids now knows the effects of a slow tsunami. This flood exceeded the cities five hundred year plan. The previous record flood level was 18.0 feet. This year it hit 32.0 feet. We got wet.

Posted by theessaywriter at 1:21 PM CDT

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Religion – A Treatise

[Warning: This piece is not for everyone.]

“Do not push your Bible, your God, on me. I do not believe as you.”

“Preach to me of your love, your God. I want to learn more.”

Which of these statements is true? Which statement has the most meaning? The individual in statement one indicates a closed mind. Individual two displays a willingness to learn. Both of these individuals may be Christian. But their supreme being goes by a different name and their tome of reference uses a different title. However, it begs the question, does one have to be a Christian to believe in a God? Conversely, does God require a person to belong to a religion?

The answer to both is a resounding no. God is not a physical entity that demands obedience. The supreme deity, by whatever name he/she be called, is the light from which all emerge. This darkness we call life is softened by the gentle hand of light we call God. This supreme deity resides within all of us. It is by our faith that we evoke the true meaning of the one true God.

The hand of man wrote the Bible, Koran and other religious tomes. In the original, God may have guided the hands of the authors. Years of interpretation and misinterpretation have drastically altered these texts. There is no way to retrieve the originals. But we don’t have to. There is another way. It’s called Faith.

Faith is not magic. It is the ability to believe something for which there is no scientific proof. The most powerful statement ever issued was; have faith, it will work out. One does not have to be a Catholic or a Muslim to have faith. But it takes almost super human strength to have faith at our darkest moments. Trust in God, your God, and all will happen for the best. We all have our doubts when we do not get the answers we expect. But if your faith is true, history will prove the best solution was given.

It is, by far, affairs of the heart that our faith is most severely tested. Who among us have not lost a mate and prayed for that person’s return? Too many have died as a result of a romantic rejection. A few have gone to extremes by renouncing their faith and resorted to violence. Those that retain their faith look back upon the rejection and realize destiny and God had other plans for them.

Neither faith nor God has anything to do with monetary or physical possessions gain. God is the power within all of us to live a spiritual and truthful life. Faith is our ability to follow through. Our desire to enrich ourselves financially is not based on faith nor is it a gift from God. Our desire to help others without expecting personal gain is true faith. Life is unpredictable; do you know where your faith is?

Posted by theessaywriter at 1:20 PM CDT

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The Age of Love

“I’ve been waiting forty years to meet this guy.”

“How could you have? You’re only Forty-eight and that guy is in his sixties? Why not find someone your own age?”

“I needed the first eight years to learn how to read and the math to count my spinster years. As for my age, it really doesn’t matter. But, the ones my age are either married or ones I would never consider.”

Of all factors to consider when selecting a partner for life, age is not one of them. Why should it make any difference? Does love at thirty evolve into something different at fifty? No. It is an emotion fueled by hormones and upbringing. Age has the same meaning as skin color, none.

People mature at different rates. It’s a well-known fact that females mature earlier than males. But that is not true for everybody. It is often the underlying cause for marital distress in younger couples. Another major disparity is intellectual incompatibility. This does not imply one is smarter than the other. It does mean that each person’s interest and skills are so far apart that they have no common grounds for discussions. Again, this usually affects the younger couples.

So what makes me the expert? I’m not. But many years of observation and a few experiences allow me to offer my opinion.

If age isn’t a factor for a solid relationship, what is? Economics plays a small part. But overall, the primary and really only factor is personality. Most happily married couples think alike. If one is quiet and reserved, the odds are the mate will be also. A solid relationship is one in which each can sense the others moods and act accordingly.

The more mature couples, the ones that find their ideal mates later in life are able to base their decisions on personal experiences. They know what they like and what they expect. They do not want someone to enter their life and make dramatic changes. Nor do they plan to remake their partner. To do this, they have changed the person they selected and it usually does not go over well.

Where did age come into play? It didn’t. Does it matter which gender is older? No. The only thing that matters, the only factor or actually factors, that determine a good relationship are love and similar personalities. Love, romantic especially, is the one emotion that cannot be adequately described with words. You know it when you feel it.

Posted by theessaywriter at 1:16 PM CDT

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The Simplicity of Creative Writing

“Alas poor Yorik, I knew him well.” In the play he’s holding the skull of some nefarious character. Or, how about, “Hark, what light through yon window breaks?” Wouldn’t it be easier to say, “Hey, your mom’s light is on, pretend you’re asleep?” Actually, no it wouldn’t have been. These words of the Bard had to be phrased with the wording of the time. Had he said “My old pal Yorik is now in kit form”, he would have been laughed out of England. Let’s move ahead a bit in time and try another example. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Right. Any idiot knows it can’t be both, or can it? Dickens book, Tale of Two Cities talks about the two towns, London in its heyday and Paris during the revolution.

What does all of this have to do with creative writing? These are examples of ordinary, for their time, words used not only creatively but designed to fit with the expected audience. Let’s try another one. “What the ___, my car is talking to me!” That wouldn’t work for Shakespeare or Dickens, but will now if you’re writing about a car.

So what then is creative writing? You, the writer are using a pen as your brush and the paper as your palette. With the words at your disposal, paint the world around you. You have twenty-six letters to create a verbal symphony. Turn the phrase just right and it can be very sharp. Turn it another way and it comes out flat. Put the words and phrases together like chords to create a harmonious litany. With some flat phrases you can create dissonance. With the right chord change, you can create a harmonious symphony displaying the colors of the rainbow.

Music, Art, and writing are the top three creative crafts. Your picture can be audio, visual, or verbal/written. The point is, you have a message to deliver. But, to get your message across, you have to generate interest. But if you don’t catch your reader’s with the opening, you’ve probably lost them completely.

Creative writing is simple. The mechanics of writing aren’t that easy however. Put your words on paper. Learn the mechanics of writing. Let others read what you wrote. If you’ve grabbed their attention from beginning to end, Congratulations!

You are a creative writer!

Posted by theessaywriter at 1:08 PM CDT

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Mood:  happy

Energy Calculation Vs Lollipops

It has been a hairy day, or more correctly, a hairless day. It was decided that today was right for delivering new carpet to the beauty shop. We gave them an entirely new definition of shag. I suggested using the four bushels they lopped off as wigs. But the theater company here has plenty of gray-haired old men. I suggested wigs for the colonists should they ever decide to do a play about the revolution. They told me no one in their right mind back then would be seen in public with hair as gray as mine. Kinda makes ya wonder what was hidden under those wigs!

Now this stuff I had on top (and sides and everywhere above the waist) that I passed off as hair is really some alien substance that is impervious to hair gel/spray, glue and ordinary cutting methods. But this beauty shop was up to the task. Thankfully the manager was there with a key to the safe. They used a special electric razor with titanium blades. As soon as the blade made contact with the imitative hair, a teeny shock allowed the blade to perform its intended function.

Yes, I walked in looking like Einstein with his fingers in an electric socket and walked out looking like Kojak minus the lollipop.

Posted by theessaywriter at 1:06 PM CDT

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Time

The Byrds said it well, there is a time for all things. The key is to recognize it. How often do we say do don’t have time? Is time management really possible or is that just wishful thinking? Regardless of what we do or say, time moves forward. As thinking, sentient beings we have a choice of whether we want time to control us, or for us to control our journey through time.

For too many of us, we fight time. We try to compress a week into a day. That nothing but create stress. No, I think the answer is much simpler, yet even more difficult. Everyone is good at something. But how many of us ignore what we find to be easy because if it is easy for us, it must be easy for all. To carry this a step further, how many of us ignore what is easy, otherwise known as our talents, only to do the more difficult? Do we do this just to make money and end up with ulcers, or worse?

The creative arts, music, art, writing, are prime examples. My arena is writing. I know now that all my talents fall into the creative realm. So what did I spend my life doing? I tried electronics and computers. I ignored my talents.

Come, join e on a short trip through the space-time continuum. We’ll go back a few years. I was married. I, being the man, had to bring home the bacon. I tried, but I was never good enough. Talent? That was something other people, actors, musicians, dancers, had. My best classes in school? Writing. I did try technical writing but my hand writing wasn’t good enough. I switched hands. I’m even writing this (first draft written long hand), with my right hand and it’s legible!

During that timeframe I wrote a story. The wife said it was good. I did nothing with it for fifteen years. I did however get a computer. I still didn’t write. Moving down the continuum, my life disintegrated. I wrote about it. I started to write short treatises. I posted some. They were well received. But, I’m not a writer.

I started to make beaded jewelry, another craft. These were admired. Again I ignored my talents. I’m a technical person! Then I met an author. This girl has many talents, the strongest one besides writing, is telling me where to go. It only took twenty years, an ex wife, and an angel, to convince me that my prime destiny is to be a writer.

Having said all of the above, I have noticed the potholes on my space-time continuum highway have disappeared. I am a writer. I will go where my muse and destiny leads me. I will listen to my muse. So let’s pause here and reflect on this. I’ve learned that what is easy for me is my real talent. Would not an individual’s life be easier, more stress free if that person would only realize their talents instead of living an artificial life just to exist and make money?

Posted by theessaywriter at 1:01 PM CDT

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Self Analysis

Depression? I almost envy those that have it, at least they have the option of medication. You’ll note the keyword almost in that previous sentence. No, I’m not really in the vise grips of depression. If I were, I probably couldn’t write this.

Sadness overwhelms me, even as I pen these words, I have made many mistakes in my life. Social anxiety defines me in public. I hate crowds! This disorder has also limited my circle of friends. In other words, my brain is broken.

It’s been said that I am always angry. I also give orders. I have to be in control. That is not me. That is NOT what I want to be! But that is how I am seen. How many lives have I destroyed? How many people have I alienated?

My main problem is patience, or rather the lack thereof. I feel my anger and depressive state is centered, triggered, by this. Because I want everything yesterday, I expect those around me to be the same way. That is not right, but I don’t know how to fix it.

A very precious friend pointed these faults out to me. I wish I had met Joyce years ago. But my destiny was to wait until I could understand the diagnosis. It was my destiny to experience life. I had to be in certain places at certain times. It had to wait until I accepted the fact that I can write well. It took time and a psychologist/writer to teach me.

Posted by theessaywriter at 12:55 PM CDT

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