There is a lot of difference between a house and a home. Houses are full of rooms, held up by nails, wood and mortar. Homes are filled with love, concern and care. Houses without occupants eventually start to wither and fall apart. Homes are filled with people and have purpose, which make them eternal. Home is also a state of mind, a place you can go to be reminded of who you are and be shielded from the cares and worries of the outside world. Home is where you can hang your hat and I'm very glad that I have so many hats. Here are a few places where I like to hang my hat. These are places I am at home:
1. My Own House
This is where I am raising my son. It is where he is creating fond memories. It is where he will feel loved and supported. It is the home of his childhood. This is also home because it is where my husband and I are a team and where we share all our hopes and dreams for the future, together. Here we build family. Here is where we build home.
2. Anywhere my parents are:
I always thought that the house I grew up in was the only place I would feel at home, but as the years have past, I have realized that it isn't the house, it is the people who live there that make a place home. Sure, the crabapple tree where my friends and I would climb and "pilot an army helicopter," the basketball court where I spent hours, even in the freezing cold, perfecting my free throws, and the kitchen table where we were required to spend twenty minutes each night "eating" will always have a special place in my heart, but those parts of the house aren't what was important. The love I felt within and without those walls were what mattered. I am in my parents house as I type this and this is home because it is where they are.
3. Linda's House
My aunt is a special lady. She is one of the kindest and caring people that I know. She has stood up to people who disagree with my religion and she has made her house a safe place for me. She invites and cares for you when you are there, you never go hungry or thirsty and are always treated to great company and good conversation. Kindness and love fill the rooms and halls and it is like a vacation at a resort because of the calm you feel there.
4. Friend Marla's House
The people don't have to be family to make a house a home. In Marla's house, I have spent time getting to know her. It is a place where we shared, laughed, cried and vented. It was a safe place to share and be supported. Our friends are the family we choose and I am so glad I have chosen Marla to be an honorary sister.
5. The Family Cabin
Nestled in the trees of the mountains above Fairview, Utah, the family cabin is a place of true refuge. There you can listen to birds sing, see critters scatter, breath fresh air, and always be surrounded by family. Lasting memories are made each time we gather there for Thanksgiving and stuff our faces on delicious food. There is lots of love in the production of that food as well as in the words and laughter. Here we share and feel love.
What are your places that are home? Comments people, they make the world go round! :)
6/29/15
Things I felt today.
1. Nostalgic
We rode on one of these:
My family ventured to The Waterpark Capitol of the World and did this one activity. Memories of childhood trips to The Wisconsin Dells flooded back. This ride has always been one of my favorites. We once filled up a whole one with our family alone. So many great memories made on a duck.
2. Happy to be on vacation with my little family:
We are helping make memories for this little guy. As he sleeps at the foot of my bed, I love that I get to take him on his first adventures and that it wears him out to have such experiences.
3. Inspired by words:
We need to give our youth more opportunities to be productive and active. Our world is saturated with too much negativity in social media, and media in general. 
And seriously, buckle up. Or not. It's a great population control or as I like to say "survival of the fittest tool!"
Sums it up, no?
I would love to post this on my classroom wall. Too bad our politically correct or too sensitive society wouldn't support it. Seriously, sucky people...well suck.
We need to give our youth more opportunities to be productive and active. Our world is saturated with too much negativity in social media, and media in general. And seriously, buckle up. Or not. It's a great population control or as I like to say "survival of the fittest tool!"Sums it up, no?4. Surrounded by love. 
I was not only surrounded by some of my favorite people on the planet today, but also by people who love me for me.
I was not only surrounded by some of my favorite people on the planet today, but also by people who love me for me. 5. So glad I get to spend forever with these two:
Reuben's face is priceless. I married a man who makes me laugh. Every. Single. Day. That is a true gem. And we made a cute pack of endless energy and joy!!! We are blessed.
We plan on enjoying every last minute of our time in Wisconsin. It will fly by but we have memories to make!
6/26/15
6/25/15
Tips Thursday: Writing Tips.
I am having bitter-sweet emotions as my writing class comes to a close today. Bitter because it is over and I will miss the connections I've made with the people who are now my friends, and the excuse to be writing each and every day. Sweet because I have become a better writer and a teacher and I also now have some time to go play with my family in Wisconsin. Before all these wonderful memories become more fuzzy in my head, I wanted to write down a few tips for writing.
1. Write.
Make time for it. Play with words. Get creative. It doesn't matter what you write but it does matter that you are writing. Just start with what comes to mind and go with it. Maybe while writing about something you didn't think was significant will bring many ideas to you. I know that while I was writing about a specific writing prompt in my class, I would often get ideas for other things to write about. When you exercise and use your writing brain, it starts to work that creativity muscle.
2. Figure out how you write best.
I am the sort of person who writes with pen and paper for my first draft. I just get ideas better to paper than just to my fingertips on the keys of the keyboard. But that could be different for you. You may be a solely typer kind of writer. If you are a paper kind of writer like me, you need to find your preferred writing utensil. For me it is a gel pen. I thought it was the G2 by Pilot, but now it is these fabulous Korean fine-tip pens. They rock. Sometimes it is pencil though and that pencil better be very sharp. The paper also matters. I gather ideas in a tiny notebook that I can carry in my pocket, but I like bigger notebooks to write my drafts. Fancy journals don't work as well as just plain old composition notebooks. But again, you need to fine what you like.
3. Don't be afraid to fail.
Sometimes I really didn't like the subject I was writing about, but I just went with the idea. Sometimes it was horrible and boring writing but sometimes it blossomed into something more. I do know that it is important to write about something you are interested in. So if it isn't working, move on.
4. Be willing to be vulnerable.
It is really hard to share your writing at first, but having the ideas of others really can help your writing and the whole process of writing. I loved my writing group in my class and I really hope the three of us continue to read each other's writing and help each other to write better. The more you share, the easier it is and the better your writing will get.
I think those are the most important things I have learned about my own writing process. What kind of things would you write about? What are your writing preferences?
1. Write.
Make time for it. Play with words. Get creative. It doesn't matter what you write but it does matter that you are writing. Just start with what comes to mind and go with it. Maybe while writing about something you didn't think was significant will bring many ideas to you. I know that while I was writing about a specific writing prompt in my class, I would often get ideas for other things to write about. When you exercise and use your writing brain, it starts to work that creativity muscle.
2. Figure out how you write best.
I am the sort of person who writes with pen and paper for my first draft. I just get ideas better to paper than just to my fingertips on the keys of the keyboard. But that could be different for you. You may be a solely typer kind of writer. If you are a paper kind of writer like me, you need to find your preferred writing utensil. For me it is a gel pen. I thought it was the G2 by Pilot, but now it is these fabulous Korean fine-tip pens. They rock. Sometimes it is pencil though and that pencil better be very sharp. The paper also matters. I gather ideas in a tiny notebook that I can carry in my pocket, but I like bigger notebooks to write my drafts. Fancy journals don't work as well as just plain old composition notebooks. But again, you need to fine what you like.
3. Don't be afraid to fail.
Sometimes I really didn't like the subject I was writing about, but I just went with the idea. Sometimes it was horrible and boring writing but sometimes it blossomed into something more. I do know that it is important to write about something you are interested in. So if it isn't working, move on.
4. Be willing to be vulnerable.
It is really hard to share your writing at first, but having the ideas of others really can help your writing and the whole process of writing. I loved my writing group in my class and I really hope the three of us continue to read each other's writing and help each other to write better. The more you share, the easier it is and the better your writing will get.
I think those are the most important things I have learned about my own writing process. What kind of things would you write about? What are your writing preferences?
6/24/15
Writing Wednesday
Here is my polished poem that I published for my class anthology:
Cemetery Contemplation
by Alice Ficklin
I sit feet away from a baby girl
Who died about three months before I was born.
I wonder what she would have been like today.
Would we have been friends?
I sit yards away from an open tomb
Expecting its occupant’s arrival today.
Whose partner has waited nearly thirty-three years
To meet his sweetheart again.
I wonder what that reunion would be like today.
Would seeing their glorious reunion bring
comfort to the broken hearts of those who lost Mom, sister, or grandma?
I scan the hundreds of faded, weathered and worn headstones
Each of them representing a person,
Each a person who was important to somebody.
I wonder if the memories of those lost begin to also fade
with time.
Will I one day be forgotten?
I see flowers and trinkets
On or near many of the markers
Only the most recently erected have such tokens
I wonder about those who surrender these momentos.
Will their giving hearts ever be mended?
I realize that this sanctuary is for us; the living
Here we come to remember and to reflect.
This spot is not for them; the dead are not present.
I wonder if they ever look down on their own graves.
Would they find our gatherings and rituals
strange and unnecessary?
I notice walls surrounding this memorial
A separation allowing us to leave our world behind for a
moment
A holy site giving solace from problems, worries and cares
I wonder if everybody feels this peace within the walls.
Are these
bricks enough of a separation for all?
I feel the stillness
As I contemplate my purpose here on this planet,
The fact that I too will one day die
Leaving this world and all my earthly possessions behind
I wonder what I’ll see as most important on that last day.
Will I be
scared?
I reflect on what is truly significant
The flowers and trinkets mean nothing to the dead
But the people who visit matter
I wonder who will visit my future grave.
Will they know I loved them enough?
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