Cyberwit.net has published my second chapbook called Then and Now. Two years ago they published Moving On. What a great surprize when they offered to publish a second book. Amazon posted the following review of one of the poems: Not Out of the Woods This poem conveys a sense of worry, uncertainty, and emotional distress experienced by the narrator in relation to someone they care about. The language used is straightforward and direct, reflecting the narrator's immediate thoughts and concerns. The opening lines set the tone by quoting the doctor's assessment that the person in question is "not out of the woods yet." This phrase is commonly used to describe a critical or precarious situation, suggesting that the individual's condition remains serious. The narrator describes the person as still lying in bed, mostly sleeping and nonresponsive. The mention of the person's inability to remember their son's name or location indicates a decline in cognitive function, … [Read more...]
A little reminder
I think it's time to remind my readers that I have written a few books besides all this blog stuff. Here's some information about a couple of them: Papa's Shoes: A Polish shoemaker and his family settle in small-town America - an award winning historical novel published in April 2019. Here's a few comments about this five-star rated book. "From an insightful storyteller, Papa's Shoes, is a heartwarming story of courage and love. Author Madeline Sharples has created an epic journey with intriguing twists and surprises along the way. From days of old in Poland to cultural and economic realities in America, this is an awe-inspiring novel about families, generational history, and the incredible power of change. You truly won't want to put it down!" --D.A. Hickman, author of Ancients of the Earth: Poems of Time "Author Madeline Sharples tells the intimate story of an American family, of immigration, tragedy, renewal, and love with grace and the delicate touch of a poet. There's a raw … [Read more...]
I like lazy days
Even though I’m writing about laziness today – another writing group prompt – I’ve been far from lazy. With escrow closing on the sale of my house in forty-three days, I have to stay busy with the clearing out of the things I’ve accumulated for over forty-two years. It’s a horrendous job. Nobody should have to do it. So, no wonder I like the idea of laziness. These days I find myself wanting to nap at almost any time of day. For most of my life I was an early riser. Sometimes getting up as early as four thirty so I could workout at the gym before having to get ready for and go to work. That kind of schedule became a habit for me. Now that I’m not working, I still get up to workout before starting the rest of my day, but I’ve become a little more lazy about it. Sometimes I’ll set my alarm for six thirty, sometimes seven, sometimes seven thirty, and sometimes I don’t set it at all. Most days however, I wake up on my own in the dark of the morning way before my intended wake time. But … [Read more...]
New poems to go with a new life
The big news is that I'm getting my house ready to sell. I decided last month that I need to move out of the house I shared with Bob for over forty-two years. It's just too big and lonely and filled with all the memories of the years we spent here with each other and our boys. It's time to start anew. And to live where I can meet some other people - I'm thinking a senior independent living community. I cannot stand how lonely my life is now. So the scary part is, the house will go up for sale at the end of this week. And I worry that no one else will love it as much as I do and will not want to buy it. I'll keep you posted on that. But I'm sure you know, I'm still writing my daily poem. Here are some new ones. Remember they are only drafts that get written in no more than ten minutes or so. Someday, I'll revisit them when/if I decide to publish another chapbook. Enjoy! I find myself Talking about “we” And “our” lately. I can’t let go Of him even In small … [Read more...]
Introducing “Moving On”
My new poetry chapbook, called Moving On, published on January 30, 2021, arrived in my mail box this week. Here it is: It's kind of cool how this book came about. I wasn't looking for a publisher. In fact that was the last thing on my mind while my husband was so ill and since his death. Instead the publisher - Cyberwit.net - from India - sought me out. He had read one of my poems in a Story Circle Network journal in the True Words section and offered to publish sixty to seventy of my poems in a chapbook. How could I turn that down? Because of what was happening in my life I took longer that he wanted to get the poems together, edit them, and send them off, but finally I did it. I love this description of Moving On: "The poems are full of lyrical force and show freshness of style. No doubt, this is a significant work. The poems have great power of observation and originality of imagination." Here's a little sneak peek: Buddha “The dead we can imagine to be … [Read more...]
