Nose Piercing Faith ???

 

by Dina Sleiman

 

Most of you know that last week I got to be on “staff” at a writers conference for the first time at Blue Ridge as an acquisitions editor for WhiteFire Publishing. What you might not know is that this was sort of a dream come true for me. I love to teach writing, but I’ve been hesitant to jump back into an actual teaching job because I write sporadically in big chunks, and I wasn’t sure I wanted my time scheduled that strictly. But writing conferences…that seemed perfect. Big chunk of teaching (or in this year’s case mentoring and having appointments) and back to a big chunk of writing. And of all the conferences out there, Blue Ridge is my personal favorite.

I went intending to do the best job possible in hopes of getting invited back in the future, possibly even to teach a class. I planned and prayed to be a blessing and encouragement to everyone who came to me for an appointment. I wanted to present the perfect balance of professional, friendly, and spiritual. So there I was on my first day of appointments trying to be all spiritual and blessy and all. Then as one woman stood up from an appointment and another slid into the chair to take her place, this other lady waiting to see the teacher beside me reached over and grabbed my arm and said…

           

“I have to ask you about your nose piercing!”

Great! I thought, this was not the spiritual, professional impression I wanted to give today. Then she proceeded to point to a girl beside her and say…

“That’s my teenage daughter. She wants her nose pierced, and she said, ‘Look, look, Mom. That lady has her nose pierced!”

Wonderful!!! Just perfect. I was definitely not getting invited back next year. In fact, I pondered if I would be packing my bags and heading home to Virginia Beach that night. My panic must have shown on my face because the mom quickly added…

           

“No, no. I like it. It’s really pretty. I wanted to ask where you got it. It’s very small and subtle.”

Whew! No packing required. So I told her as much as I could in ten or twenty seconds and tried to bless her, I suppose, with my vast wisdom on nose piercings. (Huh???) Then I had to get back to my scheduled appointment, which, Praise be to Jesus, was with a cool, tattooed forty-year-old and not a scandalized seventy-year-old conservative evangelical.

But I had to find the mom later and share with her more about my nose piercing. Because, believe it or not, there actually is a very spiritual story behind it. You see, my whole life I’ve struggled with this angst between perfectionism and rebellion. My father was an assistant pastor for a while, and now my husband works in ministry. I never felt quite at home in my own skin if I tried to play the perfect conservative Christian, yet I loved God and didn’t want to be a rebel. Okay, sometimes I downright hated church, but I never gave up on God.

After many youthful years spent being religious and judgmental while secretly desiring to rebel, I did enter my rebel stage. I was going to be who God called me to be, and be in your face about it, and not care what anyone thought. 

But that’s not right either. It’s selfish and offensive.

So I spent from my late twenties until my late thirties struggling through this state of angst. Trying not to be offensive, trying to be who God called me to be, still feeling a bit awkward in my own skin, but learning and growing and developing along the way.

Finally last year while working on my narrative nonfiction book, I found this scripture from Matthew 11 in the Message version.

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Wow did that minister to me! I’ve spent the last year and a half trying to figure out how to do it.

Back to the nose piercing (which you can almost see in this picture. Click on it and zoom in for a better view). I had wanted one for about five years, but had been struggling with that angst. Finally, I really prayed about it. My biggest concern was how it would affect my writing career. I felt God showed me that he had called me to minister to young women. That they wouldn’t be offended by a nose piercing. That it would actually make me more approachable and likable to the audience he had given me.

And suddenly it made sense. All those years I didn’t fit, I felt awkward, he had been preparing me to minister to a generation that hadn’t even grown up yet. Once I got my nose pierced, I oddly felt more like myself than ever before. People seemed to “get me” for the first time in my life. The piercing gave a quick little signal that I was a free spirit, an artsy person, and that put even elderly people at ease. And if someone really wasn’t going to like me over a little sparkly stud on my nose, then you know what, it saved a lot of time.

My demure, crystal nose stud is not just a piece of jewelry to me. It is a monument to freedom. It is a symbol of putting behind both my perfectionism and my rebellion and simply being who God has called me to be.

During this past year I have thrown off much that is “heavy or ill-fitting” in my life. I am still learning “to live freely and lightly” in the Holy Spirit, but I’ve come a long way. And when everything was said and done at Blue Ridge, I think I managed to make a pretty decent impression just being myself.

What is heavy and ill-fitting in your life? What can you do to move towards living freely and lightly in the Holy Spirit? What monuments are important in your life? Who has God truly called you to be?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Dina Sleiman writes lyrical stories that dance with light. Most of the time you will find this Virginia Beach resident reading, biking, dancing, or hanging out with her husband and three children, preferably at the oceanfront. Since finishing her Professional Writing MA in 1994, she has enjoyed many opportunities to teach literature, writing, and the arts. She was the Overall Winner in the 2009 Touched by Love contest for unpublished authors. Her first novel, Dance of the Dandelion, will release with Whitefire Publishing in 2011. She has recently become an acquisitions editor for WhiteFire as well. Join her as she discovers the unforced rhythms of grace. For more info visit her at http://dinasleiman.com/

When Fact Meets Fiction

By Lisa Karon Richardson

Tomorrow is the anniversary of T.E. Lawrence’s death. Known to the world as Lawrence of Arabia, he was an archaeologist and an adventurer. A spy for the British throughout Arabia during the Great War, he could pass as a native of the region. After that war he fought for an independent Arabia. Coming home to England only after his vision for a united Arabian nation was dashed. In 1927 he wrote his memoirs and they created a sensation throughout the staid, somewhat damp England of the 1920s.

A man of contradictions he worked by day as a mechanic for the RAF. In 1932, he published his own translation of The Odyssey under the assumed name of T.E. Shaw. He died from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. But he has been immortalized in books and the classic film, Lawrence of Arabia. Not to mention the numerous cameo appearances he has put in since his death. He even showed up in an episode of The Young Indiana Jones. A character who was inspired in part by his legend.

All of this got me to thinking about reader’s preferences when it comes to novels. I personally love to see “real” characters interwoven in historical fiction. To me it helps to round out the story world. But it can be done well and it can be done poorly. And as with every other aspect of life, tastes vary.

I think the best use of an historical figure in fiction occurs when their legacy is honored, but bolstered by little known facets or facts that enhance the reader's understanding of who the person was beneath their fame. I don't like known facts to be contradicted by fiction. Like giving George Washington a tendency to beat Martha just because the author thinks it adds to the tension. By all means, feel free to have a character like that if it works for you story. Don't make it a well-known and beloved historical figure.

Some of my favorite portrayals of real-life characters are from Brock and Bodie Thoene's World War II novels. They use several historical personalities from Churchill to William Randolph Hurst. And the King's Speech was a great recent movie that was a fictionalized account of a real person's life and struggles, and it totally worked!

Do you like to see real-life characters in a novel? What if they are the main character? Is there a point when it feels like too much?

Hudson's Bay Company Research Trip

by Anita Mae Draper

This past weekend was the 3rd time I’ve attended the Saskatchewan Romance Writer’s (SRW) annual retreat at St. Peter’s Abbey in Muenster, Saskatchewan. It’s a 3.5 hr drive up to the Abbey and I usually plot while driving. This year however, I wanted to make a research trip and ended up stopping to take pics so often I never did get into plotting mode. I enjoyed my research so much I arrived 4 hrs later than I'd planned.

For my story, the characters take an adventurous journey together. I’ve taken the same road many times myself, enthralled with the scenery and history. It only seemed natural to write about it. The part of the story that crosses paths with mine happens on the 2nd day of my characters’ journey  when they travel into a wide, deep valley to a place called Fort Qu’Appelle. Although there is a replica fort on site, my goal wasn't to visit it but to check out the old Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) store downtown. Good thing, too because when I was there, the overflowing Qu'Appelle River flooded the fort's southwest bastion and you couldn't get inside.


1897 Hudson's Bay Company store, downtown Fort Qu'Appelle, SK



Now my characters wouldn't have seen this HBC store since they went through the area in 1888 and the HBC store would've still been in use at the fort. But, it gives me the feel of the place. Currently, the building houses a coffee cafe.

What would have been around at that time was this church built in 1885 which is still in use today:


1885 St. Andrews Anglican Church


I saw this old stone building behind the HBC store. I don't know anything about it (yet) but it looks like it could've (or should've) been around back then.

After taking my photos, I headed north out of the valley following the Carlton Trail. About 7 miles out of town I passed a marker designating the Touchwood Hills cairn and old ox cart trails and took this photo:
 

Carlton Trail Red River Ox Cart Tracks

Although spring isn't the optimum time to view these tracks, you can see the faint outline left from the passing of hundreds of settlers and transporters with their Red River ox carts. For a better view and more info, check out the Wayfarer site for geocaching or Historic Places Canada.

Back in my van, I headed north and then west keeping an eye out for the Touchwood Hills Provincial Park. This park contains the remains of an HBC post in the Touchwood Hills. I walked up to the cairn, read it, and stood there a bit disappointed. Where were the remains of the buildings I'd read about? I tramped around the clearing and saw these iron frames - like H's, sticking out of the ground between 2 cornerstones. Depressions showed where the cellars had once been since every building had one for storage and escape from the Indians. Also, some have mounds where the walls once stood. 

Here's what they looked like...

But here's what was actually there...



Here's another one...

Which used to have a building like this...

And one final photo...

Which actually looked something like this...

I made a 2 min video of the experience. If you take time to watch it, imagine yourself where I stood which was in the middle of one of these building remains. I filmed while turning in a circle. And as I did so, something struck me other than the sense of history - that I was standing on what was probably a cellar which could cave in at any moment. And I was all alone 1/4 mile off the highway and hidden by trees.




They're developing this park as a campground. There are supposedly more ox cart tracks. I didn't see any, but then the ground was covered by last year's toppled growth. I'd love to see it later in the year after the site's been cleaned up. And I'd really like to get my metal dectector out there and do some exploring. But of course I can't in a park.

The ox cart tracks reminded me of 2009 en route the ACFW conference in Denver when I stood between in the wheel ruts of the Oregon Trail. The visual reminder of the Carlton Trail is piddly compared to the magnificent depth into limestone of the Oregon Trail. But the proof of human perseverance to build a better life remains to this day in both cases.

Are there any historic places near your home which are ruins and crumbles? Have you explored them with or without a metal detector?



Anita Mae Draper is retired from the Canadian Armed Forces and lives on the prairie of southeast Saskatchewan, Canada with her hubby of 30 plus years and 2 of their 4 kids. In 2005, Anita Mae decided to return to writing and make it a priority in her life. She writes old west stories set on the prairies of Saskatchewan, North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. Her characters are strong because the land demands it. Anita Mae likes to write characters who sit up and notice when that special person God’s chosen just for them walks by. The story is all about the courtship between the two main characters. But it won’t be an easy path. And if they don’t know about God at the beginning of the book, they will by the end. Anita Mae has semi-finaled in the Historical Romance category of the ACFW's 2011 Genesis contest and finaled in the Inspirational category of the 2011 Daphne du Maurier, the 2011 Fool for Love, the 2011 Duel on the Delta and 2009 Linda Howard Award of Excellence contests. She’s currently waiting to hear the phone ring and have someone say they want to buy Emma’s Outlaw. Meanwhile, she’s working on another story and trying to keep her imagination in check. A pathological picture taker, she usually has a photo or two of the quirky world she lives in on her blog at http://anitamaedraper.blogspot.com/

Writing Thoughts from So You Think You Can Dance

by Dina Sleiman

It's my favorite time of year! Summer, you ask. Time for beaches and pools and amusement parks? Sure, that too. But what I'm talking about is the season for...

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE!!!!

This spring I had the pleasure of traveling to Atlanta with my daughter for The Pulse. This is a huge convention for dancers taught by famous choreographers including many of those featured on So You Think You Can Dance. As a former and sometimes current dancer and choreographer myself, I enjoy watching this weekend as much as my daughter enjoys participating in it.

An extra treat for me this year, was that she moved up to the “Advanced Professional” room. The choreography presented in this room really wasn’t much different than that in the “Intermediate” or “Advanced” mega-ballrooms. However, only about a hundred of the thousand or so students made the cut for pro, and so the attitude of the dancers and the teachers was on a whole different level. The teachers spoke to them as dedicated artists who had studied their craft and deserved respect for their many years of hard work. They shared inside tidbits into the industry and the artist’s life.

If you’re not familiar with Mia Michaels, she is a multi-Emmy-award-winning choreographer often featured on So You Think You Can Dance. More than that, she is an incredibly spiritual woman who draws from some deep inner-well most people have never discovered. Year after year on the show, dancers stand before the camera with tears streaming down their faces declaring Mia’s choreography has forever changed their lives. She calls them to crack open their chests and dance from a place deep within.

After teaching an achingly beautiful piece to the “Advanced Professional” group, Mia started sharing from her heart about the dancer’s journey. (Image tear drops on the post, because I’m crying already just remembering that magical moment.) She said that while people have let her down, her body, even performances had let her down, dance was the one thing that had always been there for her. Dance was her bliss. Her breath. Her reason for being. You have to love the dance--the art--for itself. Not for the outer trappings that come with it. You must be willing to find that place of truth and let it pour out.

Then she asked them to break into groups and dance. 

Not just the choreography. They would begin with the minute long piece she taught them, after which they would break into spontaneous movement for another several minutes until the end of the song. As I watched these dancers pouring out their hearts and souls onto the floor through their own shapes and rhythms, it hit me: I could apply every word of that inspiring speech to my writing.

Tears streamed down my face to match those of the dancers upon the floor. It was all I could do not to crumble into full blown sobs.

In that moment, I realized. Publishers will let me down. Sales will let me down. Reviews will let me down. But writing…writing for the pure and unadulterated bliss of stringing words on paper to create a story world, a piece of art…that will never let me down.

More importantly, the marvelous God who has called me to this incredible journey will never let me down.

What is your favorite part of writing? Have you been writing for the sake of writing or for the goal of publication and pleasing others? If you don't write, what area of your life could you apply this sage advice to?