Change and Other Survival Tips

Without change, a story or book is weak, goes nowhere. We are inspired by someone else's change and how they made their lives better. But for us, change is something we resist. And believe me, the older we get, the less we like change. We moved our cat's dish to a better spot and heard about it for a week. But she managed and has now adopted this new spot for feeding. She looks at me with that defiant cat expression that says: Don't change a thing! I understand.
     Last year at this time, we were completely shut down by The Pandemic of 2020. Isolating to save the Realm. No dining out, no basketball games, no Bookclub meetings, no family & friends gatherings, no travel - only on TV (or Zoom ). We became TV addicts… obsessed with travel and food channels, fantasizing over home renovation shows. We adapted, but didn't like the change.

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Last year, due to climate change and drought in SW Arizona, a spark flamed by notoriously high winds burned for a month on our mountain. We saw on TV the devastations in California. And floods in other parts of the country. We desperately wanted change but felt helpless. 
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All year, we watched news of how horribly we Americans were treating our fellow man and woman. Life was vulnerable, at risk. I told myself we were living in a dystopian novel. If we lifted the blindfolds, we would go blind! All I wanted to do was to escape… but no one wanted us.

Friends on Facebook were posting Spring flowers in their yards and on morning walks. Our cacti were dying in bunches. We thumbed through photos of beautiful times in Italy, France, and Portugal. Sigh.

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This year, things are different. Better. What changed? 
We survived. Thanks to lots of folks who also wanted change, including our brilliant  scientists who developed a vaccine to enable us to be protected from the worst of the virus. 
​     And we changed. We are now grateful for Everything, large and small. Life and liberty. Friends and family. Attitude and action. Cactus flowers. We just had our first in-person Bookclub in over a year. Such joy! I've stopped hoping because hope isn't action for me. It's transferring the action to others, hoping 'they' will do something about this thing I want changed. If it is to be, it's up to me. I have to make it happen, or change! What about you? Do you embrace change? Does it make you feel out of control … or in charge? 

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And, despite all of the problems we've encountered, these small desert cactus bloom once a year in the Spring for about a day. We take their pictures, send them to our friends and wait another year, with a smile for a change.

Mary Tate

Vintage Books on sale this month on my home page for a special price of 99 cents::
CALLAHAN'S GOLD - He is a gold digger with a heart of gold. She is resentful of her past and wants her share of the gold. Can togetherness bring out their best? 
A LASTING LOVE - He did the unforgivable. Now he's back for another chance. Does she dare risk her heart - again?