I knew I was home when I saw her,
Flowers in her hair, heaven in her eyes,
I knew she was real,
Because she made me feel.
A soul so profound, that moment, like cream.
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J.Balla courtesy of http://www.unsplash.com -
In the beginning of this year, I went through some writing goals I had made in 2018 and one of them included writing outside of my comfort zone. I love fiction and more so historical fiction and after writing The Currents Series and Zuri: The Chronicler of Enzi, I have been thinking of working on a book that delves into the situation of primary education in Kenya and this prompted me to start doing some research towards this in March this year.
Now, it’s my first time writing non-fiction and I am learning that above all, I cannot wing it or just write as much as I want without fact-checking!
I am also learning that when you are writing about a subject that you truly care about, there are some factors that you have to watch out for like:
- Your desire to want the whole world to know about it so much that you find yourself at a loss of where to start or what exactly to say and when.
- How attached you are to the subject that you lose objectivity. In my case as I was doing research, I found myself defending the teachers more and not truly understanding the whole system, how it works and why. So, every article or book I would read, I found myself defending only the teachers and I am still struggling with this.
- The chances that you may relive your trauma. On this point, I learned it by reading an article that Kurt Vonnegut has written some time back, when he shared that some stories he told were so close to an experience he lived that he struggled with objectivity. He advises to write it out, spit it out for what it is- and then dealing with everything after that, for once it is written it is out there.
This project is proving to be more challenging and rewarding as I learn along the way too and I can’t help but want to see it through to publication. I also came across some insightful tips on Creative Penn, and Masterclass guide to writing non-fiction that I read and found quite encouraging. So, here’s to fulfilling one of my writing goals!
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I choose to be happy on this day. It’s a sunny Sunday with highs of 26 degrees Celcius. I woke up today at 6:34AM to do laundry and finish braiding my hair and since then, I have been listening to songs on my playlist and drinking cup after cup of coffee. I am officially on my fourth cup.
We are 4 days into July and June was a scary month for me, for I realized how weak my body could be and the mere mention of being on supplements to keep me safe scared me. However, I did manage to get in more sleep and read more books but write absolutely nothing when it comes to my WIP. What I excelled at was watching Korean Dramas on Netflix late into the night and working on my work reports.
I would absolutely recommend the following dramas: Warm & Cozy, Man to Man, Healer, I am not a Robot and Tomorrow with You.
From March I have been buying more books to read and my June and July book hauls demand attention and I look forward to reading them in the coming months.
I am also looking forward to starting a professional certificate course to further improve my skills and knowledge in my field. It feels great getting back to some kind of structure and I can’t wait to see this through.
On future projects: The Miles Morland Foundation Writing Scholarship call for applications have been released and I’ll do what I always do, submit my application and keep my fingers crossed. I have been working closely with my Mentor/Professor who always critiques my writing to see to the release of the next book “A Hundred Little Things” in the first week of August.
My expectations for this month are:
- To improve on how I take good care of my body, from eating healthy ( more food rich in iron and calcium)
- To think positively of myself and what I do.
- To wrap up most of my work projects.
- Visit family and friends
- Have a weekend road trip- just to see another town, experience somewhere other than where I am right now.
- To watch some more K-Drama. My absolute favorite being Nevertheless– because in a way, Na-bi reminds me of a water-sign. She’s been hurt but she is still hoping for love, and with Park Jae-eon, she knows he’ll disappoint her but she is willing to give it a shot.
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I want to have coffee with you on a Monday morning,
Let’s sit down at the break of dawn and talk,
It’s been a while,
I want to see the dimple in your left cheek when you smile.
I want to watch you frown when you talk,
Or how you shake your left leg,
Ten minutes into a conversation…
It’s been a while.
I want to have coffee with you on a Monday morning,
Just like we used to.
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I fell in love with the soul that had wind in her hair.
She came into my world and whisked me out of it,
I followed her scent.
I fell in love with the soul that smiled in the midnight air.
My Mother warned me about it,
Be careful or she may shred your heart.
I followed her scent, to my descent.
I fell in love with the girl that had wind in her hair,
No one could catch her, mold her, wind her, break her, capture her.
Breston Kenya took this: http://www.pexels.com -
I dream of you,
Of your smile, your laugh and your voice.
I dream of you,
Of your dreams, the way your hands would move as you worked,
Of the way you spoke to keys, strings and sticks…beats I’d call them,
Light as you called them.
To the world it was music,
But to you, it was eternity, so I let you embrace it.
I dream of you Stardust,
Of all the things we left unsaid,
Of all the places we never stayed,
Of all the dreams we prayed,
Of the eternity we shared.
I dream of you Stardust and this right here is the truth.
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My heart is like water,
It nourishes as it pleases.
When the sun goes down, it begins to falter,
It seeks solace in the pieces.
My heart is like the air I breathe,
Untouchable yet priceless,
So when the sun rises, I reach out with the palm of my hand and check on it,
The beating of my heart reminds me that I still have unresolved matters.
Sometimes, often…at times such as this,
I yearn for that stillness,
the calm before and after a storm,
anything but this turmoil,
My heart like fear is static.
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A few years ago, Jack Brown jotted down a list of fatherly advice for his son as Adam left home to begin a new life as a college freshman. That list became Life’s Little Instruction Book, the phenomenal guide that has sold more than five million copies.
So, I came across this book on Academia and you know those itty bit titles that make you scroll down, read and change positions as you flip page after page after page? Yes, this was a good one to read and here are 10 instructions that I loved:
- Do a good job because you want to, not because you have to. This puts you in charge instead of your boss.
- Don’t take good friends, good health, or a good marriage for granted.
- Never type a love letter, use a fountain pen.
- Spend your life lifting people up, not putting people down.
- Don’t judge a man’s wealth by how well he’s dressed, but by how well his wife is dressed.
- When declaring your rights, don’t forget your responsibilities.
- Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
- Be forgiving of yourself and others.
- Give thanks before every meal.
- Don’t judge people by their relatives
So far, my Friday’s been good, I woke up feeling unwell had a quick visit to the clinic and turns out what I do have is a sore throat and signs of a bacterial infection so with lots of antibiotics and the stern warning to take things easy, I did something extra- I cooked. I thought the best thing that I could do to feel good was make chicken stir fry and spaghetti and I even took pictures to gloat!
On writing: I am still at this and working my way back to a routine that involves writing at dawn because I have learned that I have more time when I wake up that I could use to write.
On reading: I am in the company of good books and having read Before the Fall by Noah Hawley, I am currently going back and forth between two titles: Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave and Are Men Necessary by Maureen Dowd.
Have an awesome weekend. Stay safe wherever you are!
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Ask you questions at the crack of dawn,
When you’re half asleep, half awake
So your voice oozes into my heart.
I want to…
Watch you cook,
Trust me, there is something ethereal about the way you chop onions.
I want to…
Walk away from you,
So you know how far you have to go to get me back.
I want to…
Stay beside you,
So your soul knows my own.
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I want answers,
Not excuses or explanations,
I want answers,
To questions I ask with my eyes.
To the questions in my mind.
I want answers and that’s why every time you ask me,
“How are you doing?”
I tell you “Good.”
I want answers and until I hear your question just right,
I’ll always tell you lies.
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nilichoandika 