The Praying Hands

     Many people have seen this symbol and know it as the Praying Hands. If you were brought up in a religious household you will have been taught that these hands are a depiction of Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. However, the actual story behind this art, which was rendered by Albrecht Durer, a Nuremberg, Germany inhabitant who executed all mediums of art, is more amazing than what is currently known among most people who readily recognize it.

     This amazingly enduring art comes all the way back from the 15^th century when two brothers, Albrecht and Albert Durer lived with their parents and no less than sixteen other siblings in a village nearby to Nuremberg. They both wanted to pursue art as a career but knew that their family could not afford for both of them to study their chosen profession although equally talented. The decision was made that only one son could be sent off to school which meant that the other would have to do heavy labor of some sort to support the schooling. Both clearly had the aptitude to go so they decided to toss a coin and choosing heads or tails would be the deciding factor for their fates. The winner would pursue his art while the other brother would labor in the mines. Albrecht won the coin toss and the rest of the story is heart-wrenching but also inspiring.

     Albrecht’s work created an immediate sensation in Germany and he began to garner large fees for his art. As was originally agreed, after four years of studies and success Albrecht told his brother that it was now his turn to study and learn his art and Albrecht would now work in the mines. His brother’s response was, “No. I cannot go. Look what four years in the mines have done to my hands! The bones in every finger have been smashed at least once and my arthritis is so bad, I can barely raise a glass much less make delicate lines on canvas. No brother… for me, it is too late.”

Albrecht's self portrait

   

 

At first this made Albrecht sad. To know that his success had destroyed his brother’s future in art was almost too much for him to bear. To pay homage to Albert for all he had sacrificed, Albrecht painstakingly drew his brother’s crippled hands with palms together and thin fingers stretched skyward. He called this powerful drawing Hands but the entire world almost immediately opened their hearts to his great masterpiece and renamed his tribute of love ‘The Praying Hands.’

     This true story of sacrifice and gratitude is a testament and a reminder to all people that no one ever makes it alone.

Thank you heavenly Father for restoration and healing,

You are the God who sees us and

You keep Your promise to always be by our side.

We praise You and You alone.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen!

(at 19)

The Castle Lady

Poetic to the Point of Being Psychic?

I have a bit of an odd tale about one of Seamus (pronounced, Shame-us) Heaney's poems, which is the first poem in his book titled Human Chain. My friend in Ireland sent me this book as a gift in November of 2013 and it arrived on November 26th- within the same month that an Aunt of mine-my favorite Aunt, no less!- passed away and a little more than a year after my Mum's passing. 
On the 25th of November, just the day before, I had a weird experience. I had walked into my mother's room at the same time that I suddenly heard what sounded like a waterfall against one of her windows and immediately thought that I was hearing a sudden violent rainstorm but as I looked out the other window I could see that the late afternoon was still sunny and no rain had hit that window. It was dry and clear. 

The sound was deafening for only a moment- like that of wind and rain- and it continued but I suddenly felt the urge to go out and investigate. 
As I came out the side door to my house I saw leaves violently hitting the bricks against the house and then they suddenly quit. I looked around and there were no leaves any where else. I neared the window to get a closer look and found that one leaf had lodged itself into a space between two bricks. I couldn't reconcile the sound I heard with what I saw but I was left to think about this for only a day.
When the book arrived from my friend the next day and I saw that it was poetry I opened it immediately and read the first poem. The following is the poem, titled, 'Had I not been awake'.

Had I not been awake I would have missed it,

A wind that rose and whirled until the roof

Pattered with quick leaves off the sycamore

And got me up, the whole of me a-patter,

Alive and ticking like an electric fence:

Had I not been awake I would have missed it,

It came and went so unexpectedly

And almost it seemed dangerously,

Returning like an animal to the house,

A courier blast that there and then

Lapsed ordinary. But not ever

After. And not now.

I've always told people that some of my poems are prophetic because my poems written as a teenager were actually outside my scope of experience, at times, and then I would experience what I'd written later. This episode with Seamus' poetry really grabbed my attention and I urge one and all to take a look at his poetry. He passed away in a Dublin hospital in August of that year himself at the age of 74 and is seriously missed as an international poet who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1995. Please give this man's poetry a look as we all need to listen to our prophets as much now as ever. 

Dihunamb,

The Castle Lady

 

What Kind of Person do You Think I Am ?

    

With all the work I have put into my blogs over the years it has become an assumption of mine that my readers have deduced my character, demeanor and lifestyle through my writing. Perhaps that’s a bit of an error on my part. Most of my writing only requires me to step aside and lay down facts. My own agenda, opinions and preferences are put aside in most instances or kept to myself. That works for me because I can concentrate on what is essential to my subject without adding my own colors unnecessarily. Additionally, non-fiction writing allows you to work incognito and I’ve taken that road more often than not but it isn’t absolutely necessary. In all honesty, I’m a modest person but not necessarily shy so it’s become a habit for me to keep myself out of it, if possible. However, I’m going to try to break out of that rut. This entry is an attempt to introduce you to the person you’ve been reading so you can get a clearer image and better idea of who I am as a person.

     The fact that I’ve been mostly reticent about myself was entirely unintentional. In trying to be as professional as I can I’ve deprived you of knowledge about my aspirations. However, I do want you to know where I’m coming from in terms of my personal and work background, where I have lived and traveled and what I want and expect to achieve with my work on castles. I’ve never really thought much about my station in life because my priority has always been following my interests, desires and needs. God has been gracious to me and helped me (along with my parents) in achieving my goals and aspirations. No one could ever rightfully accuse me of being high maintenance. Economical in every sense of the word is not only my highest priority on a day to day basis, it has practically become my motto. It’s all too obvious what my excesses are from my writing so this will not be news to you. My main overindulgence is education, knowledge and, above all, truth and honesty in dealings and communication.

    

Someone once left a comment on my WordPress castles blog which said simply, “What’s with all the castles?”  After I stopped laughing- actually, I just laughed again- I started to seriously ponder the question. It’s obviously a favorite subject of mine to put it mildly but beyond the apparent reasons why I started to write about castles I’m sure that the mysteriousness and appearance of these magnificent edifices is what started me on the journey of exploring and then writing about them. I pored over books on castles from the time I was a teen. It didn’t occur to me at the time that I would eventually visit these places. Supposing that I couldn’t possibly ever visit even one made them more attractive and important. When I finally went on my grand tour of castles back in 2001 it was a dream come true and has been my best and most exciting travel excursion in my life- thus far. I’m more in love with castles now than I ever have been! I’m not sure if I have answered the question above but it’s the best way of explaining why I have spent the past 19 years researching them online. I have a small library on the subject of castles alone. Well, it’s small if you think 100 books is a small collection. There are many more I’d love to own and hundreds more I’d at least like to read or read again!

     If someone asked me, “What’s with all the writing?” I’d probably only laugh again. I’ve been writing longer than my so-called obsession with castles and has become such a part of me that- to think of myself as something other than a writer- I’d probably just say I’m a poet. I started my writing career with poetry as a child. Further I’d say that I’m a poet first, even if the number of my poems pale in comparison to all my other writing. When did I start singing? My mother told me that I sang back to her from the crib! People used to stop my mother in church and remark that they’d never heard a baby sing before. Eventually, Mom took me to a professional vocal coach who wanted me to try for a scholarship to C.U. for operatic training. Somehow I couldn’t visualize myself in that scenario and there are times that I regret not taking that more seriously. I felt that my voice talent belonged in the church because it was God-given. I never had to struggle with my vocal talent and have always enjoyed singing. Playing the flute was practically the same thing. I only wanted to play for the Lord. I may need an attitude adjustment for that someday but for now I’m happy with singing occasionally here and there, mostly at church and definitely to the Glory of God.

    

I enjoy life as it is, also. From 1977 up to 2007 I kept busy making a living working as a nail tech. I’m still a working technician but I’m not anywhere near as busy as I was during those first 30 years! I have traveled to nail shows and seminars all over the U.S. (mostly on the West Coast) and even lived and worked in San Diego for three years. Mostly what I learned in San Diego was autonomy. I moved there when I turned 22 and did all the California things that a young woman can do when they are in such an environment. Sometimes I wonder if I would’ve had certain opportunities in my life if I had continued living there. Moving back to Denver after all that wasn’t easy. I just readjusted and went back to working as a nail tech but I also enrolled in college and started taking music classes and advanced flute performance training. I didn’t come away from there with a degree because I wasn’t seeking a degree. I didn’t feel that I needed one and when I decided that I’d gotten everything out of musical training that I wanted, turned my sights on nail salon ownership.

     Being a business owner is quite a high ride even as a small business! It is very demanding of time but there is no better confidence builder. If one does not become a millionaire at the end of it then there is the prestige of such experience which is not generally overlooked by potential employers. The responsibility is enormous and will take every bit of your energy. Your work ethic becomes top priority because you don’t make it unless you rise to the occasion. From 1990 to 1997 my salon survived two locations and a growing retail business and eventually tanning. The latter was not an asset but I learned something about the business that I didn’t know before I added it. I’m convinced that my expertise in nails (which I had already acquired before I started the salon) made all the difference in my success. Interestingly, when I decided to close my salon and move operations to my mother’s full service home salon, it wasn’t that difficult to give it up. I’d learned what I needed to learn from that period of my life and wanted to move on.

     After that, I knew that whatever I decided to do from here on should be a dream maker because I am convinced that if I apply all the things I’ve learned through the years- the work ethic, following desires, being confident, using energy well- the effort of all that will impart more success. To me, success isn’t just about making a million (or more) dollars, it’s about making dreams a reality. It isn’t a game, it’s real life and a real possibility. Success isn’t a competition, it’s arriving at the destination you wanted. It’s finding out that what you wanted is worth your time, toil and care. Success, for me, is an intrinsic value and an extrinsic one as well. Whoever said, “Nothing succeeds like success,” was not being facetious- he knew what he was talking about. I know what it is to be a success, the kind which is worth its name.

     Finally, in conclusion, my hope is that you understand me a little better and know that I’m as down-to-earth as anyone else. My castles are real, not in the air! I know what it is to turn around after a big monetary windfall and put 90% of it back in for the next project or keeping the business afloat. I’ve put in seventeen years of dedicated work for a dream, which as of today, has not yet made one dime for me. However, I believe in the worth of the work- it couldn’t remain a fantasy that long and survive in my world! I believe it was Flaubert who said, “I beg you to believe that if it didn’t amuse me to paint, I wouldn’t do it.” There’s the love part. It’s the true key to success.

Honestly,

The Castle Lady

The Happy Factor

    

If you are acquainted with the oft used text and Twitter anagram IRL (= In Real Life) then you may be a great candidate to read the following entry. My idea for this came from the fact that I am too often passed off or tagged a Pollyanna because I’m usually counter to negativism by using positive statements. Everyone needs to deal with sadness and depression at times in their lives but the quicker that you deal with the causes and decide to be happy, no matter what, then you’ll never have to be a part of the worldwide epidemic of depression. If you could use your mental and physical powers to lift yourself out of a funk rather than take a pill wouldn’t it be worth it? Here goes:

     1. Social media friends may be the worst source for help with depression. You are more affected by the people in your immediate environment than you realize and the sooner you come to grips with this the faster you’ll be on the road to happiness. In the Bible, one commandment reads: Love thy neighbor as thyself. Even if you don’t even talk to your neighbors you can be affected by the things they do, how they conduct their affairs in and out of your area. Your home is a sanctuary and they affect it. When you make peace with this consequential circumstance most of your work will be done. However, your next door neighbor isn’t your only neighbor. Where you work and who you work with is included into this and even people you see on a regular basis elsewhere is also a neighbor. That means on a plane seat, people in your car pool, etc. Teach yourself to see a bit of yourself in these people. Once you can truly empathize then you can get a handle on dealing with other people’s problems. It doesn’t mean you have to solve them- that’s in their area- but you can at least come out of your own skin and make some peace out of what can too easily become chaos.

     2. One sure way to clear your head of negative, unhappy moods and mindsets is to get some fresh air every morning. Get your body moving to aid your head from fogginess and forgetfulness. Forgetfulness is a symptom of depression. Go for a brisk walk every morning where there is mostly trees, other walkers, pets on the move and children running about playing hopscotch or whatever. It’s the finest and quickest mind-clearing exercise known. It works. Do it!

     3. Form an actual group of likeminded people (outside of social media contacts, unless they are people you see everyday in your real life). The best way to get happy and stay happy is to seek out those types of individuals. My experience in trying to cheer up people with serious depression issues is that misery loves company. They will bring you down unless you are determined to get and stay happy. My suggestion is to start dropping something positive into conversations with people you know are prone to depression. Do not hang around. Just call it your ‘happy bomb’ and move on. You’ve got too much of a great day to have to hang around for the excuses. Who knows? You may get them on your happy team eventually.

     4. Happiness is as much a sport as an actual sport. You’ll need to exercise it everyday and in every facet of your life. It’s a good and healthy habit and you won’t be taking any kind of pill unless it’s one of those placebos which debunk, often, even the biggest of naysayers. If you think you need a reason to be so happy then make a little happiness here and there for others. A key to all of this is that you need to get out of your own head and get a larger view of the world. The news can, too often, create a depression that you are unaware of so determine that each incident is just that- an incident, and not the entirety of life.

     5. Make sure you do something for yourself everyday. There’s no better way to keep a lighthearted and upbeat attitude than to be good to you. If you’re a person who tends toward self-criticism you’ll need to use this therapy on a regular basis. The objective is to get out of your own way and stop treating yourself like an enemy. Learning to really love yourself is a way to give peace of mind to everyone in your environment or neighborhood which includes you. You don’t have to spend money to do this by the way. Once you get a little creative you’lll find how inexpensive this advice really is and that it is essential to a happy life.

      There is more I could say but I think you can take this advice and run with it now…

Happiness is what you make it. Just like the song. 

 

 

Summer Struggle 2016

Champions are made from something they have deep inside them-

a desire, a dream, a vision.

- Muhammad Ali

This is going to read a bit odd but getting through this summer has been one of my most difficult struggles ever and on a particular level I never would've expected. The reason why you haven't seen much on this blog until now hasn't been lack of subjects, boredom or writer's block or even writer's cramp. I've written more by handwriting this summer than I ever have in my life and my hands are fine except for sheer exhaustion. There. I said it. I'm exhausted from all the hard, physical labor I've been doing and it's been tripled and quadrupled this summer with extra work needing to be done around the house, more yard work, reorganization of just about everything in my house including moving furniture and equipment from downstairs to upstairs and vice versa all by myself. What I need is a house person. You know, like a house boy only politically correct. Here's the kicker: In the past I've been completely physically exhausted and then sat down to write and been just fine to think, edit and rewrite to my heart's content and completely in my element. 

     Now when I finally find time to sit down and write, I find that exhaustion is affecting my thinking. That's new and unwelcome. I've never known anything like this and I don't want to know it, either. This isn't happening because I don't like hard work or can't do it. I can do it and I don't mind hard work or at least I never have in the past. I'm digging in my heels because I don't want to be so exhausted that I can't think to write. That's where I draw the line. Here's the additional problem: quitting the heavy labor isn't an option.

     Not one to give up, I'm certain there's a solution and it would be something like this: Make a million dollars on my first castles book then hire someone to cook three square meals everyday and clean up after. Then, I would hire someone to make my yard look like a showcase home. I would have someone come every day to clean my house from top to bottom and do my laundry, fold it and/or hang it up and put it away. Having someone do all my shopping would be a bonus that would finally liberate me to sit down and just write for eight or more hours a day. Of course, I wouldn't give up my exercise in the morning which consists of yoga stretches followed by a swift walk up to the park, slam dunking 20 out of 30 basketball shots at the court and then coming home to write some more. That only takes about 45 minutes- tops.

     If there is any extra time after writing I could then take the time to rebuild a manicure/pedicure/nail clientele that doesn't exist for me anymore. Believe it or not, I really have enjoyed the profession I worked for three decades of my life before I watched my clientele dwindle away before my eyes. Either people don't care about the way their hands look, in the present day, or they don't have the money. No amount of discounting seems to work for these Asian discount salons. Most of them are empty, except for rows and rows of empty desks and two or three techs sitting around and watching TV. While I worked at storefront salons, including my own storefront, I don't think my client chair was ever empty. I worked ten hour days when I owned my storefront salon and never even thought about the amount of time I put in because I loved making women beautiful and helping them feel good about themselves. I guess that's out of vogue, too, but not for me. I can't go more than a week for manicuring my nails and I'd never give up the pedicures I do on myself at least once a month. If women have given this up even after years and years of being faithful clients then I can only think that they do not prioritize for themselves any longer and don't care what kind of details are in the look. Some hairstyles I've seen appear to have that philosophy!

     I will forge ahead with my dream of one day gallivanting the planet, doing site inspections any where castles can be found and writing about them and possibly showing them off on my own TV show. After that, putting them up on my web site will be done by my faithful and trusty web master who will turn my web site into a dream come true for myself and all my internet fans. You might even need an app to be able to buy my books at my web site! Bliss ! Another Cinderella dream achieved. Even though we both might be laughing now it will be followed with a sense of awe.

     I've always achieved everything that I've truly wanted to- believe it! I know I can achieve it. I've done that before.