Mahalo Nui Loa for Support

Picture taken while on vacation July, 2012. ©dswalkerauthor.com

I need to focus on gratitude today. I am grateful for any and all who interact on Twitter, who one plus my Google posts, who like and share my posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.  I’ll always be grateful to those of you who have reached out over the past two years, especially to those who still do, and to those who reached out to M. too. I’m grateful for new followers. And, I am grateful so many are now speaking out about the need for more kindness, understanding, and acceptance of differences in this world. I am glad leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr. lead the way for change.

There are still times when I feel like one small voice in the universe. Ironically, it is the people trying to get me to promote my book for their profit that make me feel small. It does little to convince me to pay them for promotion since neither source has given me evidence that doing so will yield results. Of course, I want to sell more books. What author wouldn’t, but book sales are secondary for me these days.  I cannot afford to put my money down a black hole with two kids fast approaching college age. Nor, am I young enough anymore to forgo sleep to spend hours doing self-promotion.

Frankly, at this point I am focusing on the second novel and continuing to promote more understanding and kindness in this world.  I do this by speaking out about why it is important and through my writing here and at Special-Ism.com.

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. —-Martin Luther King, Jr. Alabama 1963

Amalia Starr and I will also be co-hosting a Twitter chat on October 16, 2012 from 3:00 PM til 4:00 PM EDT about ways we can all support each other to help overcome the bullying epidemic. I hope some of you will join us. I will be posting more details about it later this week.

Fellow bloggers, I hope you understand that while I do not always comment, I still skim posts. I will always respond if I see you or your family are having trouble with bullying or anything else where I might be able to help or to at least offer support. I interact more on Twitter these days because it is faster, so if you are on Twitter please send me an @dswalkerauthor sometime. I try to RT and support my friends as much as I can.

Mahalo nui loa (thank you very much) for your support and understanding.

Wonderful Vacation! Now Back to Life in Paradise!

Washington Monument as seen from National Mall in front of Smithsonian Castle

Vacation is a wonderful thing and returning to life post-vacation is always hard. Throw in a six-hour time difference, eighteen days away from home, and the beginning of the school year, and you’ll have an idea of where my head has been the last few days.

The trip however was well worth the jet lag! I got a chance to visit with my oldest brother and his family, to spend time with old friends, and to explore D.C., Boston, and Maine, along with a little of New Hampshire with the kids. They rode their first subway. We explored four of the Smithsonian Museums and toured the national monuments via of moonlight tour. We walked the Freedom Trail and we drove down to Plymouth, then up to Maine, where we met friends and hiked in the White Mountain National Forest. All in all a wonderful vacation! I took a thousand pictures, but don’t worry, I am not going to bore you with that many.

First Smithsonian Museum Visited

Lincoln Memorial at Night

Old Mother Goose was real! Who knew?

Did you know Old Mother Goose was based on the real person? Apparently, she was! I walked the Freedom Trail decades ago, but somehow I missed this tidbit until I went with the kids.

Boston, MA: The Old State House

Two of my favorite things!

A Reminder from Plymouth, MA: Thanksgiving Isn’t Thanksgiving for All!

View from Bradbury Mountain State Park in Maine

Hiking in White Mountains National Forest

A New Way of Teaching (And Learning) 2

A New Way of Teaching (And Learning)

Yay! The new headmaster is bringing change!

Glad they are seeing the light, although I would not call them the leader for teaching empathy. They are not the first school on this island to understand the need for change, nor are they the first nationally. Still it is nice that the new headmaster has experience with the importance of empathy, and I do wish him much success as he implements these changes!

I am grateful for every person and school that finally gets it!

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