My answers:

Hehehe so, as promised, here are my answers: 


Maria asked: 
It's very easy to decide you are going to change your life. It's another to actually do it. When you hit the low points, how do you keep on going?


My answer: 
Hehehe this was one of the most tricky questions I've ever gotten. My quest to change my life started when I'd come as close to rock bottom as I ever want to go. My only thought at that stage as I crawled out of my hole was that I never wanted to be there again. The question was how to avoid it in the future. 


After a lot of thinking and soul searching, I realized that no matter what, I had to go after my dreams, because when my dreams die, so does my spirit. So I had a deep and long talk about it with God and I struck off on the road of achieving my dreams. 


And you know what? The low points that come from set backs on my journey never come close to where I've been when I was following someone else's dreams. 


So to keep going is sort of easy...


Suze asked:
Strawberry, vanilla or chocolate? 


My answer: 
Strawberries with cream, vanilla ice-cream, milkshakes and milk, chocolate anything else except meat and veggies. 


Claudia asked: 
Favourite flower? 


My answer:
A white orchid. 


Donna asked: 
E book, or print?


My answer: 
To read, print. To sell... anything that gets my book out there. 


Caitlin asked: 
What hobbies do you have? If you have time for any in between revisions!


My answer: 
I also take solo lessons and ballroom classes, read and learn languages. I try to squeeze time in for everything. ;-)


Susan asked:
Do you have any pets? What are their names?


My answer: 
Yes I do: Three dogs (Jill, J.R. and Ben), three cats (Smokey, Lotty and Sylvester) and one African Grey parrot (Robbie). 


Joyce asked: 
I see that you live in South Africa. Upon reading that the word "Apartheid" pops into my head. How do you see the political state of your country as opposed to a few years ago. Is the country more open to people of different races?


My answer:
This is a tricky question. Also one that I will answer in private to anyone who wants me to, as it will take up a blog series of its own. 


So there you have it. A little bit of me in a blog post. 


I am passing this award to all of you who asked me a question. X

TCoML got its first award!

Thanks so much to Claudia for giving me this award. I'm honored to know that this blog means something to her. :-)

The rules are that I have to share some things about myself and to give it out to some people who deserve it.

But... I don't really know what to tell you guys, so I'm giving you the chance to ask me questions. I will try to be as honest as possible and will answer on Wednesday.

I'll also announce the people I want to pass the award to then. ^_^

So people. Ask away!

What happened Wednesday...

Wow... this post is LATE.

To be honest, I already thought I posted it.

Research has a way of addling my brain.

Anyway.

On Wednesday, I finally got my ducks in a row and went to a church small group. I'm so thrilled that I did it. It was as if my relationship with God just bloomed again.

I also met some wonderful people. Funniest thing of all was that I felt at home immediately. It was an awesome feeling to relax with people who share my faith.

And the second most amazing thing was that the girl who prayed for me could pin-point (without a clue) which of the Gifts of the Spirit I move in.

The more amazing thing about that  was that she moves in the same Gift.

So now I'm super excited, because it's been feeling pretty lonely sometimes.

^_^

Anyway, just stopped by to say hi and to wish you a Blessed Weekend!

P.S. anyone know which Gift of the Spirit you move in?

So what about you?

I've started fixing my unbalanced life issues. Today is day one, so while I am feeling a little better, I still need to decide if there's an improvement.

In the mean time, I found that I don't have all that much to say today.

So, today's about you:

1) What is your favorite color(s)?
2) Favorite movie/book quote(s)?
3) What do you hate to eat?
4) What do you dream about doing one day?

See you on Friday!

My decision regarding my revision addiction

Today's going to be a short post, as I'm still taking some me-time.

But I thought I'd like to give you an update on my previous post.

I've taken a small break from my revisions in order to get myself settled again. In the mean time, I'm reading a little, writing a little and want to catch up with some of the blogs I'm following. Tonight I dance, tomorrow I sing.

In the meantime, I'm using moments where I have nothing to do to practice my diction. It's pretty important for my voice that I place the sounds in the front of my mouth. So far, I have noticed a significant improvement, all from little snatches of time (but many of them) and paying attention to the way I speak.

From tomorrow, I want to make time to practice my dancing.

Then I also want to make time for devotionals.

My revisions will continue tomorrow, although I am thinking about taking a blogger friend's advice and limiting my time spent revising. I don't think that it is healthy for me to spend so much time in front of my laptop. If that doesn't work for me, I'll go back to my intense revisions, but I'll limit the days that I'll spend on them. That way, I'll actually be able to do some other things too.

What do you think of my plan?

How I'm Doing...

I've been struggling with regular posting lately.

As I mentioned on My First Book, my revisions are slowly but surely choking out the rest of my life. I'm not going to go into it again.

Instead, I want to think of ways to improve this situation.

Ah.

Therein lies the rub. I want to finish round 1 of revisions by August. Actually, I want to finish that round by the time I go back to university. So slowing down too much is not really an option.

On the other hand, I don't want burnout.

But Economics classes + serious revisions = disaster waiting to happen.

In the mean time, I want to work on my dancing and on my singing.

And... most importantly, I'm still searching for some quiet time. (I think I'll go into that on Monday.) Note that this is the only thing that can technically be seen as relaxation.)

So yeah... I now remember why I only focused on writing before. My life can fall into turmoil very fast.

I'm going to have to find a space for everything in my life. Before I get pushed out of it completely.

Anyone else feel like this sometimes? How do you solve it?

My First Book: WARNING!!! Virus Threat

My First Book: WARNING!!! Virus Threat: "Good thing I've taken to updating my blog roll. I stumbled across this post on Deborah Walker's Bibliography : Virus Warning N..."

Life rushes by.

I've been thinking this week.

Time races by at a pace that sometimes threatens to leave me behind.

It goes so fast that it should take my every concentration on the present just to get through every moment without missing something.

Yet, I spend so much time rehashing things that should be left in the past.

Or worrying about things that will take care of themselves in the future.

Most of my concentration is taken up by thens instead of nows.

Between looking behind me and looking into the distance, I'm not really dealing with what's right in front of me. Which means that I will miss what's happening and have to rehash it again, missing the present.

It's a vicious circle.

I've broken it before. I'm going to break it again. Just need to replace the old habits with one where I can stop to enjoy fresh air. Or the beauty of the mountains around me. With a habit of stopping to realize how wonderful it is to be close to my family. And close to God.

Are you stuck in this circle too? Want to join me in breaking it? Give me a list of one to five recent things that you caught and appreciated immediately. Mine are:

1) Our family Labrador that said good morning.
2) Seeing the support that my other blog has been enjoying in the past two days.
3) Beetroot chutney.
4) Breaking through my internal struggle and actually walking up to someone and asking if I could pray for him.
5) That that person prayed for me too.

A quick ramble and some news

Sorry that I didn't post on Monday.

I've finally started to revise my WiP and I'm singing in the choir for the pentecostal services, so I've been a little busy.

I got an e-mail from the people doing the casting of the role I wanted. Turns out I wasn't right for the role.

I was a bit disappointed, but soon realized that that now left me to sort out my education without having to wonder how I'll cope. So all in all, this was for the best.

So for now it's singing classes and writing, with a bit of knitting or sewing on the side. My classes start at the end of July. Then Economics for a few months. After that, I get my degree, hopefully query my book and take part in my first concert as soloist.

Strange to think, but those things that I think of as so far away really aren't. Half the year is almost gone and that didn't feel that long at all.

So what's news in your life?

Perspective.

So... yesterday was the Day of Ascension, so I had to go sing with the rest of the church choir as yesterday was the start of our Pentecostal services.

Now I might not have mentioned this before, but... well... the choir consists mainly of females. And some of those women are... uhm... a challenge to the "love thy neighbor" commandment.

Really.

They're so bad in fact, that one of the younger members actually left, because she overheard some of them gossiping about her AFTER PRACTICE.

I'm not happy. In fact, I rewrote this post because it was a bit... too angry for the topic.

I'm hurt for the sake of the girl that left because of their malice. More, I'm frustrated because this is coming from a CHURCH CHOIR, for heaven's sake.

Fact is that this choir suffers from a severe lack of perspective.

So severe in fact that they seem to think that they're rock-stars and divas because they *cough* in the public eye.

Our main purpose, our reason for function is to SERVE in the public eye. Not only that, but we SERVE GOD in the public eye. So who gives them the right to criticize someone for singing more loudly than them? Or for daring not to be insulted by the descant section who insists on forming a little exclusive club of three. In fact... why should cliques form in the first place?

That isn't serving God. That's serving themselves.

And it's complete and utter nonsense.

So what's there for me to do? Part of me wants to go on fulfilling my purpose in the choir. Another part is just waiting for them to come gunning for me. Because who is going to change how they act if no-one does something to start the change?

I know that wrong is a strong word. I hate using it, personally. But then, self-idolatry in the supposed service of God isn't exactly a small thing.

At the same time, I'm supposed to not judge them while I've been judged and apparently been found wanting. I'm supposed to go on loving them when they're disregarding everything they should stand for a Christians.

So where do the limits lie? Have you ever gotten into a situation like this? How did you deal with it?