Boerne Library on Dec 10, 2022

 Dear Readers,

Please visit me at the Boerne Library on Saturday, December 10, 2022 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

I hope to see you!

Children's Book Week

 It starts today... I don't know about you, but I've got quite a list of children's books that I'd like to read. Will visit the library today and see if I can find a few of them.  Happy reading!

Happy All Saints Day!

"Blesseds" like Chiara "Luce" Badano and Carlo Acutis are on their way to becoming saints. All you holy men and women, pray for us!

As rejections go...

 I got a really nice poetry rejection recently. An editor is putting together a collection of poetry on the theme "Exhaustion." They said that they liked my "Domestic Goddess Lament" and it had survived several cuts, but with 500 submissions and space for only a handful of poems, they finally had to pass on it. Well, I was happy to know how far it had gotten, rather than receive a "Dear Author...does not suit our needs at this time" email.

Announcing...

 On Monday, August 29, 2022 during the noon hour, I'll be interviewed on KJMA 89.7 FM (South Central Texas radio station).

Calling All Book Lovers!

 

Today is National Book Lovers Day. Am I a book lover? You bet! You would know without doubt given a brief tour of my house, which has two rooms with built-ins and also a free-standing bookshelf, not to mention all the books and the Kindle on my nightstand.

 

How about you? Do you love books? Do you have a favorite? I especially love children's books, and one of my favorites is "The Tale of Despereaux." (The original story is very different in many ways from the film version. Read the original, if possible.) Please share any favorites... and maybe spend a little time reading today.

Award for Blessed Chiara!

 

Blessed Chiara Badano: Her Secrets to Happiness has won 3rd place in the Children: Teens category of the Association of Catholic Publishers 2022 Awards! My thanks to everyone who made this possible.

 

https://www.catholicpublishers.org/2022-publishing-award...

Hope

 

Maybe this will speak to you today:

Hope is the thing with feathers by Emily Dickinson

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words -

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -

And sore must be the storm -

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land -

And on the strangest Sea -

Yet - never - in Extremity,

It asked a crumb - of me.

A Fierce Poem

 

Here's a heavier poem with a fierce subject (in honor of a dear friend, you know who you are L.S.) :)

Tyger Tyger by William Blake

Tyger Tyger, burning bright,

In the forests of the night;

What immortal hand or eye,

Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies

Burnt the fire of thine eyes?

On what wings dare he aspire?

What the hand, dare seize the fire?

And what shoulder, & what art,

Could twist the sinews of thy heart?

And when thy heart began to beat,

What dread hand? & what dread feet?

What the hammer? what the chain,

In what furnace was thy brain?

What the anvil? what dread grasp,

Dare its deadly terrors clasp!

When the stars threw down their spears

And water'd heaven with their tears:

Did he smile his work to see?

Did he who made the Lamb make thee?

Tyger Tyger burning bright,

In the forests of the night:

What immortal hand or eye,

Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

National Poetry Month 2022

 

Hooray and yippee!

It's the National Month of Poetry.

 

Let's begin with some light verse from my favorite light verser.  ;)

The Fly

by Ogden Nash

God in his wisdom made the fly

And then forgot to tell us why.

If you like this poem, you may also want to visit my FB author page:  https://www.facebook.com/GeriGuadagnoWrites

I Know Her!

 One of my favorite authors, Patti Gauch (yes, we're on a nickname basis ever since we met at the Highlights Foundation) teamed up with Tomie dePaola on a picture book, "The Little Friar Who Flew," about St. Joseph of Cupertino. I pre-ordered it (will be released at the end of March). Now to plan a trip to the East Coast, so that she can sign it for me. Way to go, Patti!

Ebook Fairs and My Book

 Dear Friends, I would appreciate it if you would vote for my book about Bl. Chiara Badano on the e-book fairs website. Scroll down the page and you'll see the cover, etc. Thank you in advance. Here is the link: 

https://www.ebookfairs.com/Fair/Book?id=q5FC27AKwEqQOAIaIeTDWw 

Book Signing at the Boerne Bookshop Dec 4

 Meet and greet, signing on Saturday Dec 4, 2021 from 10 a.m. to noon for Blessed Chiara Badano: Her Secrets to Happiness, the illustrated biography of an ordinary teen who led an extraordinary life (for ages 10 and up).

I hope to see you there! (Books will be available for purchase.)

They're Here at Last!

 And the birthday party (10.28.21) is almost here, too...

Bookstop is Live!

 

Now is a great time to visit the SCBWI Bookstop. You can find all kinds of children's books from both traditionally-published and independently-published authors. Here's the page for my new book: 

 

https://www.scbwi.org/scbwibookstop-display/?id=794864

An Invitation for You

 For a special event, coming soon...

Success!

 The Boerne Book & Arts Fest was a smash! I met great people (including some previous customers), was interviewed for the local paper, and was offered a signing event by the Boerne Bookshop.

Authors and artists, I highly recommend this event, sponsored by the Boerne Library each fall.

 

Book Event!

 Dear Reader,

It's been too long... I hope that you and your family are well.

It's also time for the annual Boerne Book and Arts Festival, this Saturday, October 2 from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. I would be honored if you would come and see me and my books in the Children's Author tent. You can also learn about my new book, Blessed Chiara Badano: Her Secrets to Happiness, which is coming soon!

Have a blessed day,

Geri Guadagno

Peace

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Prayer of St. Francis

Judging the Chaos, Not the People

A friend asked me about judging today, saying that based on what's happening in our country, she couldn't help judging.

My answer is that we can judge a person's actions, but not their hearts. To delve into psychology for a moment, rather than spirituality, it's people who are hurt who then hurt others. The deeper or more grievous the wound, the more dangerously hurtful they can become. When they cannot directly strike the person who hurt them, they will hurt the nearest person or damage property, etc. (Haven't we all done this? We couldn't yell at the person who hurt us, so we yelled at our spouse or child, friend or coworker?)

People's actions are right or wrong. When they hurt others or break laws (and the basis of many laws is preventing hurt/protecting people and property), their actions must be stopped and they must be held accountable. But, we must also work to prevent or change those conditions which caused them to be so wounded and lash out in the first place.

I wish that I could wave a magic wand and transform every attitude, every action and every word that hurts people into one that helps them instead. Unfortunately, the best that I can do is to cultivate and have within myself the thoughts, words and actions of universal brotherhood: each person is my brother or sister in God's family. God's will is that I love each one of them and all of them, all the time. They were created to be a gift to me, and vice versa. Love (and mercy) doesn't mean that I let them get away with doing wrong or approve their actions, but it does mean that I try to understand the underlying cause of those actions.

When I have an opportunity to help someone, to listen to someone, to learn about someone, I try to do that right away and with love. And I pray, especially when I see so much pain being unleashed in the world. (Believe me, it breaks my heart.)

I pray for God's healing and mercy to change hardened hearts and minds, to heal wounded souls, to deliver us from the hatred (and the suffering) that is at the root of violence. I pray for peace in each mind and heart, and if there must be protests, for someone who will lead others in peaceful protests. In the past, we have had many leaders told us that violence and hatred are not the answers, but some people seem to have forgotten that.

On this Pentecost Sunday, let's pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit--the love between the Father and the Son--on everyone in the whole world. May God heal our deepest wounds and grant us peace.