Saturday, February 19, 2011

Why Fiction is Important (and other thoughts)

Our lives are so much more complicated these days than our parents times, given the technology that we have at our fingertips - computers, iphones, GPS, DVDs, wifi, and so on. It can be downright stressful at times!

We live in an information age almost spiraling out of control. The Internet is brimming with information, and so are the news. With so much negative news coming at us (riots in Egypt, 2012 dire predictions, global economic issues, etc.) it seems that it is never ending. In addition, there are life issues that can be traumatic, depressing, or downright ugly, and coupled with the negative news it can be very stressful living in this current world.

I find during these times, that just switching gears for a few minutes or even an hour or two here or there to read fiction, is a great respite and escape from the world we live in.
My latest novel THE GREEK MAIDEN AND THE ENGLISH LORD was intended to be an entertaining escape from the modern world as well as a stressbuster. I am very content with happy endings in the novels I read and write. I stay away from reading novels that are too realistic and depressing. I get enough of that from reading the news.

Here is a short poem I wrote:

Dare to Dream

Dare to dream with hopes filled high -
To fly with eagles in the sky
Lured by promises of happy thoughts,
Dare to dream what life dares naught.

Focus on the positive, uplifting, loving, and good things in life, and they will come abundantly to you.

Tuesday, February 08, 2011

Poem on Cancer

Hello again,

The following poem was written recently. It's on a topic that is close to my heart. I spent many years doing cancer research in the laboratory. I also witnessed several close family members succumbing to the disease. This poem is a result of my feelings about it.
Patty



Cancer

How often must we hear
this word before we wake up
to the truth?

I read the statistics -
Millions of Americans have died from cancer
since 1975. How many more
before we do something about it?

Forever and ever we are
caught in its snare
as we watch
parent or sibling or friend
struggle against its
lethal clutches,
their very life choking from the chemicals -
the poisons they ingest to survive
one minute more only to die forever
lost to conventional treatment,
causing us
to mourn forever and ever
the loss of beautiful people,
gracious souls that somehow
never ripened to old age.

I struggled just like them, but knew
it was not my time for I wanted to live,
but didn't they also?
I told them to stay away from the chemicals,
and eat organic fruits and vegetables,
drink pure water, breathe clean air,
and take vitamins and supplements,
But instead they listened to their doctor
and no longer are around to listen to me.
Where did I go wrong?
Maybe I forgot to tell them to pray?
Why didn't they listen?

Where did medicine go wrong?
Why do they poison and radiate the body
Instead of helping to prevent it in the first place?
Maybe they forgot to listen to the patient's
soul?
Or maybe they don't have one themselves...

I listened to my husband, I read,
I ate organic foods and drank pure water...
I listened to my intuition
and I'm still around.

by Patty Apostolides, 2010