MFA degree

I have finally finished the last stretch of my MFA requirements! My bound thesis, HELENA'S CHOICE, which includes an Aesthetic Statement, has arrived safely on the desk of the Lead Faculty in Creative Writing at National University.

It all began in the Fall 2013, when I decided to enroll in National University's MFA in Creative Writing Program (California). Up until then, I had been writing for a good 12 years, producing my three novels LIPSI'S DAUGHTER, THE LION AND THE NURSE, and THE GREEK MAIDEN AND THE ENGLISH LORD, and other works. In order to enroll in the MFA program, I needed a "portfolio" and I had plenty of material to offer.

The courses were exceptional, and the faculty were very experienced and challenged us. We had  to do a lot of critical thinking, reading, and writing. Each course was intense and one month long, and I enjoyed each and every one of them. It showed, because I got one A- and the rest all A's, which means I'll be graduating with distinction.

What does this all mean to me? It means that I like to write, and am willing to put the effort to attend graduate school and work hard for a degree that requires a lot of thinking, reading, and writing. I was able to finish my historical novel HELENA'S CHOICE, through the program. I also wrote a novella and screenplay, among other works. I met some very interesting and talented classmates.

Ever since I made the commitment to change my career from scientist to author, I have met many, many fascinating people, through the Greek festivals where I sold my books, to the booksignings, and online writing communities, to meeting other authors at literary festivals, to my writing group in Bethesda. I have come a long way from the stay-at-home mother with a baby napping nearby while I steadily wrote my novel.

I am thankful to God for blessing me with a loving and supportive family, and for the gifts he has bestowed upon me.

P.S. Now I am looking for a publisher for HELENA'S CHOICE. Wish me luck!!

Christmas Greetings and Misses

This is the time of the year when the holiday season is upon us. Christmas parties and exchanging of presents between family and friends is a common occurrence these days. Christmas songs are sung and Christmas trees are decorated with bright bulbs and lights. Beautiful lights shine outside the house and sometimes if we're lucky, it will snow for Christmas. But this year, I am missing my husband on these special days.

Tony, you will be missed. These are photos of Tony and me a few years ago. Thank you for the lovely memories and for the laughs we had. May your memory be eternal.

Literary Festival Nov. 29, 2014

The Hellenic Writers' Group of Washington D.C., in association with Sam Chekwas, Seaburn Books, and The Hellenic Society Prometheas, will hold a Literary Festival, November 29, 2014 at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Bethesda, MD at 7pm.

Here is the link to the event:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/hellenic-literary-festival-tickets-13745207285

Vacation

This summer was an unusually interesting and exciting summer. We visited Europe, particularly Greece, Rome, and Paris. Each country had its own unique style. In Greece, wherever we turned, there were mountains in the distance and the sea nearby to soothe our sun-soaked bodies. We visited with family in Crete and Lipsi Islands, and also Kos Island. The focus was primarily on a spiritual level, where we not only rebonded with our families, but with our souls. We found ourselves in Patmos Island, in the Apocalypse Cave where St. John wrote the Book of Revelations. We sat there in awe, looking at the indentations in the stone, where St. John, well into his nineties, did his "metanioes" or prostrations. His head would rub against the stone, forming an indentation and there was another indentation, where his hand had shaped throughout the years, and he'd use it to lift himself up. We visited Aegina Island, and the church where the remains of St. Nektarios lay, and were encased in embossed silver. We visited Lipsi Island, and on Aug. 15, witnessed the wilted flowers "krini" encased inside the glass of the Virgin Mary of Charon icon, blossom with beautiful white petals.

Afterwards, we flew to Rome and Paris, and saw a different side of life, with a variety of elements coming at us, all at once. In Rome, we visited the Vatican, and walked inside the Basilica and admired the paintings and sculptures there. In Paris, there were churches, but not so obvious. 

I plan to write more later, and I'm glad to be back in the USA.

By the way, before my trip to Greece, particularly Lipsi Island, I wrote an essay about my previous trips there and how I looked forward to this upcoming trip. 
Here is the piece on the following site:

http://hellenicwritersgroupwashingtondc.blogspot.com/

The Beauty of Feeling Greek by Sam Chekwas

 The Beauty of Feeling Greek by Sam Chekwas


     On March 9th, the Hellenic Center in Bethesda, Maryland was filled to capacity with members attending the talk given by Dr. Sam Chekwas on his latest Greek book titled The Beauty of Feeling Greek. The Nigerian born author spoke fluent Greek and said he was proud to be an adopted Greek. He shared his life story, where in his youth he was exposed to Sophocle’s Antigone, which influenced him tremendously in embracing not only the Greek culture, but the Greek language, and thus began his “Greek Odyssey.” His journey took him to Greece, where he studied Greek philology at the Aristotle University in Thessaloniki and also obtained a DDS degree. Currently, he is a dentist, author, publisher, and teacher of the Greek language. He has published over 800 volumes through his publishing company, Seaburn Books, and has received the Ambassador of Hellenism Award by the Greek government.

     In his talk, Dr. Chekwas expressed a valid concern about the maintenance of thefour thousand-year old Greek language, which is slowly fading away. He strongly believes that it should be kept intact and not simplified, and that the modern Greek language is connected to the archaic Greek.  He insisted that Greek should be taught to the children at home, with persistence. “If we don’t maintain our Greek, who will pass it on?” he stated. He believes that there is an inherent wisdom to the Greek language that was given to the Greeks by God. His speech challenged every person in the room, to keep the Greek language and Greek culture alive. Dr. Chekwas currently teaches Greek to children in New York, and his dream is to have a Hellenic Center equipped with a library in every American city. 

For the actual presentation, visit this youtube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i2AIb2c-E0

His book The Beauty of Feeling Greek  is available on Amazon.com.

http://www.amazon.com/Beauty-Feeling-Greek-Language-Edition/dp/1592329004/

Chinese Medicine for Healthy Skin - Book Review

I recently read the e-book Chinese Medicine for Healthy Skin by Michelle O'Shaughnessy and was very glad I did!

Shaughnessy's expertise in the field is evident. Her e-book is chock full of information on how to maintain a healthy skin and body, using Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).

I wrote a book review, which was posted on http://www.amazon.com/Chinese-Medicine-Healthy-Skin-ebook/dp/B00CTRMASC/ and is included below in its entirety:

Always on the lookout for ways to lead a healthy life, I was pleased when I read this book. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) was the focus, with an emphasis on keeping your skin and body healthy. For a beginner like me, who never studied TCM or even knew where to begin, this is a great read! I learned that the Chinese integrate both Western medicine as well as TCM in their hospitals. This is definitely something lacking in our hospitals in the United States, and something I would like to see happen. As the author eloquently states "It will be an exciting day when every hospital and clinic in the world incorporates the best of the West with the best of East to bring about optimal health for all people."

The author begins with the history of Chinese medicine, which I found absorbing. As I read on, I explored a whole different world of medicine that included the yin and yang, the meridians, the five elements, acupuncture, and much more. The photos in the book were quite valuable and helped me picture the different regions of the body that the author was pertaining to. In particular, the different pictures of the tongue, and their appearance, revealed another whole world of diagnosis. Also, the soup recipes appeared inviting and I can't wait to try them out on my family.

Although the author mentions a few books as references, I would have liked to have seen medical references, as well as case studies of patients having good results with TCM.

Overall, I feel this book is a valuable guidebook for anyone interested in learning more about TCM and how to incorporate it into their lifestyle. This is one book that I will refer to often.

My Greek Drama: Life, Love, and One Woman's Olympic Effort to Bring Glory to Her Country

BOOK REVIEW

This true story of Gianna Angelopoulos describes her incredible life, from a young Greek girl in Crete, to a lawyer and a politician.  Her determination to succeed at whatever she chose to accomplish is commendable. We read about her family, and how as a simple, young girl living on the island of Crete, she collected stones and caught crabs in the streams, and stomped on grapes in the vat with her sister, while dreaming of becoming an Ambassador one day. She did fulfill her dream, and much, much more.

Intent on broadening her horizons, Angelopoulos attended law school in Thessaloniki, and later became a sophisticated lawyer in Athens. Her persistence and hard work ultimately earned her a position as a member of the Greek Parliament. That position propelled her forward in the public eye, and gave her an opportunity to meet Theodore Angelopoulos, a very wealthy man whose magnate family was well known throughout the world.

They fell in love and married; and what a wonderful romantic tale. This union was to seal the fate of the future summer Greek Olympics. Mrs. Angelopoulos left the Greek Parliament and focused on her family in Lausanne, Switzerland. However, in 1997, an important matter was brought before her. She was asked by the Prime Minister of Greece to lead the bidding committee for the 2004 Olympics. With her husband’s financial backing and support, Mrs. Angelopoulos forged ahead, becoming a leader of the bidding committee for the 2004 Olympics in 1997. With Rome as a hot contender, Greece had to work exceedingly hard to convince the Olympics Committee of their commitment and ability to host the summer Olympic Games in Athens in 2004. Athens won the bid, and the victory was priceless. However, when all was said and done, Mrs. Angelopoulos and her husband had spent millions to see this happen, without any financial support from the Greek government. Mrs. Angelopoulos endured insult after insult by the Greek government, and exhausted from all her work, left Greece to be with her family in England.

Three years later, this same woman was asked by the Greek Prime Minister to lead the organizational committee for the Olympics. Very little, if anything, had been done up until then to prepare Greece for the Olympics, and the IOC was threatening to give the Olympics to another country. Mrs. Angelopoulos rose to the challenge. With only four years, the amazing achievements accomplished by this woman were surely phenomenal. Of course, she gives credit to all the people who helped make the Olympics in Athens a memorable event, particularly her loving husband. The Greeks also rose to the occasion, and over 160,000 people volunteered for the Olympics, and 45,000 were chosen.

This is a story of a love-hate relationship with Greece, one that had Mrs. Angelopoulos achieving spectacular results for her country, and then leaving to nurse her family as well as her wounds, then returning to Greece to help with the Olympics.  We learn about the extraordinary life of this woman who had to fight for everything she wanted, and who succeeded.

I highly recommend this book not only as a documentary of a unique woman’s life, but a story that depicts hope and promise for all the women who struggle to achieve their dreams. Mrs. Angelopoulos has written the blueprint for success in her book, and this will be treasured for years to come.  In addition, the historical documentation, the delightful and entertaining moments that the author shares with the readers, and the many photographs that tell a story of their own, are all priceless. This story lifts the spirit to even higher heights and gives one hope that there are people like Mrs. Angelopoulos in this world of ours, making it a better place to live in.

Her book is available as hardcover or kindle:
Click here to see her book on Amazon:

Book Review: Cicada's Choice by Nitsa Olivadoti

A recent book review I did on a Greek author, Nitsa Olivdati, on her new book Cicada's Choice is now available on Amazon.com. Here is the book review:

"In reading Cicada's Choice I was immediately immersed in a different world, one filled with hope, fears, dreams, and a will for life. The setting is post-war Greece, and the clarity of thought, richness of culture, religious piety, and purity of actions of this Greek family is well documented here.

This story is about the author's grandmother, Eleni, whose nickname Tzitzika translates in English to cicada. She was affectionately called that name by family and friends in Greece because she buzzed around and was always singing, full of positive energy. My attention was captured from the beginning, as beautiful, sixteen-year-old Eleni embarks on her journey to America in 1950 to join her husband. Eleni is very attached to her mother and their separation is particularly touching. The author's expressive words, poetic and poignant at the same time, capture this moment very well.

Flashbacks from Eleni's past reveal how she came to leave for America. We read about young Eleni's experience during World War II in Greece, and its terrible effect on everyone around her. As Eleni grows up, we learn about Yianni, her childhood friend who is in love with her. The arrival of a mysterious handsome foreigner, George, captures Eleni's interest. George has already chosen someone to marry, but when he sees beautiful Eleni, he decides that he wants to marry her instead.

This book speaks across all cultures with the reality that difficult decisions need to be made in the most difficult of times. It was very difficult to put the book down and I enjoyed it immensely. I recommend it as reading for those interested in Greece, its culture, and its people as well as those interested in history, war, family, love, and sacrifice.

"Cicada's Choice" is the first novel in a series that the talented author, Nitsa Olivadoti, has written. I am looking forward to reading the second novel "Cicada's Consequence," which is scheduled to come out in the summer of 2013."

Here is the link to the book on Amazon.com (e-book):
http://www.amazon.com/Cicadas-Choice-ebook/dp/B00AH2LT8S/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top