http://sheiljohnson.gather.com Recent Articles on Gather by Sheila J. en-us Copyright Gather Inc 2009 Fri, 08 Jan 2010 03:46:35 GMT 2010-01-08T03:46:35Z en-us Copyright Gather Inc 2009 http://www.gather.com/images/header/logo_gather.gif http://www.gather.com/ http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977628280 Think about all the things that make you feel great! Copy and paste this post (including these instructions) and fill out the answers to share these "feel good" things about you. If you . . . Tue, 17 Mar 2009 17:04:15 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977628280 Sheila J. 2009-03-17T17:04:15Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977621751 Okay, I had to do this because I can't take the risk of not meeting the love of my life sometime next month! LOL ;) ------------AUGUST BABY --------------- Outgoing personality. Takes risks. . . . Thu, 12 Mar 2009 13:00:13 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977621751 Sheila J. 2009-03-12T13:00:13Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977598955   Even before I answered the phone, I knew it was him. That feeling of duty coursed through my veins as I picked up the receiver and said, as cheerily as I could muster, “Hello Gramps! What’s . . . Wed, 18 Feb 2009 19:52:49 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977598955 Sheila J. 2009-02-18T19:52:49Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977585193 My yearbook staff has chosen the theme of 2009 Ways to Be Heard this year, and they are hard at work brainstorming headline ideas. They've come up with things like "Having Our Say" for the . . . Thu, 05 Feb 2009 13:13:55 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977585193 Sheila J. 2009-02-05T13:13:55Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977584426 For the Shedding Light group we have been asked to name our bathroom scales, part of the process of meeting the issue of weight head-on.  I have chosen to call mine She Who Shall Not Be Named. . . . Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:19:05 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977584426 Sheila J. 2009-02-04T17:19:05Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977584396 In the Shedding Light group we've been asked to shed ten negative ideas or self-images we hold. I don't know why, but this has taken me forever to commit to writing. I have done several drafts . . . Wed, 04 Feb 2009 16:59:59 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977584396 Sheila J. 2009-02-04T16:59:59Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977579856 It seems a simple enough request--depict how you perceive yourself. Yet posting this has taken me several hours of contemplation. I can't draw, so that wasn't an option. I love collage work, but . . . Mon, 02 Feb 2009 14:32:43 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977579856 Sheila J. 2009-02-02T14:32:43Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977578856 Strident voices Screeching through the night, Followed by slamming doors, Breaking glass And smashing noises. The sounds of our discord Wakened the children, The neighbors and our . . . Thu, 29 Jan 2009 21:35:44 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977578856 Sheila J. 2009-01-29T21:35:44Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977574702 A snippet, in an effort to hold on a little while trying to be a good mom and let go.   A hearty first child, dependent for every need, Today has walke out the door Exuberant . . . Mon, 26 Jan 2009 00:43:48 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977574702 Sheila J. 2009-01-26T00:43:48Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977571211 I recently joined the shedding light group, and we have been asked to introduce ourselves and explain why we want to lose ten pounds by spring. I have lost 25 pounds in the last few months, after years . . . Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:03:04 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977571211 Sheila J. 2009-01-22T14:03:04Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977565259 Today was the end of our high school exam week. I watched my poor freshmen English students toil over the first set of exams of their high school careers, worrying, studying, writing, and breathing a . . . Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:00:47 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977565259 Sheila J. 2009-01-16T20:00:47Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977563964 1. Do you like blue cheese Dressing? Sometimes 2. Have you ever done something you regretted?  Often 3. Do you own a gun? Squirt guns, burp guns, B-B guns, paintball guns. 4. What flavor . . . Thu, 15 Jan 2009 15:29:27 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977563964 Sheila J. 2009-01-15T15:29:27Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977560277 Blonde head sagging sleepily on my shoulder, Blue eyes drooping, "I love you mommy," whispered, as he temporarily gives up the fight for independence, the march towards being . . . Sun, 11 Jan 2009 21:20:36 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977560277 Sheila J. 2009-01-11T21:20:36Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977559270 Frozen fingers have etched lace upon glass surfaces. A confectioner's fresh dust powders the landscape, And a blue steam rises into the lightening sky While the sun struggles to awaken. . . . Sat, 10 Jan 2009 18:49:23 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977559270 Sheila J. 2009-01-10T18:49:23Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977559230   Love never even enters in when the harsh words begin to fly. It's all "You said/I said" and we've both violated the rules. My intentions are never to harm but . . . Sat, 10 Jan 2009 17:54:54 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977559230 Sheila J. 2009-01-10T17:54:54Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977554810   The person I most admire? That’s easy, although it definitely would not always have been my answer. My brother Jeffery was four years younger than me. When he was a baby, I couldn’t wait to . . . Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:40:45 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977554810 Sheila J. 2009-01-06T14:40:45Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977553389   He sits at their dinner table, Face toward the warmth from the window. The eyes have betrayed him now, The birds feeding are mere shadows, His only companions some days. The chill . . . Mon, 05 Jan 2009 01:53:21 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977553389 Sheila J. 2009-01-05T01:53:21Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977552999   They write because they have to. I force them, pulling words from their minds Like an obstetrician using tongs on a breech birth. I beg, I plead, I yearn, I cry, I scream, I bribe, . . . Sun, 04 Jan 2009 18:52:35 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977552999 Sheila J. 2009-01-04T18:52:35Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977552914 This poem is an attempt to capture the feelings of being trapped in depression that so many people experience. Once in its depths, it can be very difficult to find the way back out. Thankfully, in recent . . . Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:02:25 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977552914 Sheila J. 2009-01-04T17:02:25Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977552132 "My calamitous streak had been going on for so long I thought it would never end, and somewhere along the way I'd started taking every bump and bruise in life personally." --Betsy Carter, . . . Sat, 03 Jan 2009 18:01:41 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977552132 Sheila J. 2009-01-03T18:01:41Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551677 Below is my first attempt at a snippet, based on my experiences of driving on winter roads as night falls. "As gray creeps in my field of vision narrows to the amber tunnel of light . . . Sat, 03 Jan 2009 02:54:00 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551677 Sheila J. 2009-01-03T02:54:00Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551293 Today I sat in my gynecologist's office, Decidedly sterile, Surrounded by young pregnant couples. Almost forty years old, I'm wearing your high school ring, A symbol of what should . . . Fri, 02 Jan 2009 19:22:03 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551293 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T19:22:03Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551288 The world sends us a message that love is for the young, But we are no longer the young lovers We once might have been. Life has taught us her most painful lessons, Preparing us for this ultimate . . . Fri, 02 Jan 2009 19:14:13 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551288 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T19:14:13Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551262 Four AM In the coldest depths Of February Alarm clock rings, But I'm already awake, Aware of the tasks Of the day ahead. Building my courage, I roll quickly To my side of . . . Fri, 02 Jan 2009 18:41:22 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551262 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T18:41:22Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551185 Surrender is a word that, for me, had always held negative connotations. To surrender meant to give up, to quit trying, and those were things that were not in my nature. So when, a few weeks before . . . Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:55:25 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551185 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T16:55:25Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551069 I've only been on a short while this morning, but I'm sensing a lot of frustration from fellow Gatherers. So, to borrow a phrase from C & C Music Factory, I thought we could all the share . . . Fri, 02 Jan 2009 14:07:23 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977551069 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T14:07:23Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550903 "You do not become good by trying to be good, but by finding the goodness that is already within you, and allowing that goodness to emerge." --Eckhart Tolle Fri, 02 Jan 2009 05:49:26 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550903 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T05:49:26Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550702 "Any decision is better than no decision!" Grandma's voice was always gentle, yet strong, Offering more an opinion than a dictate. Choose, choose wisely, choose quickly, but choose. . . . Fri, 02 Jan 2009 01:23:08 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550702 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T01:23:08Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550689 I bought a pregnancy test today, Not for myself, But for someone like I used to be. Someone so young as to be unsure of her place, Not yet able to see her own value, Or hold the weight . . . Fri, 02 Jan 2009 01:16:35 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550689 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T01:16:35Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550679 Your nonsequitur Contumely arranged for thrust Midden in our midst. Fri, 02 Jan 2009 01:07:25 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977550679 Sheila J. 2009-01-02T01:07:25Z