TAKE JOY, A Writer's Guide to Loving the Craft, by Jane Yolen. At the end of each week as I ponder over which direction to take my writing career, I must not linger long or doubt may enter.

This morning, I looked down at a book I discovered under piles of notes. It is a little book I had finished reading a couple of weeks ago, titled, "TWO OLD WOMEN." An Alaska Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival, by Velma Wallis.

Betrayed by the people they thought would never forsake them. But, they did, leaving the two to a lonely life without hope. The two women decided they would not fade away, they were too proud. Each one thought of the skills they had not used for many years, and knew if they wanted to survive they must depend on their own skills.

Each one of us must do what speaks to us, not what other people think we must do, for they can kill the creative spirit.

An optimist may see a light where there is none, but why must the pessimist always run to blow it out? - Michel de Saint-Pierre