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

Positive thinking - Life's beautiful Path was chosen as the name of my blog to remind me to always think positive. I am sorry, today, I don't feel positive. But its' okay, for tomorrow I'll feel positive. Life is a roller coaster of ups and downs.

Treasures lost and The Garden Studio Office mess. Gosh, I hate it, that I was unable to attend the Baxter County Library Booksale. I love to go to booksales. For me they are an exciting unknown adventure for discovering important treasures, that propel me into different worlds, or books that allow me to peep into the lives of people who live interesting lives.

On one of my past blogs I show pictures of my Garden Studio and explain why I named it. I am continuously weeding out the old and growing new material. Today, My studio office needs weeding out for I have been so very busy working on projects. To be able to work on the projects I have seeded, I have to clear a new planning area. The studio was named and information about it was created for Darcy Pattison who asked writers to submit to her. She need this information to be able to put a booklet together to show students who ask, where do writers work.

Ozarks Creative Writers http://www.ozarkscreativewriters.org/

Today, I updated my other two blogs: http://submarinestories.blogspot.com/ and http://belarcowritersworkshops.blogspot.com/

White County Creative Writers 13th Annual Writers' Conference, Saturday, August 30, 2008 , 8 am to 4 pm. www.whitecountycreativewriters.org Their list of speakers: Linda Apple, Dr. Fred Pfister, Editor of the Ozarks Mountaineer Magazine, Velda Brotherton and Dr. Terry Engel.

Baxter County Library, Mountain Home, AR is having a three day book sale Thursday 21, 8:30 -6:30, Friday 22 from 8:30-5:30 and Saturday 23 from 8:30-2 pm.

Yesterday, I had a rejection of three poems from a church magazine and today I was published in a military magazine. My credit will be place on my submarine stories blog tomorrow.

Writers workshop article and Poets Association. Click on http://bsbeacon.blogspot.com/ to read an article and enjoy photos from the Bel Arco Writers' Workshop, Saturday 16th.

Baxter County Poets Association meets the fourth Friday each month at 1 p.m., at the Baxter County Library 624 W. Seventh St., Mountain Home. For more information call Debra Hall at 1-870-499-4397.

Writers Write, blogs and useful information. Everytime, I meet a new author or agent my highway to information as a writer leads to new crossroads filled with advancements to new adventures. Writers Write at http://www.writerswrite.com/ is filled with information such as Markets for Children's Writers. It is stated as "Your one-stop resource for information about books, writing and publishing."

To learn more about creating a blog or blogs check out 150 Useful, Educational, and Inspirational Blogs for Aspiring Writers OEDb athttp://oedb.org/library/features/150-useful-educational-and-inspirstional-blogs-for-aspiring-writers

I attended the Ozarks Writers League Saturday, at the College of the Ozarks near Branson where I enjoyed the two speakers Jordan Dane (http://www.jordandane.com/) a novelist with Avon/HarperCollins, and Holly McClure author of adult and teen novels, plus an agent with Sullivan Maxx Literary Agency.

I thought this Missouri non-fiction author's blog and website was of great interest. Check out Linda Fisher at http://www.lsfisher.com/ and her blog http://earlyonset.blogspot.com/.

We at a great time Saturday at Bel Arco Writer's Workshop with author Terry McDermid. She fed us plumb-full of unbelievable helpful information. Pictures and more about the workshop will be up soon on http://belarcowritersworkshops.blogspot.com/ where future speakers will be listed.

The simple life is so comforting. What a relaxing day with cool breezes circulating through the summer porch's open windows. It has been weeks since I had a free day to kick back to enjoy the sounds of a Blue jay sending warning cries that "Whiskers," the neighbor's cat was slowly approaching our property. The wildlife finds the Woodland Garden and our yard a safe haven to eat and live. They have become our watch dog since Baby Girl, our miniature dachshund went on her long journey April 13, 2006.

I was going to work in the Woodland Garden, but it was too wet after several inches of rain. So, I watched the sun play hide and seek causing shadows to dance below the large oaks and hickory trees. The birds came in for suet as a squirrel sharpened its teeth on a near-by plastic bird bath. Oh. for the simple life of taking off my shoes, kicking-back and saying thanks you God for allowing me to live and be so blessed.

This evening the pinkest reds of the sun reflected on the lake as it blended with a few clouds. The sky was filled with activity as the swallows, dragon flies and bats gathered mosquitoes for their dinner. Tomorrow, back to preparing for a full week ahead. Remember to attend the Bel Arco Writers Workshop Friday. Starting with the week of the 18th it is back to writing and submitting.

Smile and peace be with each of you.

Beacon - The Bull Shoals Beacon, an on line news magazine. http://bsbeacon.blogspot.com Please check out this blog magazine, you will not regret it.

Blogs & gardening, what do they have to do with with writing? Also, writers want to know why I named this blog, "Life's Beautiful Path." First of all when I started, I knew little about blogs. I thought the name/title would remind me to write positive on my blog after receiving a rejection or it had been a difficult writing week. To read my article, Blogs are Very Important, click on http://www.missouriwritersguild.org/.

Gardening, what does it have to do with writing? It has to do with writing articles about gardening. I have written and published several articles on the subject, and I love to write poems about gardening. I have kept a garden journal for years on the ups and downs of creating a woodland garden for wildlife and me. I love creating items from the garden and for the garden.

I finally purchased my first bonsai plant. There wasn't a name on the tag, but I believe it is a juniper. The shape reminds me of the famous cypress tree I seen years ago along Pebble Beach's 17-mile drive in California. Last night, I took one of my special bonsai tools, the scissors and trimmed it to appear as if the Pacific Ocean winds had shaped it.

Take your writing wings, fly to new adventures and recall old adventures - Write - write - write! Keep a smile on your face.

August 15, Romance author and freelance writer Terry/Tessa McDermid will be the speaker at the Bel Arco Writers Workshop - click on http://belarcowritersworkshops.blogspot.com

To read about my book go to http://submarinestories.blogspot.com

Mabel DodgeMabel Dodge went out west to New Mexico in 1918 where she met Tiwa (Tewa) Indian Antonio Lujan (Luhan). She was immediately attracted to this giant of a man who cut quite an attractive figure in Taos society. He was over six feet tall and wore his dark hair in two braids. He wrapped his impressive figure in a traditional purple blanket.There was a catch in their liason. Antonio was married to an Indian woman named Candelaria. Mabel didn't let that slow her down one bit, and obviously he didn't either. She hired him to be her chauffeur. He showed her around and eventually sent her to an occultist who told her that Taos was the beating heart of the world. The occultist also convinced her that she had been chosen to be the bridge between Indians and Anglos, and that Taos was to be the center of the rebirth of the West.One can imagine how this must have appealed to this wealthy and extremely intelligent woman. She immediately bought the land Antonio had shown her. The two of them worked together and were known to be intimate for the next several years. What happened to Candelaria is not recorded anywhere that I could find.However, Tony and Mabel were married for 40 years. Together they built a rambling homestead that was 450 feet long. The Inn was built about half way between Taos and Ranchos de Taos. At that time there were no houses or buildings of any kind from the edge of Taos, which was about two miles south of the Plaza. The festive dinner parties in the place she called Sagebrush Inn attracted many well-known people of the day. The pretty gray eyed woman with thick chestnut hair, took up the style of the Pueblo Indians, wearing her hair in heavy bangs. Some guests were Thornton Wilder, Thomas Wolfe, Aldous Huxley, Carl Jung, Edward Hopper and Mary Austin. Her prize catch at these parties was D. H. Lawrence, who she hoped would write the great American novel and cast her as the heroine. She was disappointed.Mabel died of coronary thrombosis at the age of 83 in August of 1962. Tony passed away shortly after. She is buried in the Kit Carson Cemetery in Taos and he is interred in the graveyard at the Taos Pueblo. The full story of her life has never been written. Perhaps someday a writer will take on the task.Photo Courtesy of Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Carl Van Vechten Collection This must be posted with the photograph of Mabel.

Excerpt from book, Fly With The Mourning Dove
Dance At The Sagebrush Inn

That winter was bitterly cold and snow fell day and night until the only way to get around was by sled.
The phone rang one evening and Edna answered.
“Hi, it’s Imogene Patchen. How are you?”
“We’re fine, and you?”
“The same. Listen, we’ve been invited to attend the grand opening of the Sage Brush Inn in Taos. You know the one Tony Lujan and Mabel Dodge built . . . or are still building?”
“Oh, my. That’s exciting. Are you going?”
“Of course, and we want you to go with us.”
Edna caught her breath, unable to answer for a moment.
“You there? Did you hear me?”
“Yes . . . yes. Wow, that would be super. Are you sure it’s all right?”
“Oh, yes, they said we should bring guests. It’s a huge affair, and you’ll want to dress up.”
Mabel Dodge and Antonio Lujan were the best party givers in New Mexico. Writers and artists, famous people like Thornton Wilder, Thomas Wolfe, Aldous Huxley, Carl Jung, Edward Hopper and Mary Austin often dropped by. Once Mabel Dodge had a dinner party for the writer, D.H. Lawrence. It was said she hoped he would write a book about her. So far that hadn’t happened.
Antonio Lujan had been Mabel’s chauffeur, but eventually she had married him, even though he already had an Indian wife by the name of Candelaria. He himself was a Tewa Indian, and Mabel immediately embraced his culture.
Edna hung up the phone and danced around the room. Once she settled down enough to explain, Pop said:
“I guess we’ll have to figure out a way to get you to such a splendid affair. Wouldn’t want you to miss it.”
Outside, the snow had piled up so deep that the Chevrolet couldn’t plow through it.
“What will you wear?” Mom asked.
“The emerald green transparent velvet dress I bought in Albuquerque last summer. It cost me ten dollars. You remember, I showed it to you and you asked where I ever thought I’d wear that. Certainly not to a Saturday night dance in Tres Piedras.”
Mom nodded, a frown creasing her forehead. “Well, I don’t know how you’re going to get there.”
Edna knew Mother would like to be going to the party as well, and felt bad that she wasn’t.
Pop, who’d gone back to reading Zane Grey, glanced up, marking his place with a finger.
“I gave Tom Lowance a milk cow for part of his wages. He’s been wanting to get it home. We can load Edna and that cow onto the sled. The mules can pull it and take them into Tres Piedras. Tom will get his cow and she can go to her party.”
Excitement building, Edna pirouetted. “I’ll call Florida and make sure I can stay there overnight so I can catch the train to the Patchen’s in Taos Junction the next morning. Oh, Pop, thank you. Thank you.”
She threw her arms around her surprised father, then circled around the room once again. Everyone would be dancing. What a wonderful time she would have. And no telling who she might get to meet. Mabel Dodge and Tony Lujan. Wow.
Once safely delivered to Tres Piedras on the sled, along with Tom Luance’s cow, Edna spent the night with Florida and rode the train over to Taos Junction. From there she traveled with the Patchens by car to Taos.
The Sage Brush Inn had been built about halfway between Taos and Ranchos de Taos. There was a huge crowd at the grand opening. People from Santa Fe to Questa came. They bought their supper there and then there was a dance with live music. Oh, it was a great affair, and she could hardly believe she was there.
Dance after dance, she went from one man’s arms into another’s, whirling under the twinkling lights, scarcely pausing between sets.
Tony and Mabel Lujan took the crowd on a tour of all the finished rooms of the rambling abode. Edna was fascinated with Mabel, who as a white woman, had adopted the Pueblo way of dressing. She wore her thick chestnut hair as they did, with bangs covering her forehead to frame wide gray eyes wide. The couple appeared devoted, though it was an odd pairing. Mabel had all the money, but Tony appeared well-to-do and comfortable around her friends.
Edna returned eagerly to the dance floor after the tour, dancing on into the night.
Leaving a partner, she glanced over the crowd and saw the Patchens, motioning to her. They were ready to leave. She took a step and came face to face with Antonio Lujan himself. Over six feet tall. Adorned in colorful Pueblo attire, he wore his ebony hair in two plaits. She felt so tiny standing before him. Shivers ran down her back and she just kept smiling up at him like an idiot. Such a handsome man.
Say something. Anything.
She tried, but she couldn’t.
Then he did. “Might I have this dance?”
He held out a hand, large and broad and brown.
She swallowed, dragged in a deep breath. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she said, unable to recognize her own shaky voice. “But we were just leaving. Thank you. I . . . thank . . .”
With that she whirled away from him and shoved her way through the crowded dancers.
She approached John and Imogene Patchen and knew her face was flushed red. “Oh, dear. Oh, my goodness.”
“What in the world is wrong?” John asked. “Are you all right? Did someone—?”
“No, nothing like that. I can’t believe I did that. I can’t believe he—”
“Child, stop babbling. What is it?”
“Tony Lujan . . . he asked me for a dance.”
“He did. That’s wonderful,” Imogene said. “ . . . isn’t it?”
“Well, yes, of course, but I . . . I can’t believe I told him no.”
“You didn’t. What were you thinking?”
“I guess I wasn’t. He’s so . . . large . . . and imposing . . . and he’s married to Mable Dodge.”
“Yes, so?”
John, who had stood by in gruff silence, said, “Well, come on, let’s go. And Edna, I’m going to make you walk the canon. Tony owes me fifteen dollars and he thought you were one of the Patchens. Now I’ll never get it.”

FLY WITH THE MOURNING DOVE
by Velda Brotherton

Taos County, New Mexico 1920
On this 640 acres of arid desert homestead six-year-old Edna grows
to love life on this remote homestead, but her world will never be the
same after her father's illness separates the family. To read the first
chapter go to http://www.tinyurl.com/63ftxd
Images http://www.tinyurl.com/63qw07
http://www.tinyurl.com/3eu5n5
Buy Bookshttp://www.tinyurl.com5j66c2/
Velda Brotherton, Author
http://www.veldabrotherton.com/
http://vbrotherton.blogspot.com/
http://velda-brotherton.blogspot.com/
Documentary:http://vimeo.com/354804

Writing, blogging and computer problems can be at times frightening. Sometimes, I feel like I am on an island, and I am the only one on it. I do hope, the day I host the blog book tour it will not be overwhelming and cancel out my postings. I am researching and writing information on blogging. Stay cool, relax and enjoy what is important.

V Brotherton is doing a Blog Book Tour. To learn more and to check on her schedule for a week click on http://vbrotherton.blogspot.com/. Her blog title "On Being a Writer" is where you will find information on how to win books, and a silver and turquoise ring from Mexico. I am on her schedule for Monday the 28th where she will be visiting me.

Don't forget to check on http://belarcowritersworkshops.blogspot.com/ for information on the romance novel workshop August 15, 2008.

Happy birthday Margeret - you are a special daughter.

I love to sit on the summer porch between 5&6 a.m. I listen for the sounds that invade the silents of the morning. A hawk slowly approaching our woods causes the birds to become silent, while the little squirrel living in a tree near-by, cries out warnings. I think of the ways of the Indians how they listened, searched for signs, and read time and other warnings in the sky. I always get blown away, when I read how things were before all this modern stuff kept us buried inside a grave of our own making. Enjoy the silents - let peace provide encouragement.

Writers workshop, The Mountaineer Echo & Blog Book Tours: Romancing the Heart - for writers who want to learn the ins' and outs' of writing a romance novel from novelist Terry McDermid on August 15 at Bel Arco Resort on beautiful Bull Shoals Lake, Bull Shoals, Arkansas -http://belarcowritersworkshops.blogspot.com/ or http://www.tessamcdermid.com/. Thanks to Dale & Jane Estes for publishing my press release July 3 & 10.

For a list of writers/blogs involved with the upcoming "Blog Book Tour" go to http://vbrotherton.blogspot.com/ I have been trying to learn how to cut and paste. The instruction are easy to read and understand, but I have a little enemy putting the finishing touch on it... so in the end I hope I win.

Blog Book Tour begins Monday, July 21. I am excited and nervous about this undertaking for my friend, Velda Brotherton, author and freelance writer. She is adventuring into a new opportunity for authors to promote their books. The word has not spread quickly, for this is the first time I have heard of this type of arm chair book tour, known as "Blog Tours" or "Blog Books Tours." You can see it in action next week when I host Velda and her books on my blog for a day. We are both new at this, but she has been studying it for awhile, so she promise to guide me along.

I have known Velda for several years and she is a quiet, sweet person, deeply involved in creating non-fiction and fiction books. She is a reporter, freelance writer and, a historical and fictional short story writer. She is a hard working writer and her published writings speak of this. You can read more of Velda at http://www.veldabrotherton.com, http://vbrotherton.blogspot.com, http://veldabrotherton.blogspot.com, and http://vimeo.com/364804. Her latest books are With the Morning Dove 3/07 and Images in Scarlet 08.

30 tips for a Blog Book Tour at http://www.helenginger.com/blogging_blogspot.com

My favorite blog about dogs is http://missyandcocosblog.blogspot.com, because it is not written for personal gain - it is written from a heart filled with love.

Michael Warriner, Field Ecologist from Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission presented a children's program at the Baxter County Library. I enjoyed it as much as the kids. Yes, kids are buggy about bugs. They know how they tick and are eager to learn more. I love to watch bugs, spiders and all God's critters. One afternoon a big black, hard shelled bug happened to visit me without my knowledge. It was using the soft cushion of my office chair to relax on. You can guess what happen next... it took a bite out of me. We went to battle and I won, then I added it to my collection of insects, feathers, nests, and dried fungi.

Writing is a lonely world where I live, so I guess this is another reason why I love to blog.