Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Pax

I don't know if I've mentioned it here before, but I am a regular contributor to the parish magazine, Pax. I think that visitors to this blog can access that magazine by clicking on the link to St. James, and then finding the link to the magazine from there. I have articles in all the copies except one. The deadline for that issue occurred while I was traveling in Israel and the UK, and although I had been asked to write an article I knew I couldn't do it under those circumstances. So, I guess I missed the Easter 2010 issue. Because I'm a volunteer contributor, that is, writers for Pax don't get paid, I've never counted it as "real" writing. But I suppose I should count it. Before Pax came along, I was a regular contributor to its predecessor, Cornerstone. That one was a prize-winning publication. I don't know what prizes it won, I only know that the magazine had won something at sometime. It's an honour to write for these publications. By the way, back issues of Cornerstone are also available by clicking on the St. James link, I believe.

Vacation Bible School preparation

Preparations are moving along nicely, I think. The crafts and games are being planned. Promotion is, I guess, coming along--although I'm not involved in it, so I can only hope that the ones working on it are working on it. As for my play, "The Wolf and the Saint", it's moving along at a Franciscan pace. That means, slowly but surely. It will be ready for the Vacation Bible School, August 23rd to 27th, God willing and if the creek don't rise, as they say.

Sunday, June 27, 2010

friend's book launch

Yesterday evening I attended a book launch at the Vancouver Public Library, in the children's section. My long-time friend, Gail Edwards has written, along with Judith Saltman, an important book about Canadian children's books. It's called Picturing Canada. It's such a pleasure to see a friend achieve this success. Gail is the head of the history department at Douglas College, and also teaches at the Library School at UBC. She has a PhD in Library Science. The book will be an important reference text for anyone interested in the history of children's illustrated literature in Canada. Of course, I bought a copy. I'll see if I can find a link to put here to help you find more information about it.

Saturday, June 26, 2010

blog comments

Way back in April, when I had just arrived home from my travels, someone left a comment on one of my blog postings and said he'd left an email address for me to respond to him. Unfortunately, I didn't even see his comment until yesterday! And worse than that, I could not find the email address he said was there. So, I don't know if there's a hidden spot in this site where I could find such information. It's too bad, because I wouldn't mind exchanging ideas with people who read my blog. This person, in particular, wanted to discuss travels in Israel and Palestine. Hmm. Too bad.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

publishers

Last January, just before we left on our trip to Israel & the UK, I sent my Angels in the Flames manuscript, with a cover letter, to James Lorimer Publishing. The children's editor is Carrie Gleason. On June 1st, I sent an e-mail to Ms Gleason reminding her of my submission. It' s almost six months now from my initial submission to this company. I would love to have my book published by this company, so I sincerely hope to receive a positive response from Ms Gleason soon.

summer

Summer arrived yesterday, I guess. Weather notwithstanding. When the sun is out, it's okay. In the shade, we're back to spring. Or winter.
Today I should have been at kindergarten, but I didn't want to pass along the cold I'm battling. I'll go to the farm tomorrow, though. It's outdoors, and the kids aren't likely to be in close contact with anything I touch. Today was the last day for kindergarten, though. Next week, they'll have only half a day in class on the Tuesday, but I have the okay from the teacher to drop in for a moment to say good-bye to the kids. Tomorrow is the last day for the farm, too. Sunday School is done for the year. As for tutoring, I have only one student now--prepaid for the next several classes.
I'd say things were slowing down, except for the fact that August is almost filled up chock-a-block. July, so far, is not quite so full. I don't doubt that it will fill up in no time.
Of course, I still have to finish writing that play!

Sunday, June 6, 2010

day 2 in the Holy Land again




The photo in the previous post is actually from the other side of the building, the Muslim side. In the back, you can see the little grill that is the window on the Jewish side. The Muslim side is a beautiful, big mosque. Beside Abraham's tomb stands a matching tomb, that of Sarah. In the centre of the mosque, there is the tomb of Isaac and on another side stands Jacob's tomb. These three cause a concern, no doubt. Muslims claim descent from Abraham and HAGAR (not Sarah) and her son ISHMAEL, (not Isaac) and of course the other name for Jacob is no other than ISRAEL, the father of the Jews. Surely, the Jews are not happy that these three tombs are not only in Muslim-only territory but are not even visible from the Jewish side of the building.

day 2 in the Holy Land


Our second day in the Holy Land was a day of traveling. We went (by taxi) south from Jerusalem to Hebron and then to Bethlehem: our first foray into Palestine. We had been warned that it could be dangerous. We didn't see any danger, but we did see lots of soldiers with guns. It was a bit tense at the border stops. Our Arab driver became very submissive in attitude when speaking to the authorities at the check point. Our passports were examined closely and returned to us without comment. Our driver was allowed to pass. By the side of the road, we noticed an Arab woman who had been refused entry. She had to stand and wait for someone to give her a ride. We drove into Hebron, but finding a parking space was not easy. The driver dropped us at the steps leading up to the building that housed Abraham's tomb. A soldier stopped my husband and me, and asked, "Are you Christians?" We answered, "Yes." He said, "Good." And let us pass. At the top of the stairs we entered an area that seemed to me to be a Yeshiva (a Jewish university, maybe) or perhaps just a library. On the right, there was a small grilled window with through which we could glimpse Abraham's tomb.

day 2 in the Holy Land

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Vacation Bible School

Last year, we used a commercially developed programme with the theme of St. Paul in Ancient Rome. This year, most of the people who volunteered last time will not be available. This means that, while we had hoped to repeat the programme this year, we would have to replace almost everyone and all the roles would have to be learned all over again. Also, last year we used almost the entire building at St. James church, and one of the key locations is currently under renovation. So. I've prepared a programme myself, based on--you guessed it--St. Francis of Assisi. Using the play I was writing for Script Frenzy, I'm adapting it for use with children doing a puppet show. It still has lots of work needed, but I know what I want it to look like when it's finished, and I think the research is all done. (Research has a way of demanding attention at the most inconvenient times, so I'm not discounting it just yet.) Some folks have come forward to help with the VBS, so I have high hopes. Well, maybe just hopes. A lot will depend on how many children show up and what their ages and interests are. It's all a work in progress until it's over. That will be at the end of the one week programme: Monday, August 23rd to Friday, August 27th, mornings.

computer woes over

My hubby is a genius! He got a new router and hooked it up and it's working like a charm. So no more grumbling and no more excuses!