The First Chapter (draft)

This is a rough draft of the first chapter. The first page or so, that is. Putting all these things down on paper is definately a little challenging. I am trying to make sure to not name names, and put nothing nasty into this book. I can explain all of my life without doing that, it just takes a little more time and challenge to put it delicately!  I hope this gives you a little peek...





GROWING UP

I was one of the lucky ones growing up at the time I did. I was born in 1956 to parents who met in their senior year in high school. Both of my parents were born back East and moved to Anaheim, California, and graduated in 1955. They married in October of 1955.

 

I am the oldest of 6 children born to my mom and dad. My mom lost the sixth child, which was a son, shortly after birth. I grew up with 3 younger sisters, and one younger brother.

 

We grew up in a time when you could ride your bike outside until after dark. We used to ride our bikes for miles down to the local A & W, then call mom and dad to tell them we could not possibly ride all the way back up the hill to home! They would always come and pick us up. I am sure they were not always pleased with us but, nevertheless, they picked us up. We rode skate boards, and mini bikes, horses, and everything in between. We grew up in a rural area. At least it was rural back in the day when I grew up there. We could walk all over the place, swing on swings hung on huge eucalyptus trees, overlooking huge gullies. We played outside every day, all day, usually until dinner. All the neighborhood kids either played with each other or fought with each other. Definitely not in the way that kids fight and bully each other today.

 

The beach was only 30 minutes away, where we could swim and body surf any day in the summer when we could get a ride down to the coast. We would BBQ on the beach and spend hours with family and friends. Everything was really ‘family oriented’ back then, something I miss today. I see my children and grandchildren quite a bit, but the rest of my family is about 500 miles away. It makes it difficult to get together as often as we would like.

 

My father would take us on summer vacations almost every year. We would explore different parts of California and the Southwest. We saw American Indian Ruins that people can no longer even get close to, much less walk around in them. I saw Mesa Verde when you could climb up the ladders to see the homes that were built there. I didn’t know then how much of an impact it would make on my life. We were able to go to Indian Reservations in the 60s and 70s in Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico. We would buy the coolest beads. I think I was about 11 years old when I first started stringing my own beads, and I still do to this day. Eventually I would go to college and study Sociology and Anthropology. It definitely made an impact on me, in a really good way. I thank my dad for those vacations, they were really special. Not always perfect, but how can you have perfect when you are traveling with 5 kids. I am surprised my parents kept on doing it almost every year while I was growing up. In between vacations, we also had a trailer in Bullhead City, Arizona. This is where we kept the boat and would travel to water ski quite a bit. It was really fun. I remember times when I was getting older and did not want to go, but would always have fun once we got to the river. My grandparent’s on my dad’s side retired there, so we would continue to visit for many years. My children were able to visit there also before my grandparents passed away.

 

It was great fun as a child in Bullhead City. At that time there was only three casinos in Laughlin, which was across the Colorado River. We would take the Ferry Boat over to the casinos and eat. My children were able to experience this also before the Ferry stopped. Now there are at least a dozen casinos on that side of the river. We would pack a lunch, and go to Lake Catherine which was about a half hour away. We would start our vacations at the river, and travel throughout the southwest. We saw Monument Valley, the Painted Desert, Lake Powell, Zion, and Bryce Canyon, the Grand Canyon, and many other places. It was a great time to grow up.

 Have Courage and Be Brave

 

INTRODUCTION

 

I decided to write a book about myself and how I survived through 56 years of not always making the right decisions. In doing so, I have learned that I was an instinctive survivor, and that most women are. We forget that, because we have so many roles to play in today’s world. We are providers, mothers, housekeepers, daughters, and have so many issues to deal with on a daily basis. We see everyday in the news how we are supposed to look a certain way, and act a certain way. It is overwhelming to try and figure out who we are supposed to be for ourselves. I learned the hard way, all the way. Hopefully this will help someone avoid some of the more serious mistakes that I have learned. Especially when it comes to men and other relationships.

 

For many years, it was easier for me to just suppress and bury all of the things in my life that I was displeased or unhappy with. That worked for a really long time and then my brain had too much information to function like I wanted to. When you have luggage in your head that you have not dealt with, it plays out in interesting and sometimes terrible ways. In the long run, we are the losers when we keep it inside for too long.

 

            I have had many ups and downs in my life, things that even I thought I would not be able to get through or out of. It has taken me awhile to realize that all the things I did not deal with inside need to be dealt with. Running and hiding from it does not help, it gets worse because your fears start playing out in your real life.

 

My parents raised me with love, religion, good scruples, and a lot of strength to get through life. I was one of the lucky ones to have enjoyed a very normal and fun childhood. I was the oldest of six children. My parents are still together after 57 years of marriage. The reason that I ended up in bad situations or with the wrong people, was mostly because I would go against my gut instincts.

                                                      

            I hope that this book helps at least one young girl to realize that she can get through life by believing in herself always, through thick and thin. I think women second guess their decisions way too much.  Knowing this and using our instincts are the first steps in the right direction of self-survival and self-preservation. These are two very important traits that women need in today's world.

New Title

The Publisher asked me to change the format of this book, so this is what I have come up with:


The new title to this book will be:

    
"Have Courage and Be Brave"
                                       


The chapters will be:

1)    Growing Up
2)    Teenage Pregnancy
3)    Leaving Home
4)    Getting Married
5)    Having Children
6)    Starting Over
7)    Divorce
8)    Losing a Sister
9)    A Convenient Relationship
10)   Finally, Finding Love
11)   Sibling Silliness
12)   Full Circle

Finally A Format

                      So I have been trying and trying to figure out how to do this book. It was not an easy task trying to put 56 years into a few pages. I have decided to start over and do it different, so bear with me. I think this will be much more enjoyable to read, and have a little more insight than just experiences.

                       I have also decided to start a cookbook, Mimi's Meals. The address for this is at http://www.slaemsimim.blogspot.com.  I know it seems stupid, but it is actually 'mimismeals' backwards. The names I wanted were all taken, so I had to be inventive. I am doing this so my girls have menus for meals I know they love. They will be healthy (most of the time) and it will have pictures. Nothing worse than picking up a cookbook without pictures.

Under Construction

I was contacted by a Publisher regarding my blog. He has asked me to try a different format. So I am trying to come up with a different style, same content, I just need a different way to deliver it.

Give me a couple of days, and I will re-post in a different manner.

It is kind of exciting, that maybe there will be girls that will get something from this content. It makes me more motivated to get the right information out.

Thanks for hanging in there with me. Your feedback is important.

A Quick Note

Yesterday I was contacted by a publishing house, they are interested in my manuscript, wow!

Miracles

Miracles begin with a fresh perspective

To witness a miracle is to know yourself: vital, brilliant, and heavenly in body and spirit

A Soul Owner - you own your values, your integrity, your thoughts, your words, your actions, and therefore - your destiny

Where there is hope, there can be faith, where there is faith, miracles can occur

Miracles can be found everywhere, begin by looking within