Direction – Looking Back to Move Forward

Tags

2019 lists, adventures, bullet journal, concerts, family, hiking, journaling, my darling love, project, scotland, storytelling, west highland way, writing

In reviewing 2019 and looking forward to 2020 (the year of my 40th birthday!), I’ve considered what direction I want to take my writing. Seasonal fatigue mixed with stress about moving to a new house (if just up the street), has left me with not much energy to devote to writing. Then I got the flu, which I’m still recovering from.

The Confident Woman in My Photos

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10 things to tell you, body image, my darling love, scotland, travel, west highland way

When I look at the pictures from that vacation I don’t see me, not really. Sure, the woman in the photos looks like me and is creating memories I currently possess. But she seems far more joyful and confident than I consider myself to be.

Learning to Redefine Failure on the West Highland Way

Tags

failure, hiking, inspiration, marriage, scotland, west highland way

While walking the West Highland Way, I made a wrong turn and got us lost. Isn’t that just about the worst-case scenario on a hiking trip? Horror movies are made of such.

I’d like to tell you that instead of freaking out, I reviewed the map, appreciated what the wrong turn had given us, and continued on our trek, better for the experience. Instead, I pouted, sulked, cried, and lashed out. After none of those things helped, I stood up, wiped my eyes, and just kept moving.

Musical Vacation Memories

Tags

hiking, music, scotland, songs, travel, west highland way

Anyone who ever sat with a tape deck trying to record a song off the radio understands the power of the perfect song. Jay and I have several “vacation” songs that never fail to make us smile. We crank up the volume and remember the events surrounding us hearing the song, but more importantly the context of the particular vacation where we heard the song.

Vantage Points of the West Highland Way

Tags

bag pipes, hiking, pain, scotland, story, storytelling, west highland way

I’m already starting to forget.

Thanks to Margaret Feinberg’s Wonderstruck: Awaken to the Nearness of God, I learned about the West Highland Way. I revisited the book, and her testimony of experiencing God on the trail, just a few weeks before Jay and I tackled the trail ourselves.

Back – The Scottish Remix

Tags

adventures, free-writing, journaling, local flavor, quotes, scotland, writing

Me: No matter what the Five Minute Friday
prompt is, I’m gonna make it work for writing about my #Scotland trip

Prompt: BACK

Me:

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Preparing for Our Scotland Adventure

Tags

books, cozy mysteries, non-fiction, reading, scotland, travel

Fresh off of Camp McFradd’s hop across the pond – Scotland in general and the West Highland Way specifically – I thought I’d share a bit of the homework that went into our journey.

4 Quick Stories about Visiting Scotland

Tags

books, quotes, scotland, travel

I’m going a bit rogue this month for my Share Four Somethings contribution. While Heather encourages those who join in to share about things from the current month, I’m going to stretch the rules and share about my trip to Scotland instead. We left the United States on July 19th and returned on August 4th, so at least part of the trip happened in August.

The Big Finish and a New Start

Tags

adventures, planning, project, scotland, travel, writing

If you finish a big project and forget to tell the world, did it really happen?