Shawn L. Bird

Original poetry, commentary, and fiction. All copyrights reserved.

poem-ten October 12, 2019

Filed under: Poetry,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 1:46 pm
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ten years ago

dream in pocket

breathless

learning to pitch a book

awed by everyone

talent

knowledge.

Wishing.

Today, I pull a bin

to my own author table.

I am awed at everything.

It’s just ten years.

Same space I pitched!

Now,

ten books to spread

for this event.

My words searching for homes.

A blink of time

those dreams

are truth.

.

.

I just realized that this month is the 10th anniversary of my first writing conference.  I bravely registered for one day of the Surrey International Writers’ Conference, took my husband and our exchange student to Vancouver. While they spent a day exploring, I pitched my first book to the publisher who would eventually offer me a contract for it and had my first blue pencil with a professional author (Meg Tilley).  Ten years later, I’ve been invited to sell at a Guest Author table, in the very same room I pitched in, and I will have ten books on my table to sell and sign.  How astonishing.  How quickly a decade passes! How amazing to see what happens when you take the risk!

 

poem- grateful December 12, 2017

Filed under: Friendship,Poetry,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 7:12 pm
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You can

so

you do.

Time.

Faith.

Encouragement.

You give yourself

in generous helpings,

spinning your blessings

into our blessings

into your blessings

into our blessings.

Oh, I am grateful

for such a

giving

heart!

I’m deliriously thankful

to be

amid

this dancing, scribing circle

of joy.

.

.

Another one for Diana, whose generousity of time and spirit are an inspiration.

Early in my publishing life, editor Sylvia Taylor spoke at a workshop about the importance of community: how as writers we reach up for guidance and assistance  and we reach down to share benefit of our experience.  I have seen many examples of this in the last decade, to my privilege and joy.  Just this week, on one hand I purchased the book from a writer I’d encouraged at a conference, when this book was a dream, and on the other hand, I received an endorsement for my new book from a best-selling author. It’s a giant circle of support.  We’re each other’s readers, promoters, flag wavers, editors, and shoulders to cry on.  If you’re a writer, don’t sit alone, join a circle! You belong where people *really* understand about the voices in your head! 🙂  I highly endorse writing conferences as being the places to meet.

 

 

 

 

poem-unbelievable January 6, 2016

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:58 am
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How amazing it is

that you are in my world.

You are the definition of

incredible and I

am blessed to know you.

 

poem-used October 17, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:48 pm
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I used to

close my eyes

and wish.

Now I

open my eyes

and celebrate.

 

invocation- for an auction November 16, 2013

Filed under: Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:54 pm
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Duplicate post (also on rotaryinvocations.wordpress.com)  Tonight my little Rotary Club held our annual auction.  With the support of very generous guests, we raised over $37,000 for our projects.  We are a small but very active club.  Two of our members regularly travel to Africa to a school where we sponsor 200 school lunches, some members sponsor tuition, and we help them with other projects, like a computer lab, and a water tower.  One of our members takes a dental team to the mountains of Ecuador.  We donate funds to vaccinate 20 children against polio every week.  Closer to home we have many community projects.  Here is the non-sectarian invocation that I presented tonight:

Margaret Mead said,

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

Let us be thankful for the small group of committed people who, with your help tonight, are changing the world

one lunch,

One polio vaccination

One dental filling

One community project at a time.

Let us be thankful for the opportunity to gather together for a good meal with good friends.

Let us be thankful.

 

Thanksgiving invocation October 7, 2012

Filed under: Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:48 am
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May we each be thankful for the friends that surround us, the trials that strengthen us, the work of our hands, and the joy in our lives.

(c) Shawn L Bird.  Free use within Rotary, but please give credit, and identify in the comments below, the name of your club and the date  you used it.

 

Invocation for dads June 16, 2012

Filed under: Poetry,Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:29 pm
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Our fathers are our first role models of what it is to be a man.

If we are blessed to have a good one driving our household mini van.

He shows us how a romantic partner should behave;

He demonstrates just how our children should be raised.

He shows us this without a word, by what he does each day,

So we’ll reflect his teaching as we go on about our way.

If we weren’t blessed to have our  father  there to show us what to do,

Let us be thankful there are men, who’ll gather us in, too.

In thanks for each man, standing by his family,

Who cares, provides,  corrects and loves, from those of us who see.

.

© Shawn L. Bird 2012  Free use within Rotary, though please indicate when and where you have used the invocation by leaving a comment below.  Thanks!

 

thankful October 10, 2011

Filed under: Commentary — Shawn L. Bird @ 7:24 pm
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What a year I’ve had.

On this Thanksgiving Day, I’m thankful for the people this year who have offered challenges and those who helped me overcome them.

  • I’m thankful that Grace is out meeting people and making her own friends.
  • I’m thankful for my students, old and new
  • I’m thankful for my most amazing husband, the most gracious, patient, and long-suffering man! He’s a knight in shining armour.
  • I’m thankful for my parents. So many of my friends have lost one or both of their parents, I am reminded of the blessing to have them still well and healthy, just around the block.
  • I’m thankful for my children, and the skills they are learning as they grow and find their places
  • I’m thankful for the unconditional love of the canine children, whose happy tails make me smile
  • I’m thankful for my friends in Rotary, who are changing the world.
  • I’m thankful for my brother and sister-in-law who made an awesome turkey dinner this year!
 

 
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