marcoujor: Challenging my Muse

The union of nursing with writing

Fiction can trigger feelings we all experience, including loss and grief. A story can assist in our own self-awareness, when considering the hardships others have to endure in times of physical or emotional illness.

As such, fiction can be a healing vehicle for the reader, as well as the writer. When the writer happens to be a healer, there is an overflowing reservoir of experiences and feelings for inspiration and story development.

At least that's how I see it--a union of nursing and creative writing.

Rediscovering a love of writing, after Mom's death in 2010, has led me down the paths of essays, memoirs, interviews, poetry and fiction.

Writing comes easily for me while contemplating and remembering remembering Mom's wisdom.  Listening to country-western music, centering on a country-nature scenes or gazing out my window to see the teeming rain can also serve to get the ink flowing.

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​I love a challenge!

Click image to read the story

​Fellow writer, Bill Holland, issued a writing challenge to develop a short story or poem based on four photographs of his choice and including the word mountain in the title.  

Please check out my story, Lookout Mountain, as you have  a moment. How amazing that I read over twenty other entries by writing colleagues and each was distinctly different in approach and plot.

The winner was Mountain Creek Station, a memorable entry by Mike Friedman. You can read it yourself by clicking the title--the link's embedded for you.

Contemplating the picture of the mountain, I was drawn to memories of Mom, especially her earlier years as she shared with me. As such, there is a 'hint’on of truth woven into my wandering, fictitious thoughts.

Who knows? I may even continue a Nurse Molly series as some of my friends have suggested.

​This was one of my go-to songs when my muse and I collaborated in writing Lookout Mountain, Georgia on my Mind, by Ray Charles.

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​I challenge my nursing students to develop a self care plan, including healthy doses of healing creativity, different for each of us as individuals.

I challenge readers, family and friends to do the same.​

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​"First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to."  Epictetus

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ShoutOuts

☙Teach your children via WarnerWords

​☙If ya build 't, will they come? Via Horse Biscuits

​☙A Short Hop on the Leaping Bunny Connection ♥

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Until next week, wishing you peace, happiness and creative expression.
Hugs,

mar

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