Author Archive: sharpejody76@gmail.com

Tuesdays With The Angels- Kindness Is Not A Weakness

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Now when the world seems tumultuous and hate hurts so many, it’s time to think of those who have passed on, all our loved ones gone to heaven’s realm. Would they tell us how short this time on earth is? I feel strongly they would tell us love is all that matters.

If I had to choose two sentences to say to my husband, children, grandchildren and loved ones, one would be, I love you more than words can say. The other would be this- Kindness is not weakness but a strength.

To be kind now in the face of hateful speech that reverberates around the world, gives me hope. Kindness by itself is power from heaven above and can make hate leave many hearts.  As the beloved character, Madam Norma in my Mystic Bay Series always said,”Kindness is the first ingredient of love. Ask the angels for help. They are always listening.

Tuesdays With The Angels-Bullying Legal Immigrants is the Opposite of Kindness

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In the news, the political bullies are spreading falsehoods about legal immigrants. All of us unless we are of Native American descent come from people who made many sacrifices to get to our democracy in the United States of America.

Bullying everywhere across the world should stop. I remember when my late daughter, Kate, as a six- year- old brought home a friend from school. I spoke to the mother on the phone and Kate never mentioned the girl had a different skin color  or was from a different country. Children are born with  goodness in their hearts. However, many adults in our beautiful world are teaching bullying by their words and actions. How unfortunate to lie to our children about people from other ethnicities or countries.  Does the bully know that Bullying is synonymous with the word hatred? Three truths: Bullying with lies hurts our children’s future. Harmony, Kindness, Forgiveness bring us all a life of love. The Bully Never Wins.

Tuesdays With The Angels-Bullying and Our Children With Special Needs

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Bullying is always a theme in my novels and was  part of my memoir, Special Needs Children The Angels On My Shoulder. Recently, a seventeen- year- old boy, whose father is running for our vice president, was bullied by a person in the media.  For me and many others, this cruel commentary was unacceptable in our supposedly civil society.

For twenty-five rewarding years I spent the school days with children with disabilities and special needs. Many now are considered neurodivergent. As I wrote in my memoir, my encounters with these children filled my soul. They were my own teachers giving unconditional love to all with many having no agenda except to be accepted into family and friendships.

These children and adults with special needs don’t choose their life’s path, this is their life experience and they should be respected. How do we handle such bullying in the media where some have become like the typical school yard bully? We need to  teach our children and all children self respect and respect for others while protecting and caring for them. How sad this media bully must be who didn’t apologize as of this writing.

When the loss of my daughter overshadowed my life, I remember how my classroom of children with special needs cheered me onward with warmth and gratitude. They changed my life,  they were my own teachers. They showed me respect, sympathy as caring attitudes came natural to them. The Bully Never Wins because most of us thankfully don’t have bullying inside our hearts. I pray that this bully and others  someday realize what most of us know, that truly children with special needs are our angels unaware.

Tuesdays With The Angels- Angel Inspirations Children & Animals

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In 1995, this very day, I lost my daughter, Kate. At nineteen she was beautiful, bright, in love with her boyfriend, and glowing going to college. She loved her family, her dogs and cat and her friends. Her promise of a bright future was there for the making but her future was to be with God.

I have learned so many things these years gone by. So many lessons learned that I can’t put them all down on paper.  I do know for sure that love is the answer to everything. My twins, Mike and Elizabeth, who are adults now, have shown me with grace and fortitude their ongoing love for life and others. As teens when Kate died, they had a wisdom way mature for their age. They are kind human beings, my daughter, an incredible  mother and my son a loving uncle.They help others in need and of course love animals as our whole family does.

Years ago my journey through grief was helped by my children’s love. My dear friend Nancy,  took me on a girl’s trip years ago to help my sorrow. There we met a man I’m sure was an angel.  One day he was  at a store in Houston politely talking to us and the next day there he was again in a town we had never been to an hour away in another store. His presence astounded us and he told us he would see us at the airport. Then we turned away for a moment and when we looked back he was gone from the store. We went outside but he was nowhere. I know he was an angel there to comfort, letting me know Kate was safe in God’s hands.

Because of him, and in memory of my Kate, I have written ten books. There is only love in the books I write, all with angel themes.  My novella’s, my memoir about teaching children with special needs, and my children’s book, all were inspired by the angel and my love for Kate, my family and my own gift of life. 

My angel inspirations today, this day of remembrance and love, is to keep on loving, forgiving, hoping, praying for all to find places in their hearts for others, to know their blessings,  to help those who need us the most, the children and animals, the innocent ones of our world. Is there another book about angels in my ever-growing imagination? Always. Here is my latest.

 

Tuesdays With The Angels-Animal Rescuing, Teaching Kindness To All

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One of my life’s greatest blessings has been my steadfast love for animals.  As a mother, grandmother, and retired teacher of children with special needs, I have  found joy in loving my children, grandchildren, my students and  all the animals I’ve rescued over the years. Showing our children and grandchildren how to treat animals should be primary by example always. My soon to be published novella, The Dog Who Came For Christmas An Angel’s Tale is just that, a love letter to all the animals my husband, Dave and I have rescued over many years and the animals our own children and friends have rescued.

Those who treat our children poorly are clearly those who could also be animal abusers. The bully never wins in all my fantasy Mystic Bay Series and how I wish it could be true in our own towns across the world. Love and Kindness Wins!

Bullying is at the helm of hurting our children, our animals and ourselves. It must stop and it can if every adult could find it in his or her heart to gather their families together and discuss  earth’s most precious, the children and animals of the world. My new book will be out soon and I pray it touches someone’s heart, touching as many more as possible.

Tuesdays With The Angels- Life Lessons &Two Special Ladies

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Recently, I lost two dear friends. One was my cousin, Marcy, and the other, Maggie, who was like a sister to me. Both were the same age and vivacious, kind women who were truly my confidents. Grief stricken, I wondered yet knew I would have to go on without talking to them and sharing our lives together.

I will forever miss them but learned so much from them in our years together. From Marcy, I learned how to laugh and live a positive life. Though she had lost a daughter, like I had, she went on living her best life, knowing the treasure life holds. I wrote a part of what I learned from her in my newest book, The Dog Who Came For Christmas, An Angel’s Tale. When someone would bully Marcy giving her an insult of some kind, she would say, “thank you” and then walk away smiling. What a great way of thwarting a bully.

And Maggie? Well, Maggie could see angels and the spirits of past loved ones and others since childhood. Her stories about her spiritual experiences with her dogs are written into my new novella too. She was a soft spoken person and kind to everyone. She too, had lost a young granddaughter, and yet she went on knowing loving the rest of her family was her primary goal in life. They needed her care . These two women were so close to me and though I will miss them all my life, I know their influence will keep me evolving spiritually and writing about the new lessons I’ve learned.

Once long ago, when I lost my own daughter, Kate, a woman I met briefly said to me, “Don’t worry, one day you will meet Kate in the center of a rose.” I’ve always loved that image. Roses mean love and having memories of loved ones that are forever with us are part of the gift of love from above. Someday, with hope in my heart, we will meet all our loved ones again  in the center of a rose.

Tuesdays With The Angels- Angel Inspirations-Animal Rescue

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Bless The Beasts and the Children, one of my favorite songs from the seventies, has a wonderful lyric. “Keep them safe, keep them warm.” I’ve written many times about protecting our children from man’s inhumanity to man. As of  now bullying  is considered almost the norm in politics, dividing people. However,  I also feel strongly about the well being of  our animal friends. Protecting them from animal abuse has recently driven me to write it as a main theme in my new novel coming soon.

My husband and I  have rescued many animals and continue to advocate for them around the world, whether companions to people or in the wild. They are innocent and vulnerable and the poor way some individuals regard them shows all of us what these people are made of.  Animals can’t speak for themselves. Just like we all should share in protecting the children of the world, we are also the animals’ voices of hope. I believe in hope, love and helping those who need our strength and our kindness. 

Angels inspire me. Why? Because I surely met an angel in human form once when the loss of my daughter turned the light out in my being for a time. And all these years later as the light turned on knowing angels were really near,  I became a writer, writing about angels with novels storied with goodness, kindness and redemption.

Taking care of those who have no voice is my fervid hope. Children and the animals of the world need to thrive. Bless the Beasts and the Children. Everyday I  ask the angels for help with problems, as I navigate this precious life I’m given.  I am always sure they are telling me to follow my heart. I know for sure they are listening.

 

Tuesdays With The Angels- Angel Inspirations- Being Champions For Our Children

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I was a special education teacher for twenty-five wonderful years. When I retired I wrote my memoir, Special Needs Children The Angels On My Shoulder. I’d always had a heart for children, animals, the earth and those in need. Where did it come from?As a child I remember being around nine and witnessing bullying. A little girl with special needs, who would be diagnosed as a child with Down’s Syndrome today, rode her bike past school each morning. She was not allowed in regular public school in those years. Other children were laughing and calling her names and it made me hurt for her. Wondering why she wasn’t in school and why they were  mean to her was embedded in my heart. I knew even then I would never be mean like those kids were.

Now that I am a grandmother, and a writer, I reflect on the makeup of people in our world. Some have the hearts for others and some are the bullies of the world. Why? The bullies teach us how not to be, I know that for sure. Yet, why can’t they change or can they? In our warring world today, where bullying by politicians  and others is accepted as near normal, . we must keep loving, keep caring and keep on. The children of the world are watching how we handle life day by day. There is a theory that those  bullying adults have been bullied themselves and their jealousy and rage come from childhood experiences and the lack of love.

When I write my novels there is always a bully character who has an awakening  and changes his or her ways to good in the end. This is what I pray for. This is why I write. Because as I say and write frequently, the bully  never wins. Loving our children and helping them learn how to treat others, that’s the winning way. Being a champion for our innocent children, this is love’s triumph! Ask the angels because even the thought of them inspires me with hope and determination.

Tuesdays With The Angels-Angel Inspirations

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Angels have surely been with me all my life. As a child I had shelter, comfort but parents who I couldn’t totally rely on. Yet, I made it through decades of living making good choices along the way. Where did the resilience come from? It was faith, faith in the knowledge of a higher power that I call God. Sometimes contemplating this gift of life is overwhelming. The knowledge that billions of people have lived before me and during my life time is indeed humbling. But I have been given the ability to write positive stories about angels. How?

After my daughter, Kate, passed away years ago, I met a man I know was an angel. He comforted me with his presence one day at a chance meeting in a store and then the next day of my vacation, there he was again unexpectedly walking up to me and my friend  when we were an hour away in a different town and store. His presence and meeting helped me through the grief that encompassed my whole being. He inspired me to write novels about angels who appear as humans in a town where no one knows the secret. My fictional town of Mystic Bay that I write about have angels watching and guiding people in town just like I’m sure they do in our lives. I believe they encourage us through unseen and sometimes seen messages. Knowing angels are near inspires me to be as kind as I can be in all life’s circumstances. To be resilient and have enthusiasm for life with no resentment toward others has changed my life.

As I write my books I hope to inspire  just one person to keep fire and gratefulness  in their heart for the goodness in life.

I’m just a speck on our planet that is just a speck in the universe. However,  in  the never ending vastness of the universe, I know there is a higher power. I know the loved ones who have gone on before me, like my daughter, Kate,  will be waiting somewhere when my life here on earth is done. I know how fortunate I was to meet the angel years ago. His memory keeps me grounded, creating and loving life. With gratitude, I humbly walk with inspiration from the angels.   More angel inspirations stories to come…   

                                                                    In memory of Kate

                                                             Our Gift From God, Our Joy  

Angel Story From Debra Larson

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A couple of months ago my sister-in-law passed away after a short illness, leaving behind her loving son – my nephew, Sean. She was only 55 and my nephew, 21. Sean was very close to his mother, making it all that much harder to lose her so quickly and at such a young age.

My sister-in-law was cremated and her remains were buried next to her father in Greenwood cemetery. My brother, my nephew and I drove to the cemetery where we met other members of the family for the burial. The ceremony at the gravesite was very touching. When the minister finished with prayers and kind words, Sean placed his mother’s urn into the grave.

After the service, the three of us decided to have breakfast before driving home. Five minutes away was a place called Greenwoods Café. Ironically, it had the same name as the cemetery. It was Veteran’s Day and there was a sign on the door that Veterans eat free. I don’t know if that was the reason it was so crowded or if that was the typical Saturday morning crowd. When we walked in, there were no seats available. I wasn’t sure if we wanted to wait or leave and find another place to eat.

A woman was sitting by herself at a table (right next to us) and asked us if we wanted to join her. It took us a minute to understand exactly what she was asking/offering because it’s not every day a stranger asks if you want to sit at their table and eat with them. We took her up on her offer and sat down with her. About five minutes later a booth opened up and the waitress asked us if we wanted to move to the booth and we said no, we were good where we were. I’m so happy we stayed put.

This lady was so nice and hilarious too. We learned that she’s 74. She joked about how she was in the CIA and insisted my brother was too. She kept telling my brother that she knew him from somewhere and what a good father he is. She thought it was so cool that Sean was studying Cybersecurity. She really took a liking to Sean, telling him how she could tell what a good kid he is. At one point my brother and I started talking about something else and she started talking to Sean like they’ve known each other for years.

So, we ate, talked and laughed for about an hour or so. It wasn’t until we were ready to leave that we introduced ourselves. She said her name is Sister Mary. I couldn’t believe this funny woman who jokingly cursed a couple of times, talked about the Spotted Cow beer she had at the bar last night was a “Sister”. Then she shook my brother’s hand, my hand and gave Sean the biggest, tightest hug I’ve ever seen a stranger give anyone.

We walked out of the restaurant, and I said “Sean, we just had breakfast with your Mom”. I said, it may sound crazy but I believe it. My brother and Sean believe it too.

I couldn’t stop thinking about this encounter the whole drive home. She told my brother what a good Father he is to Sean. She told Sean how proud she is of him and what a good kid he is. And for me, prior to her death, my sister-in-law and I had been talking about going out to breakfast for months. For one reason or another, we didn’t get around to it but she always promised we would. That was the breakfast she promised me! All three of us felt such peace after our angel encounter with Sister Mary.