I’m off to Okinawa, Japan to review a school. Although I have been to several cities and areas in mainland Japan, including Tokyo, I have not been to Okinawa, which is so full of history and beauty.

After a very long flight I will have a day and a half to rest and sightsee and then meet with the Commander at the Air Force base where the school is located. The next three days will be filled with work at the school. I always enjoy this process so much, and learn from the educators there probably more than they learn from me. The Department of Defense schools are outstanding educational settings, and if I were a parent in the military, I would be pleased to have my child attend one of these schools.

Nights are free so I plan to visit with friends I met a couple of years ago in other schools I visited who are now in the Okinawa area. This is one of the great things about going to these schools. After the quality assurance review is completed, I will have a little more sightseeing time, and then I am flying to Hong Kong for five days for more adventure. I will write about all this when I return so check in a week or so to learn more about my travels. Until then, sayonara!

I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and that the New Year has already started out equally positive. I had a great time in Las Vegas where I spent a week enjoying the sites and sounds, and of course, gambling a little.

As a retired educator, I don’t have a bundle of money hiding in my pockets so I am careful in my daily allotment of spending, but I must admit I sure do like the possibility of a big jackpot. So far that hasn’t happened. Neither have I been “discovered” by a big time book company in New York City, but that doesn’t keep me from dreaming on both fronts.

Coyote Smart is actually selling fairly well, and I had my best book signing ever during the Christmas holidays at Paragraphs on Padre. I am optimistic that all three books will continue to sell in 2011.

Speaking of the New Year—my spring calendar is crazy with travel so I am going to be cutting back on my blog posts. What have been my regular Monday and Wednesday postings will now occur more randomly. Hopefully that will cause you to check in more often to see if there is something new. And I promise, there will be new posts and new information placed often here, though not as consistently as in the past.

Keeping Faith will continue to be serialized each Friday.  I am definitely not stopping my blogs; I’m just slowing down a little in order to have time for my travels and other interests. I will keep you posted on where I’m going and what I’m doing so please stay tuned in and make comments when you do so I know you are still there. Your input is so very important to me and your support heartwarming and motivating. Please tell your friends about my books and me about your thoughts on my writing.

What’s your New Year’s resolution? If you are like me, it rarely matters. I had the same ones for years until I finally decided not to make them any more. Now, I simply ask myself how can I just be a better person in the coming year and what can I accomplish? Those probably won’t work either, but that is the hope.

I’ve enjoyed these last two years working on my books and traveling. I have a children’s book waiting in the wings, which my great niece is illustrating. She is a super talented young lady, but she is also extremely busy being a teenager so I have promised not to rush her. If she finishes it in 2011, that will be wonderful; if it takes longer, that is okay as well.

Right now, I am thinking about my next endeavors. Maybe I will get motivated to continue with my novels; maybe I will finally brush up on my Spanish or perhaps I will take more time to cook and tend my herbs. Who knows, but I am looking forward to a new year, a fresh beginning. I hope it is as blessed as many others in my past, and I hope yours is as well. May old friends not be forgotten, and hopefully, there will be new ones added during the year. Happy New Year, Peace and Joy!

I love this time of the year. Everyone seems a little kinder, a little gentler. The twinkling of the lights has a calming effect, and the holiday greetings put a smile on my face. Of course, it’s busy and somewhat stressful to get everything done and attend all those parties!! Yet, no matter, it’s well worth it to re-connect with people and remember the important things like family and friends and pause to reflect on the true meaning of the holidays.

I hope this season is special to all of you, and I want to thank you for reading these blogs all year. I know you have a million other things to do, but your taking time to support me means more than you will ever know. I know I will never get rich as an author, but you make me feel that way when you tell me you read the books and liked them. That’s rich to me. Merry Christmas and may your holidays be filled with equal richness!

I think the picture says it all. Last Friday was my twenty year anniversary of turning 39! I had a great time with friends in Nuevo Progresso, Mexico, and then at Marcello’s Restaurant in Port Isabel. You might say I ate, drank, and shopped my way through the day. Life is good!

Nothing like celebrating your birthday and the launch of a new book all at the same time.

Coyote Smart is now available in both paperback and Kindle.

It seems to me that amid the commercialization of every holiday and the rush to put out all the Christmas decorations at the malls, we have almost missed the importance of Thanksgiving. (I think Lowe’s and Hobby Lobby have had Christmas decorations out since July, but managed to squeeze in some Halloween stuff in between).

As we approach next week’s Day of Thanksgiving, I decided to take a few minutes ahead of time to think about that which I am truly thankful for at this juncture in my life. And I say, at this time in my life, because I understand how much our priorities change as we realize what is really important.

Twenty years ago, I probably would not have given much thought to my health. I was bullet proof. My skin still had what we referred to as a glow; my back never ached; my legs took me everywhere I wanted to go, and glasses were something I drank out of! Now, things have changed slightly, but I know there are more adaptations to come.

I find that conversations with others often center around what pills we are all taking and what beauty secret we can share. So good health has, indeed, become a blessing, and something I am extremely grateful for.

But what’s the sense of good health unless you have good friends and family with which to share your time. Distance may make it harder to see everyone I would like to see as often as I prefer, but technology allows me the opportunity to communicate. I am thankful for each person who has touched my life, both in large and small ways, and those who continue to each day.

And, I am thankful to live in a country where we can still enjoy freedom and a wealth of resources. Having traveled in many places where people wonder where their next meal may come from has given me a greater appreciation for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. So, take a minute before you get caught up in the cranberry sauce (which is not on my thankful list), the turkey and dressing and pumpkin pie, and tell me what tops your list this Thanksgiving season.

I am amazed every day when I read the news at some of the outrageous events occurring in the United States and especially how some people react. Actually, I am beginning to believe that truly we have lost our moral compass.

The latest story was about a woman in the Midwest who put a “Roommate Wanted” advertisement on a bulletin board at her church. Seems innocent enough, don’t you think? Guess it would have been except in the body of the request she wrote that she preferred a Christian. Once again, it seems pretty innocuous to me. If that is who she wishes to share her house or apartment with, I would think that would be her choice. After all, people have been putting these types of advertisements in newspapers for as long as I can remember.

But it appears that the Christian part offended someone, and now the woman is being sued for discrimination. Hopefully, she will prevail, but look at all the time and money she will have to spend defending her freedom to choose a roommate.

Already, the story said she would have to hire a lawyer at a minimum. And if she loses? Well, then we all lose. Where have our brains gone?? I’m beginning to believe like some have predicted that before long, we will not be able to say “one nation under God,” or carry money in our purses that say “in God we trust.” I almost dread the Christmas season. What else will those of us with traditional faiths and beliefs have to give up for the sake of “political correctness?”

If you don’t thank the man upstairs (my friends would expect me to add “or woman”) for your blessings on a daily basis, try spending some time in the chemo area of a hospital and you will.

Over the last several months, I have had the privilege of taking a friend to the doctor where she receives a drug similar to chemo in the same treatment ward. As I look around the many cubicles where folks of all ages and stages of healing or unraveling are receiving the drugs, I can tell you it is a humbling experience.

I have heard the saying, “there are no atheists in a foxhole.” I would have to say the same about a chemo ward after watching these people, pale and wan with handkerchiefs covering their thinning hair as they sit for several hours receiving medicine into their body, sometimes five days a week. Hope and faith are about all they have. With drips connected to their arms, most look blankly into space while others peer solemnly at the television hanging high over their chair. Occasionally, one will laugh and tease a nurse, whose compassion far exceeds her paycheck.

As many of these people come in, I sit silently watching. They are really sick; I am not certain whether it is from the disease or the cruelty of the medicine that is supposed to make them better, but probably a combination of both. Their good morning nods and smiles light up my day. They don’t know me and yet they smile. I feel guilty for feeling good. My initial thought is what do they have to smile about, but then it hits me like a brick. They have today, a fact they might not have been certain of yesterday. As I look into their eyes, it is a haunting reminder of how fragile our time is on this earth.

My emotions vacillate from sadness to thankfulness and then to hopefulness as I sit with my friend. She tells me of a conversation she had with another woman the week before about how they hold up so positively from treatment to treatment. The other woman told her. “My granddaughter greets me everyday after my chemo and asks me how I feel. The other day, she drew a picture with her colored marker on my bald head. It was beautiful. She’s beautiful. That’s why I do this—to see her at the end of the day.”

I don’t know about you, but that’s enough to remind me to count my blessings and make every day count.

Thoughts on fishing

This past weekend was the Redfish Rodeo, a fishing tournament here on the island that includes fisherwomen from all over the U.S. and even a team from Canada. Although we have numerous tournaments, only a few are for women only, which makes them sort of unique.

I doubt if the guys who fish in a tournament dress alike or wear matching visors—or jump up and down and hug when they catch a big trout or redfish. On second thought, maybe they do when no one is looking!!

Perhaps you remember that I wrote about this last year because one of my closest friends was on the winning team. Well, believe it or not, the same team took home the winning trophy and prize money again. This has happened only twice in the sixteen years that the tourney has existed.

Now, I like to fish as well as anyone, but not in the pouring rain for two days. And both days, water fell from the sky in buckets. And in 90 degree weather, rain suits are not for me, and neither is getting up at 5:30 a.m.

But, I need not worry, because I would never be asked to fish in a competitive situation. Actually, in this case I would be like the little kid in elementary school who was picked last for every team. I’m just not that great a fisherwoman, although I have never fallen overboard like a few of my friends. But we won’t even go into that—what happens on the water stays on the water! I did drop a $250.00 rod and reel into the bay one time, but after three hours of drifting back and forth in the murky waters and a whole lot of luck, I retrieved it.

My biggest problem lies in casting. Oh, I can fling it far, send that line flying, but then I spend the next thirty minutes trying to unravel the “bird’s nest.” When this happens, I sit patiently, saying inappropriate words under my breath as I reach for the cooler. It seems to help.

But when I do catch that elusive fish, I step up and act like a big girl, and take the hook out of its mouth, unless of course, some big guy offers. I certainly don’t want to damage his ego, so if he wants to take that slimy, wiggling thing off the hook, I’ll oblige. Heck, I’ll even let him bait the hook if he’s going to get his feelings hurt. Maybe, that’s why I’m not the best fisherwoman around the island, but then I never claimed to be a sports woman, only a good sport!!!

One of the joys of my travels is meeting wonderful people from all over the world, and then communicating with them for many years afterward. They become true friends, although in many cases we may never physically meet again.

This past week re-affirmed how important these folks are to me. First, I saw the news about the earthquake in New Zealand, and then when I heard the epicenter was in Christchurch, I was immediately worried about my friends Arthur and Jeannette who live there. We met on a trip to Spain and France about six years ago, and maneuvered our way quite well through Paris together. Since those two weeks together we have communicated via email.

I wrote Arthur ( he’s the “talker” of the two) thinking I might not hear from them for days due to power outages, so I was pleasantly surprised to get an almost immediate response in spite of the time difference. Fortunately, they were fine, but their house and those of relatives were damaged. Right now, it is difficult to assess the extent, but characteristic of Arthur, he was upbeat and positive.

Fast forward two days, and the news was on Hurricane Earl hitting Canada. (I still get angry about hurricanes named after men—political correctness run amuck!) My good friends Paul and Helen and Dewayne and Ann, who I met on a tour of Great Britain and Ireland, live on Prince Edward Island. Again, I was worried for their safety, but the news came back good in their case as well.

These events made me realize again what a small world this truly is, and friendships over the miles are not diminished because of a little word called distance. I’m thankful they are all okay.