Phase two complete! Yay! Late this morning I finished the next leg of my book aligning with Spring Equinox’s window opening wide. Writing a book is quite the process and one of solitude where you really turn within and journey through the depths of yourself. It can be lonely for some, but for those of us who live and breathe what we write, everything and everyone within the pages are real and draw you into a world of imagination come alive. Sometimes it’s much more exciting and real than the world we find ourselves in when we aren’t writing…and for some of us, the writing takes on a world of its own and our lives are never the same because of it. Not to mention, what we write becomes our reality.

I’ve written a lot of things over my life, including many stories in notebooks I wrote in my twenties that may one day also come to life, but this is only my second actual book to date – although is VERY different from the last.

Everyone has their own way of writing, but for me phase two has involved four rounds of my own editing before hitting the next phase. Phase one was completing the story from beginning to end. And the next phase will involve it being read for the very first time by someone other than myself. Eek! LOL! That can be both exciting and scary, right?! Where our sensitivities will be tested and we learn not to take anything personally…or at least we hope so. 😉

There are still more processes and phases to go through, as this is my baby being nurtured, cultivated, and prepared for the world, but every phase deserves an acknowledgment, as the energy keeps on moving.

That reminds me of another favorite from Willy Wonka – btw, for those of you not on my Instagram or Facebook, you may not have seen that Mr. Wonka was alive and well on our Vegas adventure, as well as was alive in my heart on the trails.

We found that every casino we went in had Wonka slot machines! Oh those Oompa Loompas!

I used “Oompa Loompas” as my hangman phrase for our beach campsite game in the Grand Canyon, in fact, which stumped everyone despite Happy and Bean being on the same Wonka ride of life with me. And like many other things, instant manifestation of what we spoke out loud kept happening.

I also kept singing to myself, “the rowers keep on rowing….and they’re certainly not showing….any signs that they are slowing” when I kept moving forward up and out of the Canyon, to keep my momentum going. Reiterating that the energy must keep moving, to face your fears, and enjoy the wild ride, as the only control you have is how you react or respond to it.

And moving, the energy certainly has, since we returned, as I moved quite quickly through this last round of editing, finishing it within the last two and a half days following the Equinox.

It’s important to honor ourselves for what we’ve accomplished without waiting until some ultimate conclusion comes to fruition. Each day we say “yes” to taking action on something we feel called to do, is quite an achievement. So remember to give yourself a hug and pat on the back, because you deserve it for the courage you have shown. I plan to buy myself a very special gift for this special occasion. Something I fell in love with in Vegas and Bean found me online much cheaper….it is SO perfect I can hardly stand it!

Anyway, that’s where I am with my book. Forward and onward I go. I’ll likely begin the next phase come Monday, giving myself a little break this weekend and the rest of today. I have some house painting to do right now and then am going to bake a new T recipe of cupcakes for our Tahoe Herbivores’ Potluck and Game Night Meetup tomorrow evening at our house. Then tonight we’re going to an Irish group’s concert called Flogging Molly. I also plan to make lasagna for the Meetup, tomorrow, as well as plan to finish my closet cleaning, plant 52 new succulents, and get outside for some nature fun in the snow the rest of the weekend.

Anyway, here are the lyrics to the Willy Wonka shamanic boat ride:

Round the world and home again
That’s the sailor’s way
Faster faster, faster faster

There’s no earthly way of knowing
Which direction we are going
There’s no knowing where we’re rowing
Or which way the river’s flowing

Is it raining, is it snowing
Is a hurricane a-blowing

Not a speck of light is showing
So the danger must be growing
Are the fires of Hell a-glowing
Is the grisly reaper mowing

Yes, the danger must be growing
For the rowers keep on rowing
And they’re certainly not showing
Any signs that they are slowing

– ‘Wondrous Boat Ride’, from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)

And here’s the video clip! Enjoy!