Time Out

Dear WOTH Writers...change is in the wind. This blog will be dormant for awhile as we take time out to reconstruct our website and blogs.

Keep writing!

your friends at Women of the Harvest

Read My Writing: Change the World

If you want to change the world,

pick up your pen and write.

~Martin Luther

It's my new favorite quote that I found three weeks ago. I have it written, in my hand, on a dry erase board in my office. It gives me hope.

When I was 17, I thought I could change the world. No, I really thought I could. I even declared such on a college scholarship application. However, decades later, my inner mantra has faded like my eyesight. I'm a bit jaded. I wonder if life is passing me by on this change-the-world thing. I've read Revelation and I know who the world-changer is and how it's all going down.

In the meantime, before the Apocalypse occurs, this new favorite quote is dwelling in my psyche and changing my pessimistic perspective. Can I really effect change at this late date? If I can't go somewhere and fight injustice in person, could my writing deliver the TKO necessary to right the wrong? Is Martin Luther correct? Do I dare dust off my buried, deflated dreams and put my pen to work?

This week in reading your writing, I came across a post with a link to an article that reinforced the concept of how powerful the written word is. I am changed having read it.

Wendy, who serves in Japan, linked her readers to the blog post, "After Shocks," by Philip Yancey, that gives his account of the aftermath of the tsunami that hit Japan on March 11, 2011. Like Martin Luther, Philip Yancey is quite influential in his writings. This week, he unknowingly becomes our mentor.

By reading his post, I would like to point out several things Mr. Yancey does that could make your writing effective as you tell your global stories.

1. He educates and reminds the reader with his research and use of facts. He sets the stage by reporting in the first few paragraphs the details of the tsunami; he brings in scientific principles throughout the article; he accurately reports the numbers of deaths, locations, debris totals.

2. He then weaves in the human side of the tsunami with stories, quotes, and photos. Note how these personal stories are written: not over the top, no excessive use of adjectives. The reader is not manipulated by the writer; she is moved by the simple telling of the story.

3. He personally enters in throughout the course of the post...and writes with the hope of changing the world: "May we not forget Japan."

I would love to read about what's happening in your corner of the globe with stories written like Mr. Yancey's. Although he crafted his post to end with a call to action, I think I came to that conclusion somewhere in the middle of the article.

Good writing stirs our hearts, daresay, changes us and the world we live in.

Read My Writing: Generosity of Spirit

I don't know why generosity always amazes me. When I experience it, I find myself reveling in a state of disbelief. When I see it happen to another, I am shocked and delighted and a little jealous. Even though my Father is the one with a thousand cattle grazing on the hill, I still forget His generosity is never-ending. The world that envelopes me is competitive where the getting and the giving are usually quite measured. I succumb to believing generosity is in short supply.

Something special is happening on this blog; you all are amazing me with your generosity of spirit. It was after I put a call out for articles that I noticed. One woman wrote in suggesting another's blog post for publication. I was transformed by that one simple act of generosity. I checked out her recommendation. [It was quite good. We published it.] And then I clicked over to her blog. [It was quite good. We published one of her posts too.]

As I was reading the blogroll today, I noticed the same generosity of spirit through your comments to one another. There is a network of mutual encouragement happening weekly. Let's keep perpetuating this life-giving and inspiring spirit. I love to read your posts about the ministries you are involved in; by the very nature of your work, you are generous. But what defines "generosity of spirit" best to me is when you write encouraging comments about what one of your writing colleagues posted. This type of currency is priceless, and I must admit, in short supply. There is nothing more lonely than "0 Comments" beside a well-written, heart-on-a-sleeve post.

Let's not leave each other dangling. When you read good writing, be generous. Comment. Share. Like. Submit. One small act of kindness in my Inbox awakened something in me: generosity. My little measured heart is enlarging each time I release it. I wonder, though, if I will ever lose my amazement.

Read My Writing: Six Tips for Writing Entrancing Titles

I love writing titles. It is a challenge to craft a gate that readers will want to open and walk through. Many of the articles published in the onlineMagazine and now, Connection, have been re-titled to create a more compelling entrance to the valuable literary efforts of its writers.

Here are six of my favorite ways to create titles:

1. I read the entire article and try to find a phrase that pops out. At the IRL* blog, Jamie Jo comes up with some phrases in her posts that are uniquely her. I usually play off her voice and originality to draw in readers. For example: Is There Some Hip New Way? came from a question she posed in the body of her post or Computer-induced ADD, a JJ original diagnosis to a cultural behavior she is afflicted with.

2. I like to twist a well-known phrase, song or book title:

• Motion in Poetry (article about a woman with MS who found comfort in writing poetry),
• The Long and Barfy Road (The Long and Winding Road, Beatles), and
• Of Jumpers and Tennies (Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck)

3. I like to be tastefully provocative. Two cover stories in the onlineMagazine come to mind:

• I'm Not Interested in Getting Married
• Laura's Underwear Theory of Cultural Adaptation

4. I capture the essence of the article and put it in the title, appealing and pulling on the reader's emotional heartstrings: Kidnapped! or Furlough Grocery Tears.

5. I try to keep my titles short and to the point. Being on Twitter helps immensely with developing this skill.

6. If your article/post gives your readers some tips, or promises to make their life easier, or explains something they might need or want to know, put that beneficial promise in the title:

• The Global Kitchen: Revive the Heart of Your Home with Helpful Cooking Tips

• Blowing Out the Hot Air: Turning Your Fan into an Air-Conditioner
  

• What Your Mom Wants You to Know

Finally, put yourself in the reader's shoes. Look at the current titles of your blog posts in your archives. Are they entrancing? Would you want to click on them? In the weeks ahead, put an extra measure of effort into writing titles for your blog posts. Take some risks; try one of the tips and see if more readers come to your blog through the gateway of a well-crafted title.

Read My Writing: The Pull of a Compelling Title

This will be quick. Glance down the WOTH Writer's blogroll. Look at the titles of each of the posts. Which ones do you want to read? This is my list:

• Toxic

• If I were a superhero...

• Flying the Not-So-Friendly Skies

• Two Chairs, come sit

• laptopless for lent

How you title your post is important. Why? Read the top paragraph again.

More on this next week...

Read My Writing: Published!

Nothing makes me happier than to publish stories of women serving cross-culturally. Yesterday we sent out our interim publication, Connection. It is our innovative solution while we are re-designing our website and publications. Connection is a monthly publication that features four articles written by women who are or have served as missionaries, Women of the Harvest ministry updates, and links to all our social media outlets and blogs to keep you connected 24/7.

This shameless plug does have a tie-in to our "Read My Writing" series. One of the articles is from a woman on our blogroll. It's her first published piece. And I know she's pretty excited about that. Hence my joy.

Congratulations to Suzanne, from www.suz-mae.com. Her article, "Furlough Grocery Tears," is creating quite a buzz; more than 27 women have commented and shared their similar stories. Ahhh...it's so good to know we are not alone in this cross-cultural life.

As my work life settles into a better rhythm since the launch of Connection, I will be getting back to reading your writing. In the meantime, why don't you take a look at some of your blog posts. Would one of them make a good article for Connection? Perhaps you can add to, or edit your voice a bit, in order to make it suitable for publishing. I worked with Suzanne to polish up her final draft; in fact, I asked her to take the piece in a different direction and focus more on her time in the grocery store. She complied. I am glad we worked well together on this project.

As you all continue to hone your writing, I want to be an encouraging colleague in your pursuit of conveying your voice well in written form. Remember, the life you are living is interesting and worthy of a story.

Read My Writing: Writer's Block

Oh my...when I signed off for the holidays, I had no idea I would be gone this long. And as we know, infrequent posting spells death to most blogs. But I have a feeling this blog will survive this pause because of its sweet readers.

Thank you for the kindness expressed through your comments...words put together in just the right way really do convey a sentiment that goes deep. I sense your friendship and it makes me smile. So thanks. I am encouraged by you to push through what I am calling my post-holiday writer's block.

The remedy: just write.

A few weeks ago, I read everyone's blogs. Nothing popped out that could hold up a new post. But because of the deadline pressure I was under, I started to get frustrated. Come on creative juices, start flowing! Nothing happened.

So instead of looking at the content of your blogs, I started staring blankly at your form. And by form, I mean how you format your posts. And there in my computer screen-induced stupor was the answer to my blog post prayer: Offer a few layout suggestions that would help create a soothing and easily readable post.

Create more white space in your posts

• add more space between photos so they are not piled up on each other
  
• create more paragraphs to break up long text

Create balance and interest

• place photos with some on the left and then some on the right.
• vary the size of the photos you upload
• use subheadings to portion off your writing
• use colored font judiciously
• create a blog color scheme with your fonts, background, headers that is soothing to the eye
  

Create something that looks like it won't take much time to read

• keep it under 500 words.
  
• use lots of small paragraphs
  
• have a great first sentence...oops, that's about content.

I think I've hurdled my writer's block. It's good to be with you again.

Read My Writing: O Little Blog on our Blogroll

Not trying to be mysterious. Just elusive. My holiday vacation has started and I am putting our fun and inspiring series, "Read My Writing," on hold until the New Year. I hope you all are OK with that.

In the meantime, please read each other's writing. And wish one of our dear bloggers a "Merry Christmas" while you are on their site. We all love it when we know someone has read our writing.

My love and friendship to you as you serve all over the globe. Joy to the World!

Read My Writing: Compelled to Respond

When we read courageous pieces our hearts are stirred. Sometimes we are compelled to respond. This woman was. So our featured piece is her response to our post last week.

Prayer for Those Faraway

by Grace @ Sacred Space

I've been reading blogs this morning from sisters around the world that I am virtually connected to through Women of the Harvest . Real women with messy lives living in challenging circumstances. Many of us glamorize missionaries, or think that they are somehow more spiritual than the rest of us, that they've been given extra measures of strength to live in difficult circumstances. Not true. I so admire these women and families who have followed the Shepherd to the field where He leads them. And, I pray that all of us will listen to the leading of the Shepherd in our own lives and that during this Christmas season our feet will bring good news of peace to a broken, fearful world.

"Dear Jesus, I abide with you this morning for my sisters around the world who have left homes, family, familiarity and comfort to take your message of salvation to your children. It's December Lord, and good or bad, we all have expectations of what this month should bring.

I pray for those far from families they love and long to be with, comfort them Dear Comforter. Give them joy like Peter knew...beyond expression!

I pray for those who are lonely and disillusioned, strengthen them Lord. with the strength you gave David when he was in a foreign land feeling so alone.

I pray for those whose marriages are being tested beyond what they think they can handle due to internal and external pressures inherent in marriage, but exacerbated in foreign cultures; give them patience and endurance as they hope in Your ability to give them wisdom and discernment.

I pray for mommies who are trying to love, discipline and educate their children. That is a challenge in 'normal' life, but even greater on different soil.

Give us all sensitive ears to your still, quiet voice as You guide us each moment to the path of life, the path of peace, the path of restoration every moment. Bless my precious sisters, Your chosen daughters, abundantly this Christmas Lord. Lift their heads to You and not to people near or far that they feel could meet some need they have. Remind them of Your lavish love, Your deep delight in them, and let them hear Your voice singing over them, rejoicing that they are Yours. Hold them close. In Your tender mercy, amen."

_______________________________________________________

Thank you, Grace. I love when the Spirit moves. Amen. [I couldn't help noticing that your prayer post was after a two month pause in your blogging--love that!]

Read My Writing: Courage

"What makes a King out of a slave? Courage.

What makes the flag on the mast to wave? Courage."

What makes you write posts that speak of things you've longed to say? Courage.

A WOTH Shout-out for those who bravely bared their souls:

• Lisa @ The Task at Hand: How she feels about short-term teams in "Blurb. blurb. blurb. blurb"

• @Sparrow Tracks: The toll ministry/church has taken on her soul in "slow burn"

• Sarah @ Whispers on the Journey: She ponders placing too much power into the hands of one in "Should We Dump the 'Lone Star' Pastor Model?"

• Laura @ Laura in Lisbon: She muses about her mixed-up cross-cultural life in "Confusion..."

Our featured post:

shock, outraged and bitterly disappointed...

by Alida @ Blackpurl's Knitpickings

Not long after Stella played the piano while Ticha sang "I Surrender All," a small church in Kentucky has voted to ban interracial couple from membership.

The statement said all people are welcome to attend the church, but that the congregation would not receive interracial couples as members, "nor will they be used in worship services" and other church functions, according to a copy supplied to the Herald-Leader by a church member.

Seriously?! This is 2011 for goodness sake.

How is it possible for Christians to act this way?

Stella's father had this to say about the decision of the church:

"It sure ain't Christian it ain't nothing but the old devil working"

Tom and I married on December 13, 1981.

We faced this type of opposition back then. Twenty nine years ago we went shopping at a mall in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. A young blonde salesgirl asked Tom if she could help him with a pair of shoes. After getting him settled she asked if she could help me as I wandered around looking for another pair for Tom to try on. When I said "that's okay... we're together" she went into the stockroom and didn't come back out.

We were refused service at a restaurant in Missouri. In Kansas, back in 1985, when our first child was stillborn someone asked our pastor if it was because we were being punished by God for being a biracial couple. We moved to California in 1988 and left all of that behind. There we found more couples like us and our children grew up feeling they were part of a normal typical family.

Spencer and Nathan

When our oldest, on the right, was asked at age 5 by a neighborhood kid why his mom was black he quickly answered "because God made her that way!"

I am shocked by this church's stance. Outraged. Bitterly disappointed. Maybe these people have not read their Bibles. Maybe they don't know that Moses was married to a Cushite (Ethiopian)? Surely their Bibles include the book of Numbers. Maybe they just haven't read chapter twelve?

My prayer is that Stella and Ticha can find a more loving congregation to be a part of. I pray that they know that not all Christians think this way. I pray that they will have a long and loving relationship and that this bigotry does not stand in the way of that. And I pray that when they are counting down the days until their 30th anniversary this will be just a dim memory.

_______________________________________________________

Thanks, Alida, for telling us more about your courageous life in the face of prejudice. Each specific incident, written simply and straightforward, spoke strongly to your readers. You are not alone in your outrage. As a follow-up to the story of the couple in Kentucky, the church reversed their decision...it looks like when we have the courage to speak up, it can actually turn the tide.

And Happy 30th Anniversary, Alida!

Are you all enjoying reading one another's lives per blog posts? I am. Not sure what next week will hold, that depends on what you write...

Read My Writing: Topical Points of View

One subject, many points of view. I went out to the blogroll and found a plethora of Thanksgiving posts. Many of you have even moved on to Christmas, leaving all things orange and brown in the dust. But we will pause with thanksgiving today and read what you have to say.

I've included two excerpts that I found interesting from a cross-cultural standpoint: one tells of making a traditional Thanksgiving dish in another country, the other tells what it is like being from another country in the midst of an American holiday.

A WOTH Shout-Out to those of you who wrote topically this past week about Thanksgiving:

• Spicy Mango Wings in Belize

• Baked Pies Perched on Ant Traps in the Philippines

• Hors d’oeuvres and Thankful Tree in the Middle East

• Dia de Accion de Gracias (Day of the Action of Thanks) in Paraguay

• Tropical Thanksgiving in Vanuatu

• Radio Station locale for a Haitian Thanksgiving

• Thanksgiving Prayer

• Comparing the Menu Midwest vs. East Coast in the USA

• Greek Gratitude List

• an excerpt from “Cooking Thanksgiving - Turkana style” by Lynn, Kenya

Happy Thanksgiving! As you wake up this morning, I will be putting the finishing touches on my part of our Thanksgiving feast. We are celebrating in the evening as it is just a normal workday here in Turkana. Here is a small wordy glimpse into how I have to cook...my job is to fix the green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, my grandma's apple salad and to bring the cranberry sauce.

...The sweet potato casserole brings its own challenges. We do sometimes find sweet potatoes here in the small shops in Lodwar. I found some yesterday. The thing is, they are white on the inside not orange. One Thanksgiving two of my teammates decided that they wanted orange sweet potatoes so they used food coloring. At one point we had bright pink mashed sweet potatoes and we were all rolling on the floor in stitches! They did eventually get them to be orangish. This year I found a recipe that uses both carrots and sweet potatoes. So, I am hoping the orange carrots will help get the color right. This recipe calls for 1 cup of sour cream. You can't just run out to the store and get sour cream here. So, I use a canned cream and mix it with 2 Tbs of vinegar to make it sour. [for the rest of her yummy menu "Turkana-style," click here.]

• an excerpt from “A letter to Americans outside America” by Wendy, Japan

Dear Americans,

I have to admit that I feel ambivalent about your Thanksgiving.

Giving thanks is important, I acknowledge that and I practise it every day. And I appreciate that your holiday gives us a 3 1/2 day weekend at CAJ — a welcome break from school and work. But it is your celebration. Not mine. It is full of things that you grew up knowing, food and fellowship that you will always associate with good times.

Where I grew up, this time of year was associated with the increasing heat of the days and nights. With exams, tests and assignment and the imminent end of the school year. With end of year parties. With the anticipation of a long summer break. The cricket season was heating up and the school year winding down.

But never did I associate the end of November with all things orange and brown. Never did I think about turkey or pumpkin pie. Never had I even wondered what holiday Americans celebrated at this time of year, before I came to Japan. We Australians have no equivalent to your Thanksgiving. Our history is very different to yours in so many ways...Your Aussie friend, Wendy. [for the complete post, click here]

_________________________________________________________________

Thank you, Lynn and Wendy! Here's what stood out from your posts: the visual of pink potatoes (Lynn) and a point of view I had never considered and the courage to write it (Wendy). To the rest of our writers, here's my prompt for you: Is there something that would take a bit of courage to write about, something that you've been wanting to get off your chest, something that you've been wondering if you are alone in the way you feel? Then I challenge you to "do a Wendy" and write it out...I'll come looking for it this week :).

Read My Writing: Have a Banana

Last week I encouraged the use of dialogue in your blog post. Here are 3 who found the quotation mark key on their computer and put it to use to convey a bit of their musings. For those of you who would like to use dialogue but need a tutorial, these two past posts might be helpful in writing and punctuating dialogue correctly (thanks Robin for asking!).


A “Well-Done!” WOTH shout-out goes to:

• Sarah @ Whispers on the Journey

• Barbara @ Earthen Vessels

• Karen @ Parent of a Missionary…My Reflections

The next featured blog post comes from Missy @ Till All Have Heard. She has just returned to Papua New Guinea from home assignment. I’m sure most of you can commiserate with her question: what's for dinner? And those of you who live in remote or underdeveloped regions of the world know the answer is more than just looking in the pantry for a few food items; it is an all-day affair.

Pay attention to how she uses detail to aid in telling her story of preparing meals in another culture: price of items, utensils used, time, distance, food items. It's what adds interest and draws in the reader. She had me at the $15 chicken.

I think this would be a great piece to add to your support newsletter or in a church/agency communication. All can relate because eating is universal; fixing dinner, a necessity.

What’s for Dinner?

By Missy @ Till All Have Heard

There is a bit of heaven here in this mission community—especially the way families eagerly sign up to cover the first three days worth of meals for new arrivals to Ukarumpa. With all the unpacking, settling in and finding your way around the center, it’s very nice not to have to concern yourself with cooking. But when you’ve arrived on a Friday and the store is closed till Monday, and McDonalds is just a mirage from another life, the “meal list” is pure necessity.

But now the honeymoon is over and I’m struggling to make three meals a day for this family. This ought to be old hat by now. I mean, I have lived in PNG for 5 years already. And I really didn’t even take advantage of all the convenient and microwaveable foods available when we were in the States. I guess I just wasn’t prepared for the changes that have taken place in the food department of PNG during the past three years.

Yes, I knew prices were high, but $15 for a chicken! I haven’t even seen the prices for beef yet, because the store hasn’t had any since we arrived. And what do we eat for breakfast when cereal is over $9 a box, eggs are $7/dozen and oatmeal can’t be found? The answer is bananas and toast (if I remembered to make bread the day before.)

My whole day seems consumed by planning and preparing the next meal. Jon tells me to keep it simple. But what does that mean? Carrot sticks aren’t even simple when you have to be at the market between 6:00 and 7:30 AM on Monday, Wednesday or Friday to buy them. Wash them in a water and bleach solution. Pare them without the aid of a decent vegetable peeler, and slice them with the equivalent of a butter knife. (I’m serious…the house we’re living in did not have a single sharp knife—not even a dull, sharp knife. I shudder to think what I’d be doing if I hadn’t brought my own from home!)

I wonder how long the kids will accept my suggestion of “have a banana” for a midday snack?

But I truly do thank God for the market where the local people sell their garden produce three mornings a week. I can find just about any type of vegetable there and many tropical fruits. Prices are pretty good—comparable to your home-town grocery store. So let us eat fresh veggies, and roasted veggies and minestrone soup, beans, and more beans, and for dessert…bananas.

The upside…maybe in three years I’ll be thinner and healthier. Or maybe I’ll just resemble that banana.

________________________________________________________________

Thank you, Missy! How’s your Thanksgiving menu shaping up in Papua New Guinea?

And for the rest of the writers, perhaps writing about the nuances of your cross-cultural Thanksgiving dinner would be fun to blog about too. I’m always intrigued with who can scrounge up a turkey-like meat for the festivities and who brings out their long-concealed can of pumpkin for the pie.

Happy Thanksgiving, dear writers! You are expanding God’s Kingdom and for that, we at Women of the Harvest, are grateful.

Read My Writing: Make Your Writing Interesting with Dialogue

In requesting permission from Sarah @ Whispers on the Journey to publish her post, I told her that I loved the use of one little slice of life story, accompanied with actual dialogue, to capture an aspect of her cross-cultural life. I found it quite interesting. See what you think.

Answering Awkward Questions

by Sarah @ Whispers on the Journey

I answer really awkward questions without blinking.

I didn’t used to. I used to have a filter.

But tonight in my auto ride with a chatty driver – I realized just how far my American-filter for awkwardness has been stretched and disfigured. He was asking me questions about salary figures, marital status, why I chose to wear South Asian clothing, and my opinion on world politics and religion.

And I answered all of them. I chatted freely about my choice of clothes, the nature of man and Christianity. About how I’m not married because I’m “waiting for God’s choice” (this is the best answer that gets my parents off the hook for not currently searching for a husband).

The even weirder thing is – I now ask these questions too. I once struck up a conversation with a random girl in Dominoes pizza. We were both waiting for our take-out order. I plied her with questions. Married? Work? Where? Live with your family? Why not? And they’re ok with that?

She saw nothing wrong with answering all of those questions and more. I saw nothing wrong with asking them of a complete stranger.

There’s only one question I hate getting asked now.

But it’s not the one you might expect.

I hate getting asked how much I paid for something.

Not because I necessarily mind the question or find it impolite. But because if it’s a South Asian friend asking, my answer will inevitably be followed by “tsk tsk” and a lecture on how I could’ve gotten it cheaper somewhere else. (Or, I like to insert here, if I looked more South Asian!)

My neighbor once saw me coming in from the market with a bag of rice. She asked me how much I paid for it.

“26 rupees a kilo,” I replied innocently.

“Aww – you can get it for 23 rupees a kilo around the corner!”

So if it’s about where my money comes from, what I do every day, whether or not I’m married, if I live alone, what I think of corruption in politics and why I chose to wear the clothes I do – please ask!

If it’s about how much I paid for my rice – keep it to yourself!

__________________________________________________________

Thanks, Sarah! Comments, writers? Could you all, in the next week or two, use dialogue to convey an incident between you and a national, and post it on your blog? This is the technique used in fictional pieces: telling the story through dialogue. I think it works great for telling about your cross-cultural lives too. I know you run into all types of interesting characters...why not introduce your readers to them.

And just to give us a peek, what if you posted a brief conversational exchange in the comment section this week...kinda like I said this, then he said that, etc.

Read My Writing: My New Addiction...what???

Read My Writing continues with this post, "My New Addiction," from Robin @ A Common Woman. It proves that a good title will draw you in. Addiction??? Is this a woman of God confessing something that could potentially be scandalous in her line of work, on her blog, for all the world to see? Confession may be good for the soul, but it also makes for good reading. Click goes my computer.

Once I've landed on her blog and read it, I am doubly endeared to her: I love her humor and find that I share her interest in collecting pottery. Robin casts all fear aside in the possibility of her readers judging her "addiction" and reveals not one, not two, but multiple pieces in her collection. In her own funny way she busts the myth of missionary women living lives of extreme deprivation. Women on the field enjoy lovely things and even use their money to buy them.

Can you relate?

No guilt or condemnation here...I'm just breathing a sigh of relief, because you see, "My name is Cindy...and I have an addiction too, I collect Homer McLaughlin pottery."

My New Addiction

by Robin, www.acommonwoman.typepad.com

Yes, I have addictions. Some are small, and inexpensive. Like Peanut M&Ms. I like to pretend I always have them on hand because Darling Husband loves them, but I do too. I believe Peanut M&Ms are healthier than the plain kind, because there is a peanut in the middle. And nuts are good for you!

My newest addiction revolves around Polish pottery. I love it. I yearn for more pieces to grace my shelves. My husband doesn’t get it.

I’ve discovered a great many ex-pat women living in Europe suffer from the same addiction. There seems to be a secret competition to see who can collect the most Polish pottery. Pottery also signals a woman’s intentions. If a woman says she is returning to the States for a short visit, BUT takes her Polish pottery with her – she's not coming back. Home is not where the heart is, it’s where the Polish pottery is.

Last week, I had the opportunity to go to Boleslawiec, Poland and buy pottery. I may not know how to pronounce Boleslawiec, but I know it is the birthplace of Polish pottery. Imagine, store after store stacked to the rafters with pottery. The Disneyland of pottery – my happiest place on earth.

If you aren’t able to make the trip to Boleslawiec, I’ve heard that T.J. Maxx sometimes has Polish pottery in stock. I’m hoping to check out the rumor the next time I’m in the States.

In the meantime: My name is Robin, and I have an addiction……

__________________________________________

Thank you, Robin! Your photos are beautiful and artful. They add to the pleasure of your words. Well, writers, what is your response to this post?

Read My Writing: What For?

We’re beginning a new series, Read My Writing, which will take us through to the end of the year. It will look different each week. By featuring someone's writing from the blogroll weekly, we will discuss and give feedback to an element—topic, style, genre—of her writing. It is my hope that this will begin to feel like a writers group where iron can sharpen iron and friends can encourage one another.

Suzanne is our first featured writer. There's a header on her blog that caught my eye: "What For." With curiosity aroused, I clicked through. Here's what she posted.

What For?

by Suzanne @ www.suz-mae.com

I write for the delight it is to put my day into words and photographs. My kids. My husband. My experiences. My thoughts. The things we do. The stuff I cook. Things change for me when they go from swirling around in my over-stimulated multi-tasking head to being typed in black and white 'Georgia' font on my screen. Things become clearer. I get perspective. I see God more. I appreciate more. I see more beauty. I have more joy.

I write for my children. I want my kids to know that caring for them and their father every day is one of the most important, the most rewarding, the most special thing I have ever done. And that their stories, our stories as we build this life together are worth recording, archiving, reading and re-reading. Daily they each hear me say "You are one of the best things that has ever happened to me." I mean it. I mean it with my whole heart and this blog proves it.

I want them to be able to picture their childhoods abroad and at home. I want them to know the adventures they went on. I want them to know that they were a part of something much bigger than themselves. I want them to be able to read my words and feel the joy they have brought to me every step of the journey through those words. I want them to know that their Mama loves them more than life itself and that I take joy in their every accomplishment. But also that I struggle, I share, I laugh, I think, I cry and I write about it all.

I write for my sixty-year-old self. I want to remember all these beautiful moments in our life as a family learning, loving, living together. The good, the bad, the hysterical and the heart-melting moments. I don't want to forget a thing.

I write because my kiddies' grandparents, aunties and uncles are half a world away. We miss them. They miss us. I want my words and photos to bring us a bit closer.

I write for Jesus, that He would be glorified in my life and in my writing.

This blog is just me living life. Walking it out. Cooking stuff. Learning to hear God. Raising my little blessings. Attempting to do the right thing. Making people laugh. Trying to be Holy. It's me creating, processing, thinking. This is my life, my heart, my journey.

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Thanks, Suzanne, for letting us see your "What For's." Now, writers, what about the rest of you? Please articulate [in the comment section] a few reasons you write your blog, your journal, your stories. We'd love to read your writing.

Break Time

Hi Writers!

We're taking a break this week, but you keep writing...see you next Tuesday.

About Face[book]: What's Your Personality?

So what makes a good status update?

"Personality," says Adam Ostrow, editor in chief of Mashable.com, an online publication that covers social networking. "Personality is really what drives people to (follow) you…”

Anne Trubek, a writer and associate professor of composition and rhetoric at Oberlin College who is studying status updates as a developing 21st-century literary form, sorted them into four categories for her column in the online magazine GOOD:

• The prosaic (Jill is baking bread);
• the informative (Jack loves this article from GOOD, followed by the link);
• the clever and funny (Johnny thinks Obama should be sworn in a few more times, just to be EXTRA safe); and
• the poetic or nonsensical (If Jim were a cloud, he would rain Earl Grey tea).¹

So what’s your personality? Clearly you can deviate, but I’m sure each of us has a predominate style.

Now let’s talk funny and clever. We’ve learned [myself included] through this Facebook blog series the following: stay positive, use photos/videos, and be funny when you can. I say be funny at least once a week. As I perused my FB friends I found I have very few funny friends. Is that a reflection on me? Am I too serious? Or have we all forgotten how important humor is in everyday life?

I have the only three examples of humor that were connected to my circle of FB friends and they made me laugh.

First is just a status update from an 18 year-old that garnered 17 likes:

“Cigarettes are a lot like hamsters, perfectly harmless until you put one in your mouth and light it on fire.”

Next, keeping with the rodent-related humor genre, this photo secured 19 likes with 9 comments, many of which contained “LOL.”

And finally, this one proved all the research correct…it was shared 184 times.

I like these comedians-Tim Hawkins (on Corporate Worship Songs), Anita Renfroe (In Tha Mutahood) - and am starting to use their material for my Friday post on the WOTH FB page. Know any others?

If you have some funny, humorous, and clever resources, please share. I can't think of a better ending to this Facebook series than laughing…out loud.

¹source: http://www.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/2009-06-09-status-writing-online_N.htm

About Face[book]: Linking to the Cause You are Passionate About

Back in February we asked the question: Is Marketing a Dirty Word? The writer, Elizabeth Givens, put it well when she answered with this: "I've just spent the morning writing "marketing" materials. My goal will use what I've written to secure prayer, funding, and people for the least-reached of the world. I have no underhanded motives--but as I wrote, I targeted each piece to a different audience." Utilizing your personal and ministry Facebook pages can help you target those you want to reach with a specific message as you serve out your cross-cultural life and the cause which you are so passionate about--expanding God's Kingdom.

As we continue, I'm working from the premise that:

1. Most of you have personal blogs.

2. Some of you have ministry blogs/websites.

3. Most of you have an agency website.

Using one of our unsuspecting bloggers listed in our sidebar, I am going to show how to get some interest going for you personally and for your ministry simply by posting on your FB pages.

1. Jamie Jo has a personal blog...and she has a personal FB page [with friends she feels comfortable enough with to talk about...] On her personal blog, she tells stories that appeal to her best girlfriends, but also she tells of things she'd love them to know about so that they can pray more intimately with her.

Weekly FB Plan of Action: post her current personal blog post (link) on her personal FB page with a funny blurb to go with it: My Favorite Body Builder.

Reason: Keeps your cross-cultural life in front of your friends so they don't forget you!

2. Jamie Jo has a ministry blog...but I'm not sure if she has a ministry page on FB. So I'm advocating she create one. Then she can start a campaign for her supporters to "Like" this page when she sends out her next email newsletter.

Weekly/Monthly FB Plan of Action: When she posts her detailed ministry updates on her ministry blog, she can alert her supporters on the ministry FB page to go check out what's going on in her field of service with this provocative status update/link: What caused this teen to say, "I was abruptly stopped in my tracks of selfishness." Of course, she can post this on her personal FB page too!

Reason: Keeps your cross-cultural life in front of your supporters so they don't forget you.

3. Jamie Jo works for a particular agency that has a website full of current interesting information.

Occasional FB Plan of Action: Link out directly to any articles, information highlighted on the website that would be of interest to her supporters/friends.

Reason: Keeps your friends/supporters informed on the bigger picture of expanding God's Kingdom.

Keeping your friends and supporters engaged in your life overseas is crucial. Facebook is a tool that can make that easier for you. Being a good writer can only help in this process. A cleverly worded FB status update with a great photo will generate a curiosity that will drive people to your current blog post and read about the life you are passionate about. I want to commend Jamie Jo for posting a gift that contained chocolate last week on her FB page...it looked so yummy and beautiful that I was drawn in for a closer look. She obviously read last week's post on the "Topics People Love."

What have you done on Facebook to garner interest in your cross-cultural life?

About Face[book]: Content is Queen

Once you’ve established your goals for your Facebook page, the next step is to post content that accomplishes your purposes. Keep in mind the three “somethings” as you type out your 420 characters for your friends to read. Will you want them to do something, think something, and/or feel something?

Kivi Leroux Miller from NonProfit Marketing Guide.com has some positive marketing tips that can work well for your personal and ministry FB pages. She suggests letting the 3 G’s influence your content:

Be Genuine: This is where your personality can shine through and you can build up that rapport that makes people love your cause. Think about whether the post helps your core fans/friends to really understand you better and to see your personality.

Be Generous: It’s all about being a helpful human. The story isn’t about you. It’s about being helpful to your supporters, friends, etc. Give them stuff that helps them in some way. This includes resources from other organizations.

Be Grateful: Being grateful is what you do in response to generosity from others. You can say “Thank You” directly or you can go the “actions speak louder than words” way and share a link, retweet, or otherwise pass on information from others who have been kind to you, as a way of saying thanks.

What to Write

• Entice people with questions (how/why questions are the most shared) Ask for advice with a question posed: People love to give their advice.
• Conjure an air of mystery: Posting an update that is mysterious leaves your FB friends asking for more. “In 5 more days…”
• Keep your kids’ stuff to a minimum. You are interesting, you know.
• Don’t think too hard on what to say; just be succinct.
• Give them something…a recipe, a link, a video, a new tune
• Give users a specific call to action. Directly ask people to “like” or “share” the post if they, too, enjoyed or agreed with what you posted.
• Encourage Shares/Mentions.
• Create polls to get people to interact.
• Put fans in charge: post 3 photos and ask them to vote on the best.
• Reward you loyal followers: re-post photos they submit; give a shout-out, etc.
• Be witty in your wording, twist a phrase, use a song/movie/book title to express your thought.

Discuss Topics People Love

These are topics that have a proven track-record for getting a response.

• Music: bands, songs, etc
• Chocolate
• Current disasters
• Current sporting events
• Seasonal changes
• A cause you’re passionate about
• Gifts you’ve received or given
• What you should be doing instead of posting on FB.

(Gentle Reminder: All these topics are enhanced because you have the international locale to draw from.)

Your adventurous spirit of living the cross-cultural life will lend itself to posting some interesting topics that are new to your audience—stateside or living in another culture. Even posting something as simple as “Received this from my next door neighbor” along with a photo of the unusual cultural gift is captivating to those of us living in the land of Walmart and Target.

You must believe there is nothing mundane about the life you are living overseas. So start sharing it with brevity. I’d love to know what kind of chocolate you can get in Turkey. Have you found some cool music in your country of service? Oh, and don’t forget to link us out to funny videos, passionate news stories and clips, stirring photos and all things that creatively show your cross-cultural life.

Next week: Maximizing your FB presence to enhance the "cause you are passionate about."

About Face[book]: You Only Get 420 Characters

When I say that you only get 420 characters, I’m not talking about how many people you can "friend" on your FB page. Nope. I’m referring to the total sum of letters, punctuation, etc. you are given to write each status update. Did you know that 5 trillion pieces of content are shared each week on Facebook? Was your status update one of those?

Maximize your 420 characters with these tips. Hopefully, it will help increase your fan/friend base and keep you connected to your supporters. For example, did you know sharing increases when you post in the morning? And another proven tip: Always post on Fridays. That day has more active viewing than any other day of the week.

More tips:

First, apply these researched tips (complete with graphs!) from Dan Zarrella of The Science of Social Media and improve the odds of getting your posts read, liked and shared.

1. Simple language gets shared more.

2. Use these words, get shared more: How, Why, Most,World, Facebook.

3. Positivity gets shared, negativity doesn’t. Look for the hope.

Second, use these grammar tips.

1. Use nouns and verbs. Avoid adjectives and adverbs.

2. Write direct and succinct: 1-4 lines max with 1-2 lines the best.

Third, be personable.

1. Post a profile photo; if you can’t for security purposes, use an avatar.

2. Complete the info section; show how interesting you are.

Fourth, include these elements.

1. Posts with video/photos get read more.

2. Add links.

3. Use humor. (remember: positivity gets shared; negativity doesn’t)

Next week we will cover content, including humor. Specifically, what you can write about to keep your 420 characters, I mean, your friends/fans engaged and coming back for more.