FPQ89: Karma Chameleon

Fandango provocatively asks…

Do you believe in karma (or a similar “reap what you sow” notion)? Why or why not?

I have a karma-ish belief. It’s more of the reap/sow Christian idea than the Eastern wheel/reincarnation structure. We can observe that actions have consequences, and some of the consequences take years to be fully realized. This isn’t a woo belief; it’s just logic.

Some people seem to lie in wait for karma to “strike” those they dislike, but it’s not always going to be observable. You’re not going to see every ruthless, selfish, greedy person crashing publicly to a terrible end. But many do suffer, which is why they’re so nasty. Pain, whether physical or emotional, can make people act badly toward others. We can infer their suffering by their behavior.

Perhaps more importantly, large-scale results occur after groups of people behave in a similar way. Again, they may take years to actualize, and even then are open to our interpretation. Look at this plague, forex, and how it’s affecting peeps/culture. We certainly haven’t been respecting the earth much lately, and I’m not the only one who “joked” last year that Mother Nature finds ways to rid herself of vast numbers of pesky humans from time to time….

However much we fantasize about karma as a vengeful goddess who smites our enemies, though, it mostly doesn’t work that way. But we can console ourselves that bad people who hurt others/animals often do get hurt at some point as a result of their own behavior. Karma however is more of a long game, group punishment idea (to me). We’re all going to suffer as the logical results take shape from the actions of a powerful few…

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Reflections

Reflected sorrows

Paint forests with poetry

Soon buried in snow

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Written for Eugi’s Weekly Prompt.

Image credit to lovethispic.

Friday Four on Saturday!

The Friday Four returns! Rory asks us to ponder thusly…

1. What three senses could you NOT live without? Discuss why…

This is purely financial: sight, hearing, touch. I could not work without being able to see and hear. If I felt nothing, I’d constantly hurt myself and be unable to work too. While I’d miss smell and taste, they aren’t necessary for my survival the way work is.

2. What is your favourite of these two and why? Pen or Pencil.

I love all writing tools, but if I’m forced to choose, I’ll go with pencil. I like being able to erase when I’m doing a puzzle and I love the variety of colored pencils for coloring. Not that I have been lately, but I might again!

3. What are your top 3 colours and why are they your favourites?

Turquoise because it’s so lush and vivid. Pure purple for drama and depth. Candy pink for laughter and happiness. (Also love sunflower yellow and lime green for tropical pops.)

4. Are you able to list 10 basic smells and if so what are they?

Vanilla, cinnamon, lemon, garlic, ocean, pine, mint, flowers, bread, wine…

Happy Rosh Hashanah! Have a sweet New Year! 🍯

RIP RBG 💔

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Autumn Leaves

Proud silent tree
Shakes off summer leaves
As the wind blows in cold.
If they only knew,
I’ll be leaving here soon,
Perhaps they’d stay green
Until the first winter’s snow.
A small touch of grace:
Something left in this place
Will remind you of gold.

~*~

Written for Eugi’s Weekly Prompt.

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Image credit to lovethispic.

Seeking Serenity

Sunrise is upon the tide,

Its ebb and flow a soothing guide

To accept the rhythm of this life,

Whether low or high.

Even on a moonless night,

Attraction pulls me to your side.

Soft sand cushions weary feet,

As I thank the susurrus of the sea,

A seamless peace.

Somewhere in that languid deep

Rest promises I failed to keep…

Yet here is the serenity that I seek.

~*~

Written for the Daily Echo.

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Image found at scvincent.com

My Beach Smile

As promised, my smile for this week is the day I spent at the beach with my family.

Look at my awesome sandcastle! It’s so great just to relax and play for a few hours without a thought of politics or other drama. The beach is perfect for this. 😍

My little granddaughter had a good time too, creating her own castle and adding to mine, or smushing it, as the case may be.

And to finish off Fandango’s Dog Days of August super fun prompt series (I didn’t miss any, yay!)… my plans for September include spending a lot more time with my precious grands. I also want to work on my novel, take care of my mental and physical health (good food! exercise! sleep!), read more books, etc.

Thanks for a fabulous month of prompts, Fandango! And thank you too, Trent, for nudging us to focus on the positive. 🥰

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Images from the fam jam.

Summer Summer Summer!

Fandango’s Dog Days prompt today is asking for our favorite season. Well… here is a pic of me from the beach yesterday. I had so much fun! But first let’s talk about the other seasons because each has good qualities.

I used to love autumn best, mainly because of Halloween. But I’m not so into it now. It’s hard for me to get excited about costumes when my eyes are too sensitive for wearing makeup. There are other good things about fall, of course… I am a fan of pumpkin. Pie, coffee, muffins, etc. Noms. Thanksgiving with my family… great! My daughter’s birthday. 💝 Hurtling toward the end of yet another year though… meh. I think about all the stuff I haven’t done, books unwritten, fitness plans abandoned, and my big failure to find a life partner. Not so great.

Winter is yuck. Cold dark depressing days. Wearing layers of sweaters and scarves and boots and corduroys and still freezing everywhere. Yes, in Southern California. There’s just nothing good about it. Except cute sweaters and boots, okay. And the fun NYE party I generally attend (dunno about this year). One bright spot is my youngest daughter’s birthday in March. But I have to deal with Valentine’s Day, which didn’t use to bother me, but kinda does now… 🥶

Spring seems like yayness… flowers, pretty sunsets, Reese’s peanut butter eggs. But it’s also a time of bad memories. My mother died in April. I have to pass through the ghost anniversary of my last marriage. My ex left us in the spring too. Then there’s the crash and burn of my last “relationship,” which shouldn’t bother me because it was so short and stupid, but yet I still find the memories upsetting. He dumped me on Thanksgiving (boo fall). Then I was super down for months (boo winter). And he popped back up in the spring to further torment me via text and email. 💔

But summer? Wheee wonderful! ☀️ Both my grandchildren were born in summer. 💖💙 Long warm days, lovely produce, ice cream, the beach, light clothing, sandals, super fun times with friends. All good! Well, except for the onslaught of migraines at the end. September is my worst month with them. But whatever, summer wins!

Both daughters got married in the summer too. This is from my eldest’s venue. ❤️❤️

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Images mine

Crescent Intentions

Against all odds, I finally learned a lesson,

Under the crescent moon.

Your rejection was a kick to my heart,

But as you walked away, I knew

Our love had a planned obsolescence;

By design you were meant to stray.

I don’t swoon for the soupçon of kindness

Invoiced for that pound of flesh,

For when payment comes due

I can no longer write that check.

More than merely surviving,

In a cycle of fullness and dark,

I intend to break this connection

And shine alongside the stars.

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

5 Things I Hate About Summer

Say what? I love summer! 🌻 But Dr. Tanya wants me to come up with 5 Things I Hate for her continuing prompt. I suppose I can spend days pondering this topic… psyche! I’ve already thought of ’em, neener!

1. Air conditioning. Just when it’s nice and warm, allowing me to bounce out of the house in short sleeves, crazy people insist on blasting freezing cold AC everywhere. 🥶 So, even on the hottest days, I have to bring a sweater with me. Annoy!

2. Gross men without shirts. Gah!

3. Traffic clogging up Pacific Coast Highway, and I can’t use it, bleh.

4. Amateur fireworks going off every night around the 4th. So dumb and irritating.

5. It’s over too soon, wah. Nice long days full of sun are already too short in August, and soon it’ll be dark early again. 😢

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

The Long & Boring Road Share

Melanie has two sets of Share Your World questions for us today, but I’m skipping the first set as they have to with Harry Potter and I’ve neither read nor seen any HP.

1. Would You Rather Live 120 Years That Are Comfortable But Boring, Or Live Half As Long, But Have An Exciting Adventure Packed Life?

The comfy, boring road is for me regardless of length. I’m not a fan of the exciting life where you slide naked, screaming, and covered with chocolate into your grave, or however that saying goes. Stability, order, routine, and comfort make me happy.

2. What’s Something That Overwhelms You?

Driving overwhelms me. I loved to drive as a teenager, but now I find it terrifying. The idea of all those crazy angry people on the road who dgaf about other people’s lives (and/or their own) creates massive anxiety for me. Plus, I’m not a great driver myself ~ I mean, I’m very cautious, but I have no sense of direction, and it’s hard for me to visualize the size of my car when parking. Not that I hit things ~ it’s the opposite. I imagine my car to be much larger than it is. But… I live in Southern California, so I have to drive!

3. What Do or DID You Take For Granted?

I imagined that my mom would live to a very old age, since longevity runs in her family. I was prepared for my dad, with all his heart problems, to pass on at any time after Y2K. But my mom? No! I thought we had so many more years left together. It was a complete shock when she was dx’d with pancreatic cancer at the end of 2007 at age 76 and passed on 5 months later. My dad almost made it to 83.

4. Gratitude: Please feel free to share some gratitude moments or thoughts you’ve had recently. This section is entirely optional.

I’m grateful that even though my back, etc. hurts every day, I can still take a walk in a lovely park, as I did this morning.

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Photo credits ~ Melanie and me