Enlightenment, Going Home, Breathing in Nature & What I’m Reading

Each week I read a chapter of Wayne W. Dyer’s Wisdom of the Ages: 60 Days to Enlightenment and journal my own insights. In this book, Dyer highlights 60 great thinkers of the past, provides his own take on their words, and poses questions on what they offer us today in modern times.

This week:
The poem “On Time” by John Milton (1608-1674)
First sentence…

Fly envious Time, till thou run out thy race,
Call on the lazy leaden-stepping hours,
Whose speed is but the heavy Plummets pace;
And glut thy self with what thy womb devours,
Which is no more then what is false and vain,
And meerly mortal dross;
So little is our loss,
So little is thy gain.

Milton goes on about how we can triumph over our earthly fate—by entering a sense of timelessness with the passage of time. There is no need to defeat it but rather we can smile at it. We can enjoy the rewards of eternity now in this earthly life. We can contemplate our physical selves and possessions and laugh peacefully at it all—for it’s only on lease. We can make peace with time. We’re not its victim. Instead, we can have a sense of knowing that our soul is where bliss resides with joy, love, and peace. Forever includes now.

These weekly passages give me pause when I need it most. And with so much busyness going on this past month, I also needed to breathe in all of nature’s green. And I did. I hope you have green to fill you up, too. Turn up the volume 🙂

I visited new and familiar forests and meadows full of music and magic. I went on for miles and finally had to turn around. I should really tell my husband where I am when I wander like this, in case the woodland fairies carry me away!

SPEAKING OF NATURE …
It was fun volunteering with an Audubon Society school program with Hopper the broad-winged hawk. Here he is flapping in his house.

Plus, I got to visit with all the other bird ambassadors on site like Oden the great horned owl, Ursa the Harris’s hawk, Abby a red-phase Eastern-screech owl, CC the pigeon, and more.

Fascinating fact about broad-winged hawks:
During migration to South America, they group together by the thousands, forming a tornado-like vortex known as a ‘kettle’ or ‘boil’. This is formed from the hot air on the ground. They rise up on the hot air into the sky to then glide along downward on their route and then do it again. This way they don’t use up so much energy flapping their wings for their long migration and have to constantly eat to keep up energy. Smart! Watch a video of this epic journey here.

GOING HOME AGAIN

May was also a travel month. I visited Albany, New York, where I (mostly) grew up to be the keynote speaker for the 136^th commencement ceremony at my alma mater, Academy of the Holy Names. I connected with new friends and old friends. Total nostalgic fun.

I loved being back on campus 39 years after my own H.S. graduation to see so many accomplished young women beginning their new life journey. I spoke to them about the power of getting outside your comfort zone.

In my speech, I mentioned key things to keep in mind when stepping outside the familiar for a greater reward:

· You won’t always know what you’re doing.
· You will stumble.
· You will fail.
· You will not be perfect. And that’s okay because no one is perfect at anything when they’re new at it.

And if you accept that you will stumble and fail then you give yourself permission to TRY and FAIL. And you give yourself the gift of courage. The courage to embrace life and be unafraid to step into the unknown. And if faced with the chance to get outside your comfort zone, ask yourself—what is the cost of staying the same? Is it worth it? Only you can decide.

On this visit I also mourned my own youth a bit, wishing I could go back to that shiny, fleeting moment to truly embrace all the potential I held—and the blank canvas to color as I wished. Would I color it differently knowing what I know now and having had the experiences I’ve had the last 40 years?

WHAT I’M READING

My American Journey by Colin Powell with Joseph E. Persico
I’ve always admired Colin Powell, and his memoir is a wonderful dive into his life and thoughts on his personal and career journeys. I especially enjoy his self-deprecating manner and way of revealing how his path unfolded in practical and often unexpected—and lucky—ways.

Colin Powell is the embodiment of the American dream. He was born in Harlem to immigrant parents from Jamaica. He knew the rough life of the streets. He overcame a barely average start at school. Then he joined the Army. The rest is history—Vietnam, the Pentagon, Panama, Desert Storm. Here, Colin Powell himself tells us how it happened, in a memoir distinguished by a heartfelt love of country and family, warm good humor, and a soldier’s directness. My American Journey is the powerful story of a life well lived and well told.

MY NEXT BOOK COMING 3/3/26!

I’m so excited to have seen the final cover of my next middle grade book out 3/3/26 by Wild Trail Press, The Secret Winners Club, and I just finished the final edits. Full cover reveal coming soon!

Here’s a sneak peek of the cover and what The Secret Winners Club is about…

1^st Club Rule: Do whatever it takes.

A girl with a visible autoimmune condition bands with other immune deficient friends to create a secret winner’s club to be known for more than just their diseases. Tired of always achieving second place in school competitions, they help each other become #1 before middle school is over—but they quickly discover crossing the line and hurting others can make them even more visible and even more of an outsider.

This is another personal story to me as I have five autoimmune disorders, some of them visible as well. It can be hard for kids to look different—and harder to embrace their unique selves.

LOON COVE SUMMER OUT A MONTH!

It’s been one month as of today that Loon Cove Summer released. I was thrilled to see the orange banner on Amazon with it being the #1 New Release in Camping Books for Children its first week out! Thank you, readers, for making this happen.

Loon Cove Summer is available here from your favorite bookstore in paperback, eBook, and hardcover by Wild Trail Press.

It can take months and even years to write, rewrite, revise, get rejected, and get a book published. After you do, the most satisfying thing is knowing other people read it and are moved by your story. Thank you to Therearenobadbooks for her review of Loon Cove Summer. Be sure to follow her wonderful book recommendations on FB and IG and check out her own books! See full review here.

Happy reading!

XXOO Donna