activism Archives - From the Write Side

Find Your Summer Retreat

Because it's summer... Because you deserve to find joy... Because the world is truly "too much with us" these days... Find a place where you can retreat from the stress, pressure, cares, sorrows, a place where you feel your own life thrumming through your body. Savor the land and the sky, the mountains and the water. Inhale the fragrance of lilac, rose, and new-mown grass. Open every sense to the pleasure of residing in the moment and allow that peace to heal, if only for [...]

By irvinjgdm|2023-05-31T16:34:13+00:00May 31st, 2023|Blog|0 Comments

November and Politics: Is it possible to do better?

November may be a dreary month, but I always feel energized by the essay opportunities it provides. After all, in the drabbest month, making a list of things to be grateful for lifts spirits. There is also the voting thing, which has become fraught with dissension and shows no sign of shifting back to the middle ground. And I serve as a poll worker, so training, which is now obligatory for volunteers in Ohio, demonstrates that even in a non-partisan environment, tension reveals itself. Several [...]

By irvinjgdm|2022-11-02T01:17:57+00:00October 31st, 2022|Blog, Uncategorized|0 Comments

The Heart of it All

Once upon a time, the slogan for the Buckeye State was "Ohio...the heart of it all." While the P.R. guys and gals have moved on from that catchy phrase, I find myself returning to it this February...not for the state but for myself and my passion. What, I ask myself, is the heart of my writing? Here's what I came up with... 1. exploring the motivations that prompt human actions, good or bad 2. optimism...despite the chaos that threatens our world 3. a belief in [...]

By irvinjgdm|2022-01-31T17:19:51+00:00January 31st, 2022|Essays|0 Comments

A Musing On Truth and Lies

Can you remember the first lie you ever told? I can't. What I do remember is the flush accompanying the misrepresentation, the internal conflict when the admonitions of parents and priests collided with the need to shift blame, to deny guilt. Even the slightest misdirection resulted in an agony of self-reproach. I was never a good liar. I do not have a poker face. So, in the frenzy of outright lies and daily distortions that have accompanied our current crises -- coronavirus, anti-violence protests, Black [...]

By irvinjgdm|2020-06-30T15:39:59+00:00June 30th, 2020|Essays|0 Comments

A World Turned Upside Down

Note: I drafted the following essay before our country erupted in chaos in protest of the police brutality and murder of George Floyd. I felt a need to add an uplifting look at the pandemic-infused world. Now, our nation is even more in need of healing. Next month, I may address this canker at the heart of our society, but for now, I offer you a breather in the midst of uncertainty. Thank you for being there...on the other side of my words. You are [...]

By irvinjgdm|2020-05-31T17:01:37+00:00May 31st, 2020|contemplative, emotive, Essays|0 Comments

Long Time, Longer Journey: A Groundhog in Training

The season's blessings approach this winter of my discontent and I, steeped in the release of my latest novel and deep into the draft of my next venture, have rarely looked up from the keyboard. Yes, I've been 'away' for a while. The nightmare in November, otherwise known as the election, has sapped my will to post. How to reconcile the angst in a way that followers of both political persuasions can accept? Still, I carry on, hiking the fields, staring at the pond, drawing [...]

By irvinjgdm|2016-12-01T15:36:47+00:00December 1st, 2016|Essays, inspirational, motivational|0 Comments