Created and hosted by the Ninja himself, Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writers Support Group posts the 1st Wednesday of every month. Click the image to learn more or sign up.
Optional Monthly Question: What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?
Growing up in Texas it didn’t take long to figure out that language had power in more ways than one. Texas is what I call a hotbed, a place where anything can turn bad at any moment. Most of the time, Texas is a lovely place and I enjoy going back to visit often, but I’d never live there as an adult. In this hotbed, you are either white or not white, you either speak English or Spanish, you are either rich or poor, and this goes for everyone. There are some places in Texas that are segregated by the choice of the people who live there. Some Hispanics only want to be around other Hispanics, some blacks only want to be around other blacks, and so on. But, every now and then, someone crosses a line and starts speaking a common language that brings different people together. Sometimes it’s literally a matter of learning someone else’s language and or dialect, but most of the time it’s sharing something; sharing a meal representative of your culture with someone from the outside, or sharing music, or sharing art, or more.
For me personally, I find that people rarely listen to anything I say; if it comes out of my mouth it zooms past other people’s ears. But when I write, when I express myself with my own personal mastery of the English language, people pay attention to what I have to say.
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Today, I have a returning guest to The ToiBox blog. Please check out my interview with author Tatum James.
I’ve been in bed sick for days and just happened to have coughed myself awake when I decided to check my email. I was so thrilled to learn that I’d won an award in the April WEP-IWSG Challenge. Click the image to learn more.
The next challenge opens on June first.
I just finished the IWSG Book Club book and look forward to the discussion. Since I haven’t been online much lately, I feel I’ve missed out on a lot of great polls and discussions, so I hope I don’t miss out on this one (though I know these discussions stay open forever).
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Now, on to the personal updates.
I’m sick, but that’s not unusual. I’m also very blessed.
I’ve been having a tough time lately adjusting to some drastic changes that have helped me balance my day job and my writing. It can be easy to sometimes feel like I’m sacrificing too much. At the end of the day, though, I remind myself of just how blessed I am that these are the woes in my life. There are people around the world who would take on my problems in a heartbeat to be free of theirs.
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Thanks for stopping by.
It may take some time, but I will stop by your blog too.
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After hanging out with Alex, be sure to stop by and visit this month’s co-hosts:
Lee Lowery,
Juneta Key,
Yvonne Ventresca, and
T. Powell Coltrin!
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Click here to visit other IWSG blogs and sites to receive and share more inspiration and support. (This month, I’m #45).
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords
