www.holidaysamaze.com - Holidays Amaze has a holiday blog page. Dr. Karen Petit is the author of one book of poetry (Holidays Amaze) and four novels: Unhidden Pilgrims, Roger Williams in an Elevator, Banking on Dreams, and Mayflower Dreams.

Thankful for Appliances

11/26/2020

Especially around Thanksgiving, I am thankful for so much. I'm very thankful for my family, friends, pets, and my own life. I also have a lot of essential items that enhance my life.
Last week, my very old stove started to mess up with beeping sounds about needing the timer to be set for the oven. Even though having to buy a new stove right before Thanksgiving can be viewed in a negative way, I have begun thinking about the many working appliances that I have. I also am able to use the old stove while waiting for a new one to be delivered. I just turn off its electricity when it is not in use. I am very thankful for the many wonderful parts of my life.

July 4, 2020

7/4/2020

Fireworks on Independence Day This photo is on page 40 of Karen Petit's first book of poetry: HOLIDAYS AMAZE, published in 2018 by WestBow Press

Because of COVID-19, many fun events have been cancelled for July 4, 2020. However, I'm still very happy to see the many online events and different ways to celebrate our freedom. I also love to look at pictures of past holidays. Most often while I'm with family members, I've actually taken hundreds of pictures of fireworks, including the photos on pages 40 and 41 of Holidays Amaze. The poem "The Lights of Freedom on Independence Day" in Holidays Amaze has a dreamer who connects past, present, and future activities together. Here is the last stanza of this poem:

Whether in Bristol, Portsmouth, New York City,
Philadelphia, or Washington, D.C.,
our collaborative efforts can enhance
our lives with the lighted rays of freedom's stance.
(page 39 of Holidays Amaze)

A Fireworks Circle on Independence Day This photo is on page 41 of Karen Petit's first book of poetry: HOLIDAYS AMAZE, published in 2018 by WestBow Press

June is National Adopt-a-Cat Month.

6/7/2020

I rescued my current three cats from animal rescue shelters. I'm so glad that all three are alive and living happy lives.
They have each other, lots of cat food, and a home with many cat toys. I still cannot believe the beauty and sweetness of all three of them. It's interesting to hear three different kinds of purrs, to see three different personalities, and to keep seeing how intelligent they are.
Last night, for the first time in the last few weeks, I said the word "catnip." All three of them immediately came up to me and kept on staring until I gave them some catnip.

Happy Easter!

4/12/2020

Easter is really my favorite holiday. I love being able to think of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, as being resurrected. His life in heaven shows the reality of eternal life.

The cover design of Holidays Amaze has Easter eggs that appear partially hidden. The light from the sky, though, is making the eggs more visible. Eggs have a symbolic meaning of the empty tomb and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Easter poem in Holidays Amaze, "Sticking Together on Easter," is a narrative poem that's a little over seven pages long. Some children are looking for Easter eggs with their Sunday School teachers. They learn more about themselves and their faith by connecting to--and sticking to--each other.

Even though COVID-19 is impacting people this year in negative ways, there are also many positives. My family members, colleagues, friends, and pets have all been connecting to each other through cell phones, Facebook, online video-conferencing, and other methods (smiling, waving, beeping horns, helping sick people, creating and delivering essential items to each other, . . .) I'm so thankful for the technology to be able to connect to others while staying safe. My prayers for myself and for others are also helping me to feel much safer, happier, and stronger.

National Siamese Cat Day

4/6/2020

Siamese cats are my favorite kind of cat. They act sort of like dogs in the way they become attached to their owners. They also often talk to their owners in cat language. Siamese cats are smart enough to open up cupboard doors and jump up onto things like doors. Yes, the cat in this picture actually did jump up onto doors, windowsills, etc. I rescued him as a kitten from a close-by animal rescue center. He was listed as a “Siamese” cat, which is what I was looking for. When I met him, he was super lovable, and I adopted him.

Palm Sunday

4/5/2020

I’ve been thinking a lot about Palm Sunday today and imagining what I would have done if I had been one of the people worshipping Jesus when he came into Jerusalem. Even though I don’t like heights and am really too old to do this, I still would have tried to climb a palm tree to break off a branch. Like many other times in my life, God would have helped me when I prayed. I also would have tried to choose the best possible branch from the palm tree. I then would have helped others who needed branches to connect to Jesus’s trip. Finally, I would have tried to bow down very low while laying my palm branch before Jesus as he marched forth on his trip to help so many people.

New Year's Resolution

1/1/2020

I'm so happy to be thinking about the upcoming new year. My resolution is to slowly lose some more weight by eating healthy and exercising more:

For supper, I'll keep eating a large salad, at least one additional vegetable, and small amounts of carbohydrates and desserts. This has actually been working. I still eat chocolate items, pizza, French fries, etc.; I just eat small amounts of them.
I'm also planning on exercising more: at least 15 minutes a day when I'm super-busy and supposedly don't have that 15 minutes available. On the days when I'm just a little bit busy, I'll be exercising at least 45 minutes a day. Unbusy days very rarely happen for me, so I don't have to try to figure that one out.

Thankful for Love on Thanksgiving 2019

11/28/2019

I'm most thankful for knowing about and being able to feel love. I love all of the different kinds of love, including knowledge about the love from God toward His creations. I also love my friends, family members, pets, and the whole concept of love. Love helps our world and our lives to have positive energy. I'm also thankful for how people and animals often give to each other, whether they know each other or not. The two cats in this picture are two of my cats; they actually do know each other very well and have been together as brothers in my house now for a couple of years. They're helping each other in this photo by licking and grooming each other.

Veterans Day 2019

11/11/2019

The poem "The Strength of Unity on Veterans Day" (on pages 65 and 66 of Holidays Amaze) is a nice narrative about a parade on Veterans Day. The idea of unity among parade marchers, watchers, and different flags is seen in this poem. The concept of different stars and stripes in one flag, in addition to different states in our country, again suggest unity despite many differences.
The photo in this blog post is on page 67 of Holiday Amaze, Karen Petit's first book of poetry.

Labor Day 2019

9/2/2019

Writing poetry and prose can be a lot of fun because I learn more about my own thoughts, views, and feelings. Writing is also like a puzzle when I'm trying to figure things out. Sometimes, though, like any task, writing can be difficult. Occasionally, I've told myself, "I can't do this." The problem is often related to not having enough time. For example, when I was writing Mayflower Dreams, I told my publisher on the day before Thanksgiving that Mayflower Dreams would be completed by the end of January. At the time, I was only a little over half-way finished with the manuscript. Thankfully, I was able to send the manuscript to the publisher on the required deadline. My years of experience coping with my busy schedule were very helpful in accomplishing this task. Especially as I get older, I love being able to still be busy and complete a lot of tasks that make me very happy.