My most recent novel, What's Next~An Epic Journey, is available on Amazon or can be ordered through your local bookstore. The book is a sequel to the The End of Time and Back: An Epic Journey. You can purchase now byclicking here. (Scroll to the correct title.) Either book is a fine read for the broad-minded or the spiritual seeker.
To the End of Time and Back: An Epic Journey is available via Amazon and Kindle. It will grab you from the start and carry you to places you have never been. The book contains many diverse ideas and is a great love story filled with adventure and intrigue.Questions? Email me. To go to Amazon,click here.
Click hereto link to a You Tube radio interview about To the End of Time. (Friend David Riggs produced it for me. To link to his book, click here.)
A number of individuals have sent some wonderful reviews. You can read some ofthem in the Forum Section below.
PJ Demographics – Subscribers in 22 states and 12 countries
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Welcome
I am pleased to have you as a reader. If you enjoy the PJ, please encourage others to subscribe.
If your country is not listed in the demographic section at the end, please let me know so I can update the list.
The next Poetical Journal will be out on Sunday, July 30, 2017.
A couple enjoying the sunset along Lake Erie in Vermillion, OH
Opening Comments from Bob
What's Next ~ An Epic Journey and Beyond Time and Back: An Epic Journey: Both novels are available on Amazon. What's Next is a sequel to Beyond Time and tackles a topic that impacts us all. Both books are intriguing reads for the spiritual seeker and/or the broad-minded.
This Issue: This month we have a variety of pictorial themes. We start with two pictures completing our trip to New Mexico. (That trip was covered in the previous to PJ issues.) The second contain pictures of my recent travel to Vermillion, OH, along Lake Erie. While there, I stayed with my close friend, Dr. Pat. A few of you may remember him when he joined me for a portion of my around the world trip in 2001. The final pictorial section is on the Asheville area of North Carolina where I attended Dr. Paul Lam's annual tai chi conference. Of course there are poems! In the Tube is the more serious of the two. A Fresh Start is a bit more lighthearted.
Subscriber Residence:PLEASE let me know if your state, providence, or country is not listed in the demographic section at the end.
Next Month: The next issue comes out on July 30, 2017. We will continue our sojourn in North Carolina, primarily the Blue Ridge Parkway..
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Last month, we pictorially traveled to New Mexico. This issue contain two pictures from that trip. The ones above and the second, further down.
Two Poems this Month
In the Tube
A young woman,
early in her life’s journey,
sits nodding off
and jerking awake.
An Indiana Jones style hat
rests on her knee.
Out of habit she reaches up
twisting hair
into a thin braid
then unraveling
starting over again.
Farther up,
a business man
with receding hairline,
pecks away at his computer
ignoring the talkers beside him.
He, much further
on his journey.
These two anonymous souls
are strangers
yet both undoubtedly seek
the same,
the happiness that one longs for.
Comments: I enjoy observing people on planes and in airports. Many a poem has evolved from these observations. As one interprets happiness, seeking it I believe is a universal
A Fresh Start
Wednesdays must be
a slow travel day.
The usual lines of people,
some scurrying
others meandering
have disappeared
into a smattering
here and there.
Perhaps the sun’s rise
mere hours ago
inspired this dearth of crowds.
As I stroll,
an empty gate beckons
to do my morning dance of tai chi.
Shamelessly, I accept
the invitation.
A fine start
for a long day of travel.
Comment: When you get to be my age, you don't worry about going into a quiet corner and practicing along with healing the soul. Almost every airport I have flown into has a place to do the dance of tai chi.
A few of the boutique type shops in downtown Vermillion, OH.
Sun setting over the wetlands near the large Vermillion pier.
Looking back toward the walkway entrance to the Vanderbilt Mansion
My books and products are purchasable online.
My work currently appears in seven books. Four are offered for sale online. To order any of the four, click here. The newest books, What's Next? (2016) and Beyond Time and Back (2015) are currently available through Amazon.
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We returned to Utah and then two quick trips to Ohio, one to attend two tai chi workshops and a ski patrol reunion and the second to celebrate Mom's 94th and my birthday.
No Vignette this Month
If you have a guest vignette you would like to submit, please do so. Not only will I enjoy reading it, but if agreeable with you and space permitting, I will print it in a future issue. The vignette should be written in paragraph form and relate a personal story or event. Equally important, it should fit the overall tenor of this newsletter. Ideally, it should not exceed twenty lines. Please send to bob@poeticaljourneys.com.
Vermillion, Ohio is a beautiful resort community along the shores of Lake Erie. It has a number of canals which host upscale homes.
Asheville, NC is one neat city! I especially enjoyed viewing the varied architecture and old mansions that exist
throughout the city. The Gray Line Trolley was a wonderful way to gain a quick overview. Two drivers,
Matt and Ed, were especially knowledgeable and humorous.
If you enjoy street musicians, you have come to the right place.
Recommendations
Gray Line Trolley tour: To obtain and overview of Asheville, enjoy its tour. Ed and Matt are wonderful tour guides.
Asheville and Area Restaurants
Laughing Seed Cafe, Asheville, NC: There are hundreds of restaurants from which to choose. I am suggesting one in the city. Even though it is vegetarian and vegan, there are many options that I believe meat eaters will also enjoy.
A few miles outside of Asheville in the resort community of Black Mountain
is a small restaurant Thai Basil. Our group had a wonderful meal there.
Our Ohio friends, Jan, and I took a Wednesday evening break from the tai chi conference to enjoy a Thai meal at a local restaurant.
Please take a look at the online book and gift pages.
..........................When many think of Asheville, they think of the Biltmore Estate. Pictured is the front view.
Peering out from the mansion, you see the vast lands that were once owned by the Vanderbilts–
all you see including the first mountain.
Correction: In the picture above Family and Formal dining rooms should be reversed.
Quotable Quotes
"Finding your passion isn't just about careers and money. It's about finding your authentic self. The one you've buried beneath other people's needs." - Kristin Hannah
"Put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard." - Anne Sexton
"All true artists, whether they know it or not, create from a place of no-mind, from inner stillness" - Eckhart Tolle
"Don't despair if your heart has been through a lot of trauma. Sometimes, that's how beautiful hearts are remade; they are shattered first. - Yasmin Mogahed
A Bit of Humor
A bit of laughter is healthy for the soul
Grandparents
I didn't know if my granddaughter had learned her colors yet, so I decided to test her. I would point out something and ask what color it was. She would tell me, and always she was correct. But it was fun for me, so I continued.
At last, she headed for the door, saying sagely, "Grandma, I think you should try to figure out some of these yourself!"
Pictured is a small portion of the Blue Ridge YMCA Assembly located in Black Mountain, NC. In this beautiful
setting we enjoyed Dr. Paul Lam's annual workshop. If you love tai chi or think you want to learn more
definitely mark your calendar for his next one in the Portland, OR area in early June, 2018. You won't
be disappointed. Click here to view Dr. Lam's current workshops.
This stately building is where I spent an intensive week training in tai chi push-hands.
PJ Forum
If you have comments, recommendations, or suggestions for the PJ, please e-mail them to bob@poeticaljourneys.com. While I often cannot print everyone, I personally respond to all. (On editing: I often eliminate the paragraphing to save space.)
_______________________________
There were no specific comments regarding the May Issue from readers this month. However, over a hundred wished me a happy birthday via Facebook. Bev even sent me an electronic card. Many thanks!
To the End of Time and Back: An Epic Journey Review taken from Amazon
"The new novel, To the End of Time and Back is a skillful account of two lovers on an 'Epic Journey,' racing through time and history to learn life-changing truths. Their spectral mentor, Arundel, sends them through difficult travels, but their relationship endures and remains strong despite physical, and psychological stress. Powerful emotions such as fear, anger and happiness, combine with lust, pain and sexuality to help them learn. Written in verse form, the story is an epic poem, painted to portray the duality of mankind throughout dimensions of human history that is sometimes cruel and horrific. The reader will come to know and understand what is being described and will certainly enjoy the stimulating elegance of the story and the philosophy. A thoroughly enjoyable read that is certain to make you think." - David from Utah
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Other Reviews (They have been edited for length. Thank so much to each of you.)
"I finished your book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was much easier to follow by having the whole thing in front of me, and reading as much as I wanted at a time. I felt pretty weary after bouncing around in time for many hundreds of years, but I was relieved to know that at least part of the world survived 'Armageddon'. What a feat you have performed." - Jim
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"I wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed your latest book To the End of Time and Back. When I bought the book I had no idea what to expect. Once I started reading it, I didn't want to put it down. I had fun reading it from A to Z and everything in between." - Art from Park City, UT
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"Your book touched places deep within my soul. I could read it over and over again, Bob. Job Well Done!" - Bobbie from Texas
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"Well, Bob! I am rather blown away by your book. Finished it yesterday, and it only took four days, which means I was intrigued and wanted to know how the book ends. I'm a slow, deep reader and since my profession is writing and editing, I edit continuously as I read. Can't help it! But this book was worth dropping everything for and reading to the end. I admit to cynicism about your claim that it would change me, and I don't know that it has just yet but it won't be leaving my heart and head for a long time, and change could happen. I'm impressed that the book actually lived up to your claims for it. . . . I'm intrigued by this book because it rings so true, and I am therefore tempted to believe you actually were given the gift of this dictation. But if not and this is fiction, you have written one hell of a book, masquerading amazingly as non-fiction ... which is indeed one of the goals of fiction." - Kimberly
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"WOW! WOW! WOW! I read it in one sitting and found so many things you wrote about 'true' for what I know and feel about past lives I've lived. Actually, the chapter about the Holocaust was something I couldn't bear to read–too sad and painful. (I've always felt that way about that period of history.) . . . it was very well done, Bob. Just beautifully done. I'm looking for the movie. . . I'm sure others will feel connected to this book just as I did. AMAZING. Just AMAZING. I couldn't put it down. There was so much anticipation with each chapter it hooked me from the very beginning. . ." - An Ohio Reader
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"I read your book a couple weeks ago. You are lucky we don't live close enough for me to call you to discuss it! It was interesting and easy to read. I liked the format. It reminded me of Many Masters, Many Lives by Brian L. Weiss (which was not that quick to read). Have you read that? . . . Anyway, kudos on the book -- on all your books. . ." - A Reader from Arizona
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"Your newest release takes the reader to places deep within. It makes one ponder all things about life itself. Many authors have written about reincarnation, but yours goes deeper. Through an eternal relationship between two souls, you describe all the human emotions one can feel. The book takes you to historical times and places around the globe, making you feel as if you are part of the beautiful relationship of A~ and Z~. After reading, they will become a part of you." - A Reader
Reader Demographics
States- AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, HI, IA, IL, IN, KS, MI, NC, ND, NY, OH, OR, SC, TX, UT, VA, VT, WV, and WI;
Canadian Provinces - BC, ON, and QC;
Countries - Australia, Belgium, Canada, England, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, Turkey, UK, U.S., and Venezuela.
........Changes in this section will be updated each month.
If your state, province, or country is not mentioned, please let me know.
To read some of the back issues of the PJ, go to here.
The next issue will go out on July 30, 2017.
Until next time - joy and peace,
Bob
PJPolicies Guest Poetry: Often readers send me a poem stating they would like it included in the PJ. Many of the poems are well written. Although I enjoy reading them, at this time I do not include guest poetry as part of this newsletter. Instead, I suggest that they submit them for inclusion in the Guest Poet section of my web site. A number have chosen to do so. However, time limitations and quality govern the number that will be accepted. I currently am not accepting poetry from minors. ----------------------------- Guest Vignettes: On occasion, I publish guest vignettes submitted by one of my readers. If a guest vignette is submitted and selected, the author understands that there is no remuneration provided; the vignette will be included in the e-mailed and web site versions; and will remain posted until I choose to remove it from the site. In all cases, the guest vignette remains the property of the guest author who has given permission for its usage as described in sentences one and two.
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------------------------------ Recommendations: All recommendations are personal ones offered for your information. I receive no remuneration of any kind from the sources or individuals being recommended – other than when I recommend purchasing my books. Actually, many are never aware of their listing. One may ask, "Why do you provide recommendations for specific establishments or locations, especially since many of your readers are worldwide and may never be able to use the information?" The key word is "may." When I travel, I plan much of the itinerary myself. This planning includes reading and listening to recommendations from professional and personal sources. My wish is that any suggestions provided will assist some readers as they make their plans. (Incidentally, I have already received feedback that readers use them.)
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