Ever feel like just when You think you’re calm and in control, And a careless word or act Just rips up your soul?
That calm you thought you’d cultivated Was actually as unstable as mercury; And just like that, from coping, You’re drowning again in misery.
Like a slight disturbance to a pond’s surface Causes ripples that resonate all around, Even the slightest of prodding, Causes a pain so intense, it’s the only sound.
The sound of your pounding heart, Roaring in your ears; The sound of the wretched sobs, Torn out of you with your tears.
So how to find a calm that isn’t mercurial? That’ll keep you steady in a storm tossed pond? All I know is what’s helped me, And that’s faith and hope in a divine bond.
~ Written by Jayne Michellane a.k.a. Lady Jayne on 30 January 2013. Photo taken on 28
January 2013.
The water in these shades made me think of mercury,
and
recent events made me think of "Mercurial Calm".
This poem is dedicated to all who are brave enough to open the doors
within themselves.
~*~Opening
The Doors Within~*~
I walked
through the hallways of my mind,
Searching and searching for something…
Something I felt I needed to find.
There were many doors,
I saw along the corridors,
But when I tried to open them,
Some would open, but some were jammed;
Some were locked up tight,
And staring at those sealed doors,
Something just didn’t feel right.
In the ones that could open easily,
I could peer in and see,
All those wonderful memories,
Of times when I was happy.
In the rooms where the doors
Were rather stuck,
There were echoes of times,
When I was a little down on my luck.
As I passed the doors,
Through which I could not see,
I wondered and wondered…
Where would I find the keys?
Did I even want to know,
What was on the other side?
Perhaps it was better to leave,
Whatever was there to continue to hide.
One thing I have learned of Life,
To find peace in the midst of strife,
Is that peace actually comes from within,
And being comfortable within my own skin.
But I am not brave enough yet,
To open all the portals;
What can I say?
I am a mere mortal;
So, one day, maybe,
When I am truly ready,
I’ll obtain the keys,
To allow me to fully see…. ME.
~ By Jayne Michellane a.k.a. Lady Jayne, February 2009.
Photo taken 25 August 2012.
"Until God opens the next door for you, praise Him in the hallway." ~ Author Unknown. ♥
WOW. SO DEFINITELY RECOMMENDED!!! Beautiful, real and moving.
It’s been a long while since I finished a book the same day I started it, but I did with this. I couldn’t put On the Island down! Even though I was meant to be doing work at home, this past weekend. I was THAT hooked!!
Sometime
last year, I saw many 5-Star reviews for this book, and I added it,
just waiting for the right time for when I was in the mood for a Blue Lagoon type of story.
I have to admit, though, I felt a little bit concerned about how I would feel about the
huge age difference between the characters, which caused me quite a bit
of discomfort, before I started, as I try my best not to discriminate. I
shouldn’t have worried, though - or doubted my Goodreads friends who loved this - as author Tracey Garvis-Graves does an
excellent job of building and unfolding this touchingly beautiful story of a 30-year
old teacher and summer tutor, Anna Emerson, and 16-year old cancer
survivor, T.J. Callahan, who become stranded on a deserted, uninhabited
Maldivian island when their seaplane crashes.
Anna and T.J. are
stuck on the island for quite a few years and they go through many
harrowing hardships, together, and quite a few seriously
life-threatening ones. As they both fight for survival, battling hunger,
thirst, the elements, boredom, missing their families, predators and
disease, they form an understandably close bond.
As T.J. turns from boy
to man, through trusting each other with their lives, hopes and dreams, relying on each other, mutual respect and
affection, and feeling as if they would spend the rest of their lives alone on that island, their relationship eventually develops to another level.
They realise how they wouldn’t have survived if not for having the other
and how happy they make each other.
A debut novel? No way! This was WONDERFUL! Ms Garvis-Graves draws the reader in and doesn’t let go. The alternating first person point-of-views gives the reader valuable insights into, and a strong sense of connection to, both characters as one is transported onto the island with them. The incorporation of certain global events also made the story feel more grounded in reality and my heart broke again recalling that particular moment in time.
On the Island began as a self-published ebook and Ms Garvis-Graves has now sold the foreign
rights to it to more than 20 countries. I understand the movie rights to it
have also been sold. Very excited for the movie and I hope the makers do it
justice!
I
loved both Anna and T.J. Both of them, for their tenacity and
determination. Anna, for her understanding and care for T.J.; how she
treated him as an equal and not a child. T.J., for his maturity, strength,
pragmatism, honesty and just his utter sweetness. Having battled death a
number of times, T.J. knew what he wanted, and he wanted Anna. What
starts as a boy’s crush and friendship turns into so much more, over the years, and
while Anna battles to do right by T.J., she is surprised by how this
young man makes her feel valued, wanted and respected as a woman as she
never has before.
On the Island is such a beautiful
love story, which would never have developed under different
circumstances. But how would the real world treat their love and how would
it survive off the island?
Okay, there were a few things that
seemed just TOO convenient, like Anna’s suitcase, with quite a bit of
soap and shampoo supplies, a first aid kit, etc. washing up on shore
from the plane wreckage. Of course, it could also be realistic,
depending on the current patterns around that island. Considering how
much of the things from the plane wreck did wash back up on the island,
I’ll go with that scientific explanation! Yes, I’m showing my geekiness
and also my willingness to suspend disbelief. LOL Considering all the
traumatic things that Anna and T.J. go through, I was very happy for all
the things that washed up to make the primitive life on the island just
that little bit easier for them and assisted in their survival. :-)
I learnt what an "atoll" is - a coral island (or islands) that encircles a lagoon partially or completely - and how Maldives has many of them.
The epilogue brought tears to my eyes and I had a big grin on my face, in the end. This is definitely a keeper.
I LOVED IT!
I happened to hear this song the very next day after reading this, entitled Moments, written by the very talented Ed Sheeran, and sung by One Direction. It’s become T.J.’s song to Anna for me. :-) Moments:
One of my favourite quotes:
‘Anna: In
February, I woke up from a nap. A bouquet of flowers gathered from the
various bushes and shrubs scattered around the island lay on the blanket
beside me, a small length of rope wound around their stems. I found T.J. down at the shore. “Someone’s been checking the calendar.” He grinned. “I didn’t want to miss Valentine’s Day.” I kissed him. “You’re sweet to me.” Pulling me closer, he said, “It’s not hard, Anna.” I
stared into T.J.’s eyes, and he started to sway. My arms went around
his neck and we danced, moving in a circle, the sand soft and warm under
our feet. “You don’t need music, do you?” “No,” T.J. said. “But I do need you.”’
There are ripples every day, From words that we say, The thoughtfulness we show, It just won’t go astray, And the hurts that we cause, Won’t easily go away.
How far those ripples go,
We may never know, Yet every kindness shown, Won’t by the winds be blown; For every time we take a moment, To listen, to care, To put ourselves out there,
We may just ease someone’s torment.
Even just the little acts,
Like a smile or a touch, Could have such big impacts, And mean so very much; Like one moment where, You looked in someone’s eyes, By acknowledging you see them there, You may have eased their silent cries.
In bringing someone hope,
We don’t just help that one person cope, For in their lifted state, Others whose lives they touch, May also increase their faith, And thatcan never be too much.
~By Jayne Michellane a.k.a. Lady Jayne on 20 January 2013.
"Remember there's no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every
act creates a ripple with no logical end."
~ Scott Adams
“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word,
a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of
which have the potential
