My Stroke of Inspiration

By Ann Marie Thomas

Ann Marie Thomas had a stroke in work in May 2010. In the long hours in hospital, she began to write poetry on her mobile phone, laboriously one letter at a time. She had written poetry before, but occasionally. Now it poured out of her, 22 poems in all. Verse, doggerel, blank verse. About her stroke, her treatment, her faith, and totally random things like the rain outside her window. The poems talk about suffering and patience, therapy and faith. If you are a stroke survivor or know someone who is, these poems will comfort, encourage and inspire you.

This does not claim to be high class poetry, it claims to be honest. In these poems you will find despair and hope, frustration and determination, humour and faith. They are shared because they might encourage or inspire someone who is going through something similar. At times like this, you can find that God is very close, you just have to look up and not down at your problems. And most of all, never give up.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ann Marie Thomas
• Release date: May 9, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370810109

Ann Marie Thomas

Writing poetry and making up stories since I was a child, I only started to write seriously when my children were grown. My main ambition is to write science fiction, but along the way I got fascinated by local history and distracted by a major stroke. I wrote poetry about my stroke and spent my recovery writing a local history book. Taking early retirement gave me the chance to concentrate on my writing. I have been married for over 45 years, with 4 grown children and 8 grandchildren.I had already written up my research into the de Braose family before my stroke, but the long hours in hospital gave me time to think about it in detail. Once I came home, rather than sitting doing nothing, I rewrote the book, and taught myself to format and publish in both ebook and print. My husband contacted the art department of the local university, who helped me find a wonderful artist to illustrate my books.Alina, The White Lady of Oystermouth came out as an ebook and in print for the locals and the tourist market at Easter 2012 and it's success gave me the impetus to write another, Broken Reed: The Lords of Gower and King John, which came out in September 2013.The 800th anniversary of Magna Carta in 2015 led me to adapt and enlarge my Broken Reed book and produce The Magna Carta Story: The Layman's Guide to the Great Charter. This came out in May 2015.During my research I found other fascinating stories which are not long enough for a book, so I collected them together into Medieval Gower Stories, published in October 2017.I am now working on another great story from Gower medieval history: Swansea Miracle.When I was in hospital I wrote a flood of poetry, about my stroke, my therapy, my faith, and random things like the rain outside my window. I have now published them as an ebook and print, My Stroke of Inspiration. 22 poems in all: verse, doggerel, and blank verse. The poems talk about suffering and patience, therapy and faith, and are surprisingly cheerful. If you are a stroke survivor or know someone who is, or just enjoy poetry, these poems will comfort, encourage and inspire you.There is also a Christian non fiction book, Blinded by the Light, warning of the traps Christians can fall into, published in February 2020.I continue to work on my recovery from the stroke, and although I am disabled I lead a very busy life. I am involved in my church and active on social media. I am still writing science fiction, a series called Flight of the Kestrel, about the adventures of the crew of the Fast-Response spaceship the Kestrel. The first book in the series - Intruders - was published in April 2016, and the second - Alien Secrets - was published in October 2017. The third - Crisis of Conscience - was published in June 2021. Watch out for book 4 Planet Fall.

Book preview

My Stroke of Inspiration

by

Ann Marie Thomas

Published by Alina Publishing

Copyright © 2015 Ann Marie Thomas

Smashwords Edition, Licence Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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Table of Contents

Introduction

The Tunnel

A-B-Ouch!

One Small Step

Neglect

Speech Therapy

Back to the River

Night Hours

Then You

Patience

Victim

Wholly Human

Tide

Why Press the Buzzer?

Going Home 1

Help

Praise

Phoenix

Going Home 2

Going Home 3

Escape

Frustration

100 Days

About the Author

Introduction

It was a normal Tuesday morning in work, in May 2010. I was sat at my desk using my computer. It was 9.30, when my hand on the mouse stopped working. I was stunned and couldn't understand it. I went to comment on it to my colleague but found it difficult to speak. Then my leg went numb, and I finally realised