Reaching Back to Touch My Soul: Thoughts on Love, Laughter and Living

By Linda DePass-Creque

In, Reaching Back to Touch My Soul: Thoughts on Love, Laughter and Living, everyone has a chance to read about the parts of life that matter most: love, laughter, and living a meaningful life. In today's world, which is filled with so much nonessential data that clings to our mind like tissue paper to a shoe. Reaching Back to Touch My Soul gives us a chance to reconnect not only to each other but also to the often forgotten parts of ourselves. The stories and essays in the book came into the world as op-ed pieces for The Virgin Islands Daily News. From different times, places and themes they have emerged as a family of ideas and grown as one.

There are three major themes in the book. The first is Love, the second, Laughter, and the last Living

Choosing Love as the starting point was easy, according to author Linda DePass-Creque, "Love breathes life into everything else. It is from love that everything else flows" The theme Laughter is a potpourri of topics and commentary written to make you smile as you take in its message. The last theme in this delightful book, Living, explores many of life's "basic skills", including coping, understanding, tolerance, friendship and sometimes making sense out of nonsense!

With the wonderful illustrations of each theme , its humor, and its wise, down- to- earth philosophy, this book is well worth reading.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trafford Publishing
• Release date: Jul 6, 2007
• ISBN: 9781490706658

Linda DePass-Creque

Linda De Pas-Creque, Ph.D., is a noted educator, writer, and community advocate. She was born in New York City of Jamaican parents. She received her bachelor's and master's degrees in Education from City University and her doctorate from the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana. However, says Dr. Creque, "I got my sense of humor from my large, lovable, and somewhat 'certifiable' family, along with a sensitivity to the feelings and thoughts of others." Dr. Creque has had a rich and varied career. She is listed in Who's Who in America and Who's Who of American Women. She has taught gifted children in New York City, English in Puerto Rico, and has served as a teacher and/or administrator on all educational levels from preschool to college. In 1987 she was tapped to be the Commissioner of Education for the U.S. Virgin Islands, a position she served in with distinction for eight years. In 1994 she founded the Virgin Islands Institute for Teaching and Learning, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit corporation, to serve the needs of the underserved Virgin Islands children and their parents. The Institute introduced literacy and health programs to provide children with beautiful award-winning books and activities to stimulate young minds. Dr. Creque has traveled extensively throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Europe and has served on numerous boards, including The University of the Virgin Islands Board of Trustees and The National Urban Alliance for Effective Education. Although she has been an educator and community activist, Dr. Creque revealed that her passion has always been writing. "I have written since I was seven years old. Thank goodness, those earlier pieces were lost! I love writing. It is my elixir of choice, but life's pathways do not always allow you to put your passions center stage. Therefore, I have been a 'closet' writer until recently, writing feverishly, fervently, with abandonÑwhile outwardly maintaining a mild-mannered persona." Linda Creque has been married to Leonard J. Creque for over thirty years. They have two children, Leah Creque and Michael Creque.

Book preview

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Linda De Pass-Creque, Ph.D

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© Copyright 2006 Linda De Pass-Creque, Ph.D.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

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otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.

Note for Librarians: A cataloguing record for this book is available from Library

and Archives Canada at www.collectionscanada.ca/amicus/index-e.html

ISBN 978-1-4251-0888-5

ISBN: 978-1-4907-0665-8 (e)

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Contents

Acknowledgement

Introduction

Biographical Notes

Fathers’ Day or Daddy’s Fifteen Minutes of Fame

Changing Definitions of Love

Mentoring for Life

Teaching + Caring = School Success

The Medicine of Laughter

Computer Chronicles

Clutter and Me

Thanksgiving Questions

Suddenly, a Senior

Looking Back to Y2K: The Tale of a Procrastinator

The Infamous Infomercial

The Case of the Broken Zipper

‘Tis the Season…

An Address Book As a Reflection on Life

Spring

Don’t Stop the Carnival—Please

The Grinch Comes in Many Colors

The Summer of 2002 in New York

The Library Defines Your Community

Reality TV?

And Now, a Moment for Our Children

New Year’s Resolutions

The Effects of Stress on the People in America’s Paradise

Following Your Dream

The Meaning of America

References

This book is dedicated to my husband Leonard and

my children Leah and Michael whose mere presence

and unconditional love sustain me.

Acknowledgement

There are many who have contributed to bringing this work to fruition and I would like to say thank you.

First on my list is God whose gift of faith helped me to see this project through. The second goes to my parents because after many, many years just the thought of them and how they lived their lives motivates me. Next is my incredible family who love and support me no matter what road I take. Their thoughts as well as their faces are woven into the text and texture of this work.

Rounding out the list are the best friends anyone could have. The line between family and friendship is often blurred because of the love and encouragement I get from my friends. There is not a time when I turn to them that they are not there to listen and to help. I want to add a special thank you to two special individuals. First, my cousin, Beverly Ann Mohamed, who when I faltered, helped me to the finish line. The second is Louis Ible Jr., a visionary, who took my ideas, dreams, and photos and created the wonderful cover and illustrations that introduce each section of the book. His creativity, patience, and generosity were boundless.

Finally, I would like to thank all of my colleagues, editors and journalists who have always been generous with their time and talents and all the people who were kind enough to speak with me so that I could share their stories with others.

Linda De Pass-Creque

This work was supported, in part, by a grant from The Virgin Islands Council on the Arts.

Introduction

Dear Friend,

Reaching Back to Touch My Soul is a chance to share my thoughts and feelings on the soul-stirring aspects of life through stories and essays. The stories and essays you are about to read are about those characteristics of life that matter most: love, laughter, and living a 360° well-deep kind of existence. In today’s world, which is filled with so much nonessential data that clings to our minds like a piece of tissue paper to a shoe, Reaching Back to Touch My Soul gives us an opportunity to reconnect with the important parts of life that may have fallen from our view. It is a chance to reconnect with one another and, most of all, to pause, reflect, and come in contact with the often forgotten parts of ourselves.

These essays came into the world as op-ed pieces for the Virgin Islands Daily News. They have been honed, reworked, and tempered in the crucible of time. From pieces written at different times, in different places, about different themes, they have emerged as a family and grown as one

The book has three major themes. The first is Love; the second, Laughter; and the final one, Living. Choosing Love as the starting point was easy, because it is from love that everything else flows. It is what makes life

worth the struggle. Laughter is a potpourri of themes, topics, and commentary written to make you smile while you painlessly take in the message. It is based on the philosophy of Mary Poppins that, A spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down. The final section is on Living and all that goes into it. It explores many of life’s basic skills, including, coping, understanding, tolerance, friendship, generosity, and sometimes, trying to make sense out of nonsense !

I hope you get as much joy out of reading Reaching Back to Touch My Soul as I did in writing it. I would love to hear from you. If anything you read pushed your I have to respond button, please email me at [e-mail] or drop me a line at P.O. Box 301954 St. Thomas, Virgin Islands 00803.

Blessings,

Linda De Pass-Creque, Author

Biographical Notes

Linda De Pass-Creque, Ph.D., is a noted educator, writer, and community advocate. She was born in New York City of Jamaican parents. She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Education from City University and her doctorate from the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana. However, says Dr. Creque, I got my sense of humor from my large, lovable, and somewhat ‘certifiable’ family, along with a sensitivity to the feelings and thoughts of others.

Dr. Creque has had a rich and varied career. She is listed in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who of American Women. She has taught gifted children in New York City, English in Puerto Rico, and has served as a teacher and/or administrator on all educational levels from preschool to college. In 1987 she was tapped to be the Commissioner of Education for the U.S. Virgin Islands, a position she served in with distinction for eight years.

In 1994 she founded the Virgin Islands Institute for Teaching and Learning, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit corporation, to serve the needs of the underserved Virgin Islands