Insights

By Beth Hall McCandless

This book is a collection of writings created over many years. It chronicles the inner journey of a shy and rather nave young woman into mid-life with a much broader sense of herself and the world. Her growing awareness and depth of perception are fueled by the observations and expressions of personal belief she makes here.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Feb 25, 2013
• ISBN: 9781481707312

Beth Hall McCandless

Beth Hall McCandless was born in 1954 and raised in Detroit, MI. Motivated from a very young age to improve herself as a person, she has always been introspective and somewhat analytical, but with a perspective of the social, spiritual and artistic elements of life as well as the physical. There has always been a dichotomy in her life, in part evidenced by her profession as a contract programmer and her avocation as a singer/actress in amateur and semi-professional groups. Her job took her to Indianapolis, IN in 1995, where a year later she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. This forced her to leave both her career and her avocation behind and deepened her inner exploration. As part of her health regimen she moved to Tucson, AZ in 2001, where she currently lives. The ensuing years have brought her the realization that writing is not just a hobby for her, that in fact it is a critical element in her life and to her personal growth. And from here she stands poised for an even greater journey.

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© 2013, 2014 by Beth Hall McCandless. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse    10/06/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4817-0729-9 (softcover)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-0730-5 (hardcover)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-0731-2 (eBook)

ISBN: 978-1-4969-0996-1 (audio)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013900833

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Through A Glass Darkly

Toilet Paper Legacy

Listen

H

Jigsaw Puzzle

Paper Chase

Ode To Star Trek

Thoughts On Words

More Than I Can Say

The Child Within

Metamorphosis

Making A Difference

To A Soul Mate

Cloudscapes

Blank Adversity

Love Me

Living On The Edge

Come Home

Voice Of Experience

The Power Of Peace

Patience

Empath

My Life With Chronic Illness

Going Nowhere

A Gift From The Sun

The Case For The Arts Why We Must Teach Them To Our Children

In An Instant

Awakening

One

Hope Vs. Trust

Reflections

On Fathers And Daughters

Passions

Nothing To Say

Respite

The Thought

Coping Strategies

The Thread

Doubt

Suspension

Patience

Opening

Friends

Candlefire

Falling

Influences

Double Sunset

Songs Of Healing

For You.

Life

is not a

State of Being;

it is a

Process

of

Becoming.

This book is about the

Process.

Through A Glass Darkly

Misty, vague, uncertain, veiled,

Vision bent in shades of grey;

Truth refracted, light impaled,

As a dream from far away.

So to see the view before,

‘Twixt the raindrops and the tears;

Wipe the pane, expunge, restore,

Dry the eyes, allay the fears.

Clarity, the new-found vista,

Warms the heart and heals the mind.

New—familiar?—well come is the

Long-sought pathway, now defined.

Toilet Paper Legacy

My grandmother used to tell us, when we visited my grandparents in their cottage on Lake Ontario, that the septic system was limited, so we were only allowed to use THREE sheets of toilet paper at a time. Being fairly young and impressionable, and not wanting to cause trouble (especially that kind!), I didn’t question this but took it to heart and followed her directions scrupulously.

Some years later, as a teen, I remember this same grandmother (my father’s mother) talking about her days as a boarder before she married my grandfather. She was recounting that her landlady was rather austere, and required that only ONE sheet of toilet paper be used at a time. She said she told the landlady—somewhat stiffly—that she would buy her own toilet paper. When I heard this story, I chuckled inwardly, wondering if my grandmother remembered giving us similar, if slightly more lenient, instructions. I never brought it up to her, not wanting to embarrass her, but I still wonder, to this day, if she ever made the connection.

Recently I had occasion to create a memorial for both my parents. At one point a family friend pulled me aside to tell me a little story. She remembered that, one day, she and my mother had gone into the ladies’ room, and my mother had