I’m sure you’ve seen them: 
10 Great Christmas Gifts, 5 Things to Do With Your Family, 1001 Great Christmas Quotes. Of course, I’ve made those up (maybe they exist, but that’s not my point.) We all fall for the 5 or 10 step programs, ideas, gifts…whatever. So I decided to not do that. Here are just a couple of ideas about Christmas.
Rick
Wisdom and Wrinkles
What life I wonder did you have,
As you your past do view?
Seams and crevasses are your lot,
Your life is nearly through.
Wrinkles have your face possessed,
And crows have walked upon.
Gone is freshness of your youth,
Your smile is nearly gone.
Life you thought would never end,
Those many years ago.
But pass it does and oh so swift,
Tis past before you know.
But something more I yet do see,
Looking through the folds.
It’s something only you can have,
That only you could hold.
Now I know! I see it clear,
I’ve found it in your eyes.
Wisdom’s there, its shining forth,
Claimed by a thousand cries.
Wisdom and wrinkles, I see them there,
Not one but two make you.
You’ve led your life and now be blessed,
I see the inner you.
But now I wonder of my own life,
For your age I do aspire.
Will I the same as you do look,
And have same inner fire?
In This Moment, What Can You Do?
So many things we want to do – so few things 
we do. Why is that?
We wonder, we ponder, we visualize, we dream. And in the thinking, we don’t DO anything. So how do we change and become that which we wish to be?
You Could’ve – You Debated – You Didn’t
Don’t you just love it when a great idea or opportunity 
comes along, you overthink it, and then you let it go? You’ve talked yourself out of it; a one-time thing that is forever gone. And then you always wonder what would have happened if you had only taken the chance and did it?
That happened to me 35 years ago, and I’ve always wondered what could have happened to me, where would I be today if I had made a different choice. At the time, I had to choose between a basketball scholarship and a job that would make me more money over the long run. Guess what I chose? More on that later.
If I Didn’t Have To Guess About Life
I wouldn’t have to guess if I’m loved
I wouldn’t have to guess if there’s a God…or a Source…or a Living Universe
Or whatever is out there, that I want in here
If I didn’t have to guess about life
I wouldn’t have to wander the streets alone
I wouldn’t have to guess if others knew I was alive
And knew that they passed me by
If I didn’t have to guess – but just knew
I could cast away my doubts
I could be more
I could achieve more
I could have more
I could love, because I wasn’t so busy guessing
But I’m left guessing
Left wondering
Left doubting
Left less secure
Left second-guessing myself
Left alone with my unanswered questions
But why must I guess?
Why must I seek?
Why must I feel alone among many?
Because to guess, to ask, to want
Is the way there from here
That Foggy Future We Don’t Know
“I watch people fade into the fog of their future as I gaze unknowingly into the haze of mine.”
Ah, the future. What to do? How to choose? I want to be successful. Will I be? Will I be happy, have the things I want, live a good life? Being rich and famous would solve everything, right? Or maybe, for those of you who know the song, it’s an attitude of “Que sera, sera. Whatever will be, will be.”
I’m sure most of you have heard the phrase, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” Great advice – if you’re feeling tough. Not so great when you’re second-guessing and flip-flopping over every decision because you’re afraid of making the wrong one, so you don’t make any (which is a decision, by the way).
I Reach
I feel defeated
everywhere
I turn
in the middle
is me
Four walls
surround
a heart
beats alone
in silence
I reach
fearfully
to touch
a hand
passes by
Do as
others do
and wait
the day
will pass
This day lived
by many
yet one
I live
alone
I reach
fearfully
to touch
a hand
grasping too
A Writer’s Vision – Stay True To You
Every writer has something unique to them that they must say. No one has your experiences, your view on life, and the words that you use like you do. That’s why writers are always read and followed…but only if you stay true to you.
You’re not Stephen King, John Grisham, or even Rick Jantz (that’s me). And you don’t want to be. It doesn’t make sense to copy that which you aren’t. But it does make sense to study them and follow their “how to write formulas” because they work (mine may still be debatable but give me time).
Writing is not a pastime, something to be done when you have the time or when it’s convenient. Writing is a “have to do” attitude that takes you off of your couch, away from your TV and to your private spot that releases the pent up passion and stories you have to tell.