writing

100 Things You Love About Somebody

/ Jessica / 12 Comments

Ten years ago, a friend and I both wanted to write a book. The trouble was, we were both stumped on how to go about doing it.

We decided to do a 30 Book Writing Challenge where we would alternate days , each choosing a topic for one chapter. At the end of 30 days, we’d each have a 30 chapter book.

30 chapters on various subjects in 30 days was challenging because to have a book make sense, it helps if it’s focused on one central theme.

My book was called, “Me and My Kola.” My Kola is my boy.

I geared all of the daily chapter topics to being a mom and things we did that tied into that subject. At the end of each chapter, I added a challenge for readers to do.

For instance, some of those topics included:

  • Butterflies
  • Old Photos
  • Grandmas
  • County Fair
  • My Favorite Book
  • Ice Cream
  • Celebrate
  • Pets
  • Beautiful Things

Writing that many different things in 30 days was fun and exhausting! Ha ha. But, we pushed through it.

My very favorite one is called, “100 Things I Love About My Kid.” Reading it now is quite a treat. Things I’ve forgotten about that we had done are there on the page.

At the end of the 100 things about him, the challenge was to write 100 things about whoever was reading’s child. I told about telling my momma that I wished she’d make one of things she loved about me.

She did.

I was reading over her list this morning, and my oh my, what a gift it is to have now, 10 years later. She passed last March and you know how much mommas are missed when they’re gone.

So, today I thought I’d put the idea out there for you to maybe make a list of things you love about your kids or spouse or parents or friends or siblings or family, just because.

I’ve never done one for my husband, I think I’ll do that. I’ve done them for my mom and my dad. Here’s a link to my dad’s I did in 2019, if you’d like to see it.

https://unmeasuredjourneys.com/2016/06/19/

I’d love to know if you make a list of things you love about somebody. It doesn’t have to be 100 things, if that seems too hard. Maybe start with 10 or 20, then build from there.

Thank goodness we did that book challenge so long ago. Because of it, I have that wonderful list from my momma. Nothing better than that.

words I wrote in my book about 100 things and my momma

Thanks for being here! Hope you have a lovely day!

Jessica

©️ COPYRIGHT 2023 Unmeasured Journeys

©️ COPYRIGHT 2023 Jessica Adam

Keep on Writing

/ Jessica / 26 Comments

A WordPress notification popped up just now. Apparently, it’s my 7 year anniversary on this blog. Whoa, that seems a bit unreal. 7 years?

Back then, I was one of those, “Blog?? Oh no, not me! I’m NEVER going to have a blog! No sir! Ugh uh. Hard pass.”

A sudden week’s worth of hospital days/ mystery illness changed that. In the midst of night time hours, while my family slept, I started this blog.

I was sooooooo nervous. I’d spent a lifetime doing what I love doing- writing and taking photographs, but put them out into the world? Umm, no.

My mom was not onboard. She couldn’t really get her mind around what a blog was or why in the world I thought I needed one. It reminds me of the movie, “Julie and Julia” where Julie’s mom has the same sort of reactions.

I carried forward anyway and mom became one of my top readers. She signed up for email alerts. She got notified and read all my posts.

It didn’t seem to take long for her to understand my sudden urge to blog. She stepped right up and into this blogging adventure.

She stood by me when I had zero WP follows and stuck with me when I had 100.

She’d comment on my posts, a few words here and there about what she learned or liked.

Heck, she’d even welcome me back after I had long dry spells in writing. And, I have had some looooooong dry spells!!!

I

Miss

That

Last week I considered quitting this blog.

Seriously.

I have been so absolutely torn about HOW to write about loss, carry forward with other writing, and circle back to loss if I need to. It is absolutely exhausting trying to figure out how to write right now.

Being totally open, to a bit vulnerable, then switching to regular stuff, only to need to write more vulnerable stuff?

Eeks.

It’s like a teeter totter that’s lost it’s balance.

“Forget it,” I thought. “This is too hard. No wonder people don’t write about this! I’m quitting!!!!!”

But, teeter totters don’t get up and walk off the playground, so neither will I.

When I started this blog all those years ago, I did it on the premise that if I could help one person, I’d keep on writing.

ONE person. That’s a pretty darn good reason to write.

And, you know what?

I didn’t see this until RIGHT this second, but dang, maybe that one person, for today anyway, is me.

Here’s to 7 more years!!!

Thank you for reading.

Jessica

zinnia we planted in memory of my momma

© COPYRIGHT 2022 Unmeasured Journeys

*** all writing and photo are mine

Finding My Way

/ Jessica / 20 Comments

For weeks, I’ve been standing in an imaginary knee deep scenario, stuck. My knees aren’t really stuck, but my writing is.

My post about the fair was preceded the exact same morning with three hours of writing. The post I was working on contained the subjects of “I don’t know how to this!!! I don’t know how to write about loss one day and normal stuff the next.”

Those words did not flow out easily. I yanked and pulled and made them come out. They were about:

  • what it’s like to talk about loss and crying and missing someone, then not knowing how to change the subject
  • what it feels like to be stuck in not knowing how to be a carefree type of writer that now feels strapped to loss one minute then wanting to share about travel the next
  • about being a good writer like my great grandma, while at the same time, not knowing how to carry forward in this blog and feeling a bit vulnerable because I’ve shared a lot and don’t know how to continue writing

I did not hit ‘publish’ on that post. Instead, I hit the backspace button and erased every single word. Immediately afterwards, I wrote the post about the fair and sent it off into the world.

Why did I back the other post out?

It just didn’t feel right.

I couldn’t get the words to match what I wanted to say.

Bottom line: I’m trying to find my way in my writing. I am finding my way through loss. I just need to find my way somehow in both.

Thank you for reading. You’ve been so great in offering support during all this. I appreciate it so very, very much.

❤️ Jessica

zinnia planted in remembrance
Squealer-I couldn’t find her last night,
but she found her way home

© COPYRIGHT 2022 Unmeasured Journeys

** all writing and photos are mine

Switchbacks and Waves

/ Jessica / 14 Comments

This blog was started in 2015. Mostly its been filled with some nature photographs, some lessons on acquired wisdom, and things about family.

Lately, my writing feels somewhat scattered. A post on this, a post on that, then bam, a post about my momma.

What I am figuring out is, grief is not linear.

It doesn’t start on such and such day then make a straight line to an end date. Mine, anyway, feels like more of a zig zag or perhaps like some winding mountain road. Calm on the straight aways, yet intense on the curves.

Another thing I’m learning is, the path of losing someone isn’t all encompassing. Sure, in the beginning it can feel like that. It did for me. At that time, every passing moment was a reminder that my momma wasn’t here.

Now though, instead of grief being a constant aching, it comes more sporadically. One moment fine, the next moment tears. Two days fine, the next one tears. Like waves.

Oh my gosh, waves. For weeks I’ve been trying to remember a song my momma loved. It just now came to me: ”Wave on Wave” by Pat Green.

Now that I think about it, mountain roads and waves have something in common: they go back and forth. They have this beauty and calmness that seem to balance out even after rockslides and storms.

Maybe life is similar. Maybe writing is, too. Maybe instead of me thinking my words have to be all organized into a certain category, I could just let them show up, whenever and however they do.

My back field is full of thorns, stickers, and stumps. Some spots are a mess to walk through. Sometimes my skirt gets snagged and my ankles get scratched. Hmm… that sounds a bit like grief.

But, you know what? My back field is also full of wildflowers and there’s a doe and her baby living back there, even in all those stickers and even in all those weeds.

Perhaps me writing all this on a random Sunday morning is a reminder that the beauty in my writing will prevail, even if the subject matter is out of order and things feel messy.

And, maybe it’s even a reminder, that there can be a beautiful-ness in grief, too. Not on the wind raging, hail filled days, of course, but maybe in the quiet, “a memory brings a smile days.”

What I’m going to do is just trust my writing. Scattered posts or not. I see now that the switchbacks can allow for some amazing scenery and the waves can bring solace.

Thank you for being here.

Jessica

some curvy Forest Service road
a blurry wildflower from my land
and CoCo the kitten
Queen Anne’s Lace standing out
among the stickers and thorns

©️Copyright 2022 Unmeasured Journeys

I Have an Art Blog

/ Jessica / 9 Comments

In November 2021, I started another blog. An art blog. It was a few weeks after I did my first craft show.

It’s called Jeweled Again by Jessica. I take old jewelry and make pieces of art. I have done 3 craft shows so far. The last one was in between mom’s services. I wrote about it on there.

Also, I follow some of your blogs with both of my sites, because for awhile there, I was only blogging on one sight at a time. I’m trying to learn to multitask, ha ha.

Here’s the link if you’d like to see it.

https://jeweledagainbyjessica.com

Hope you have a great day!

Jessica

my art I make on jeweledagainbyjessica