Resolution Check Up!

Three weeks ago, I made a post outlining four autumn resolutions. Now is as good a time as any to check up on how I'm doing!

1. contemplative exercise: Well, I meditated daily for about a week, then I returned to my comfy fall back of contemplative art (as evidenced by all the jewelry I've been making), with a few random meditations thrown in at night. No yoga yet, but I've been taking an average of two dogs out for a mile walk (in the same go!) every other day! I usually take my dog Rosie and one of my parents' dogs, Dakota or Ginger, while one of my parents takes the other dog. I imagine it must look rather funny to passersby.

2. doctoral applications: I have completed my University of Chicago and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, but I still have five more applications to do! Yikes.

3. novel: I have not worked on my novel at all, but I have been writing other things: short stories, a young adult fantasy book, and poetry. Perhaps I'll post a sample later!

4. etsy: is up an running! As I mentioned in my last post, I've finally put some things up for sale. I've even been getting a few views, which makes me very happy!

All in all, I'm proud of myself for working on these resolutions as much as I have been. Just goes to show you that any time can be the right time to make some positive changes in your life!

Next goal: get out of the house more! :D

Of novels and Mnemosyne

Since the completion of my thesis, I've been diligently working on my novel. It's a yet-to-be-named ghost story set in Wales, imbued with a theme of self discovery and awakening identity. Thirty-one pages so far, with the characters and incidents dripping onto the pages effortlessly.

My main character is a young American woman who moves to Wales hoping to reconnect with her deceased father's spirit. She moves in with her aunt, her father's sister, and helps her renovate the decrepit family inn located in a tiny town. The town's claim to fame is a crumbling Cistercian abbey. During her stay, my main character experiences two ghosts: one of a monk and one of a young Victorian woman.

She sets out to uncover their stories and, in the process, discovers her own.

The entire story flashed in my mind while I was visiting Tintern Abbey in 2008. I've been obsessed with it since. I even dream from my characters' perspectives.

Here are some pictures of the place that so inspired me: