January 2016 – Sandy Milczarek

dolphins in waves

Do you believe in magic?

According to my dictionary app, magic is the art of producing a desired effect or result through the use of incantation or various other techniques that presumably assure human control of supernatural agencies or the forces of nature.

In that case, ferocious prayer could possibly be a form of magic.

Let me go back to a beautiful August day on the South Jersey Shore. I knew the time was drawing near when my first Young Adult novel was on its way to being published, more than likely self-published. It was close to ready. But . . . was I ready? I knew that the other side to self-publishing was the whole marketing piece. At some point, I would be making some type of public appearance: book signings, author talks, interviews, etc. Even the thought of the traditional author book cover photo made me shake in my sandals.

The problem? I was overweight. An issue I have dealt with most of my life. In fact, I was at the point where I truly felt it was impossible for me to get down to a reasonable size. I was extremely self-conscience, but diets had done nothing but increase my weight over a period of time. I know there’s the thought of “be happy with yourself no matter what” and loving yourself. Uh . . . this never worked for me.

I sat on the beach, uncomfortable in my body. I was already having some auto immune problems with muscle pain, so I had been gluten free for a year. I felt better, but still no weight loss.

My husband and I walked into the surf for a refreshing swim. I felt inspired. I began to pray. I prayed to the Great All. To the Blessed Mother, the Star of the Sea. To the spirit of the ocean, mother of all life on the earth. I prayed ferociously. Wildly. With my whole being, I laughed and prayed as I stood firm and exulted in the power of God as each wave pummeled my body. I prayed for health. I prayed for wisdom on what steps I needed to take to achieve this health. I was joyous. I leaped high and played in each wave’s swell, flinging my arms wide to the ocean.

Exhausted and humming with the power of my ferocious prayer, I collapsed on the beach blanket and fell asleep for half an hour. Shortly after awakening, I sat up to look at the ocean. I saw something directly in front of us in the surf. What was it? Three dolphins playing in the surf exactly where I had wildly prayed. I called my husband’s attention to them, to make sure I wasn’t seeing things. Yes. He saw the three dolphins, too. As many times as I’ve been to the beach, I’ve never had seen dolphins come in so close to the shore and play in the surf as it breaks on the sand.

I was awestruck. I had sent out my prayer, my plea over the vastness that is the ocean. The ocean responded with the magic of three dolphins, playing, as I had been, in the surf. Coincidence? Some would say that. But I chose to own the Great All’s reply – “message received.”

So what happened? An inner urging, that small still voice that’s so hard to hear anymore with the world’s clamor at my door. Stop eating refined sugar. Could I do this? It wasn’t until October that I vowed to eliminate all sugar from my diet. It’s the most difficult thing I’ve ever done. And then . . . I began to lose weight. Slowly. But surely. I dropped sizes. I no longer have to buy women’s plus size fashions. I don’t weigh myself, that’s a non-issue, but I feel better. I have no target weight goal. I trust that my body will find what’s healthy for me. Even now, more than a year after I went sugar free, I’m still slowly dropping the pounds. Believe me, I’m far from thin, but in a much better place than before.

Pray. No matter your belief system or to whom you pray. All is One. It’s your conversation with the infinite universe. Even if you question your belief or have none at all. Try it. It’s simple. It will magically bring direction to your life, as the act of asking clears your thinking about what you want or help you may need.

Here’s a few lines from my Young Adult novel, Rebels from Olympus:

Rosa jumped back into the limo. “If I knew any prayers, I would say one now.”

Diana folded her hands together and said, “God, please help us now. Thank you.” She turned her head to Rosa. “There. Done”

“That was efficient.” Rosa fluttered her eyes.

And so it is.

Stay alert for the answer. It may come in the most curious way and at a time you don’t expect.

Rebels from Olympus

Ever since three rebellious gods moved in next door, life has never been the same for Justus. His mom plays Twister with a goddess. The secret love of his life kisses him. His evil step-grandmother tries to kill him.

Rebels from Olympus by Sandy Milczarek | BookShop

Identity can be a killer in this Young Adult fantasy thriller. Destiny calls.…

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Let me say this at the start . . . I am not hitching my humble novel to the great star power of David Bowie (Ziggy Stardust) or Alan Rickman (Severus Snape). I am, however, intriqued by the one common thread by which we are associated – the lightning bolt.

A lightning bolt, in unscientific terms, is a heavenly event of charged particles seeking balance and manifesting on the earthly plane with a flash of light and booming sound. It can kill, injure, destroy. It can also bring a flash of inspiration. Benjamin Franklin “discovered” electricity by flying a kite in a thunderstorm, which eventually changed how the world was powered. The ancients perceived the lightning bolt as a weapon or message from the heavenly gods.

I have a crystal in my collection called a fulgurite. These “lightning stones” are made when a bolt of lightning strikes the sand, and the heat of the strike, some three thousand degrees, fuses the sand together to make a hollow crystal. It is literally the imprint of lightning striking the earth. Powerful stuff.

Last week was a tough one in the entertainment world. We’ve lost some influential cultural icons. On the other hand, it’s within our loss that these stars have found completion . . . a re-union with their eternal selves. When an inspired talent dies, I believe that the wisdom and passion they carried with them on their earthly journey become accessible to us. A path of magic stardust is left in their wake which we can claim. It’s there for us in the act of asking.

What would I ask of David Bowie? Freedom. To be who or however I want to be without the internal self-critism I struggle with as a woman. David strutted across the stage of life with identity du jour fervor.

Alan Rickman? Of course, I identify the most with his character of Severus Snape in Harry Potter. My request is more of a stretch here. Of the actor or the character? Of the character, my request would be that of undying passion. For the one great love of his life. Always. For me, passion for life in all ways.

The actor? Diction and the melodious timber of voice. Listening to Alan Rickman speak was like eating the creamiest butter melted on warm toast. A satisfaction I can describe in no other way.

In working on the cover design of Rebels from Olympus with my artist friend, Marygrace Antkowski, I had no idea of what the cover should look like. She shared some drawings with me, which primed my visual pump, and, in a very symbiotic way, we came up with the cover design. I saw a big impact cover, like a comic book, as Justus, the protagonist, creates his own comics in the novel. I saw a yellow lightning bolt streaking across the cover. In my story, Jupiter used his lightning bolt to whisk aways rebellious gods who were disobeying his rules.

Last week, a soundless lightning bolt named death hit us hard – striking our hearts with loss and grief. We see our stars as immortals, cultural gods who cannot be touched by death. We mourn when they do die, but they whisper to us in our thoughts and dreams, “Carry on. All ways.”