Linda K Sienkiewicz

Writing life, line by line

Vampira – She’s like Family

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Shirtail Relatives My cousin says we should call ourselves "shirttail relatives" of Vampira. Maila Nurmi, aka Vampira, was born in 1921 in Petsamo, Finland. My grandmother, who was also born in Finland, had the same last name. They both lived in Ohio for a spell. Who knows -- maybe they were indeed distant cousins. Vampira claimed she was related to the Finnish Olympian, Paavo Nurmi, so maybe … [Read more...]

Reading in Public: How I Conquered my Fears

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Most people are terrified to speak in public. As a writer who's read in more coffee shops and libraries than I can count, I was once terrified, too. Here are two of my worst moments, and 10 thoughts about how to get over your fears of public speaking. Very first reading The very first time I read a poem in a tiny coffee shop in southeast Detroit, I had backed up to lean against a wall to keep … [Read more...]

How I Learned to Be a Friend

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I don't remember how old I was when I met Jennifer. Maybe six or seven. She and her family moved into a house three doors from ours on a quiet cul-de-sac with only 20 other houses with great big yards in Independence, Ohio. My only playmate until then was a boy. My heart just about burst with joy when I met Jen. All Day, Every Day It seemed we were together nearly every day, all day. Inside, … [Read more...]

Happinesss: When Things Don’t Go As Planned

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The husband said he was going to prepare me for our ten-day trip to Singapore (he often travels overseas for work) by mentioning that things never go exactly as planned. I don't think he ever could have anticipated this hiccup though. You see, we never got on the plane. We never even got past check in. Singapore bound It was a Monday, the first of February. We were excited and happy when we … [Read more...]

What, Why, How: Faye Rapoport DesPres

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Welcome Faye Rapoport DesPres to my What, Why, How Series about creativity! What: For much of my creative writing career I have focused on observing life in this time and place and examining not only how various incidents and memories in my own life have affected me personally, but also how they relate to the more universal human experience. In my memoir-in-essays Message From a Blue Jay, … [Read more...]