Saturday, August 20, 2005

UPCOMING EVENT: Rep & Rev Writers Conference - Aug 25-26, 2005

THIS THURSDAY AND FRIDAY I'm teaching a workshop, "Performing the Poem," at the Rep & Rev Writers Conference at Dunwoody's Spruill Center for the Arts.

I'll cover voice, body language, pathos, audience, and writing for performance among other things.

For more information, visit the website.

Thursday, August 04, 2005

Healthify with Dr. Heath: A Wellness Column

WHAT PART OF YOUR day do you most look forward to?

If your answer was, "the end," then you may suffer from Fastforwarditis.

Fastforwarditis is a condition of the lower... Life, which emerged in the late 1970's shortly after the invention of the VCR. Symptoms include: an uncontrollable urge to press the fast-forward button (especially when none is available), but also excessive tapping of the foot, jittering of the index finger, frequent eating on the go, finishing other people's sentences (often incorrectly), obsession with the movement of clocks, and a neverending wishing for the ends of the things (the work day, the punch line, your life).

Sufferers of fastforwarditis may find themselves cutting in line, speeding through redlights (to wait at yet another redlight), rushing to work (only to be unable to wait until the work day is over), and always being the first to say good-bye.

Treatment:

1. Slow down. Who knows what blessings await in waiting - in line at the grocery store (you may see a special on ground turkey), at a sit-down restaurant (treating yourself may make you feel special), at the stoplight (look around - you may find a special someone).

2. Enjoy life. Include at least one activity in each day to look forward to - one edifying thing that you love, one thing that makes you want to wake up each morning, one thing that makes you excited to be alive!

3. Make the most of it. If you've got a life, you may as well live it. And if you're gonna live it, why not live it to its fullest? And once the moments are gone, no amount of money can recover them.

Moments are priceless. So, don't rush them along. Hold each one - like a lover in the moonlight, like a gift from God.