Tag: Emily Elizabeth Dickinson

My Abundant Life 4-2-26

On By Heather HoustonIn My Abundant LifeLeave a comment

April 2nd, 2026

Verve: The Secret of Personal Style

“The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience.”

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (American poet; December 10th, 1830 ~ May 15th, 1886)

“Verve is the special ability or talent to pull something off with panache, from a fabulous outfit to an exquisite couplet of poetry. Verve comes into our lives when we dinally trust our instincts. When we take riskes and they payy off. Verve is passion. It’s also the secret of personal style. Verve is focused creative energy, a sense of vitality or zest.”

“And how do we learn to develop a finey honed sense of verve? By paying attention to the details. By accepting each day’s attempt to teach us more about our authenticity. By being constantly on the lookout for the ecstatic experience: what excited us or moves us to tears, what makes the blood rush to our head, our hearts skip a beat, our knees shaky, and our souls sigh.”

“Before my story began…” (Heather Houston 4-2-22)

1972 Me…at my Aunt Carrie’s Baby Shower

“I need to be bold in my exploration of my style to find the balance between panache and simplicity.” (Heather Houston 4-2-22)

“I am finding my style lives in fusion. I love eating in fusion, so why not in my style too. I need to undress this to find out what fusion style means to me authentically.” (Heather Houston 4-2-26)

–Ban Breathnach, Sarah. “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy”. Grand Central Publishing. (1976). Kindle Page 104-105 of 501.

I challenge each of you on this blog series to post comments so we all can grow together.

My Abundant Life 3-5-26

On By Heather HoustonIn My Abundant Life1 Comment

March 5th, 2026

Creating a Hope Chest

“‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers–that perches in the soul…”

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (American Poet; December 10th, 1830 ~ May 15th, 1886)

“Not every one of our desires can be immediately gratified. We’ve got to learn to wait patiently for our dreams to come true, especially on the path we’ve chosen. But while we wait, we need to prepare symbolically a place for our hopes and dreams.”

“Faith is the very first thing you should pack in a hope chest.”

My Bucket List

Hope
Mammoth Cave National Park

“Before my story began…” (Heather Houston 3-5-22)

1972 Me…at my Aunt Carrie’s Baby Shower

“I remember in high school my best friend had spoken about a hope chest. I immediately thought I needed one as well. So, what did I do? Hope…wish…pray my parents would magically read my mind and get me one. Why did I want one? Because the “Jones” were saying I should have one. Apparently those to be married should have one. In retrospect, this was ridiculous. What I was really hoping was that if it magically materialized, it would mean I was worthy, enough…loved. My story was working overtime while I was in high school. Being a late bloomer really sucked…always late to the party!” (Heather Houston 3-5-22)

“I really loved the authors idea of creating a hope chest per se as a wicker basket filled with books she loved to gift to her daughter on her 16th birthday. I am long past 16, and have an ask of my own mother. Share with me more of your poetry at different times in your life so I get a glimpse of who you are as a woman, my mother, a sister, a daughter and a wife. My mom’s share of her poetry from when she was 13 years old filled me with so much joy. I felt like I was actually getting to know…HER. I love you Mom!”❤️ (Heather Houston 3-5-26)

–Ban Breathnach, Sarah. “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy”. Grand Central Publishing. (1976). Kindle Page 72-73 of 501.

I challenge each of you on this blog series to post comments so we all can grow together.

My Abundant Life 3-3-26

On By Heather HoustonIn My Abundant Life2 Comments

March 3rd, 2026

Setting Aside a Personal Sabbath

“Anybody can observe the Sabbath but making it holy surely takes the rest of the week.”

Alice Malsenior Tallulah-Kate Walker (American Novelist, Short Story Writer, Poet, and Social Activist; February 9th, 1944 ~ )

“Some keep the Sabbath going to Church, I keep it, staying at Home.”

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (American Poet; December 10th, 1830 ~ May 15th, 1886)

“It doesn’t matter what day of the week you set aside as your own personal Sabbath, it just matters that you keep one.”

“…meditation is intentional concentration on one thing, which can be either secular or spiritual.”

“This is what the Sabbath is for: reverence, rest, renewal, rejuvenation, reassuring rituals, recreation, rejoicing, revelation, remembering how much you have to be grateful for, and saying ‘thank you!'”

My Bucket List

My Church
Go on a Self-Drive Safari in Kruger National Park

“Before my story began…” (Heather Houston 3-3-22)

1972 Me…at my Aunt Carrie’s Baby Shower

“My church is anytime I commune with nature…simple…sweet!” (Heather Houston 3-3-22)

“My Sabbath is for: gratitude, sexy-time, imbibing, pleasuring, devouring, relaxing, passion, creativity and most of all…LOVING my husband.” ❤️ (Heather Houston 3-3-26)

–Ban Breathnach, Sarah. “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy”. Grand Central Publishing. (1976). Kindle Page 70-71 of 501.

I challenge each of you on this blog series to post comments so we all can grow together.