As I do so many nights I had a period of wakefulness last night in which I thought about a wide range of things. One thing that went through my mind for some reason was the series of places in Waiting For Still Water when characters give advice to Rachel. I thought about the relationships and the type of advice each person offered hoping as a writer I didn’t make them all the same. I hope each interaction showed something true about the characters relationships, the past they shared and the trust they have developed. Rachel had Zac, Raymond, Jodie, Amelia, Kate , her father, her grandmother and Ryan all offer her gems of wisdom, advice and encouragement. This morning that train of thought led me to think of who in my life offers me that same gift. I have many and for each one I am thankful. But in thinking that and remembering back to the many times in the last few years I have relied on the wisdom and caring of those friends and family members it occurs to me that after all the words , all the deep debates, all the caring talk the getting on with things always comes right back to me , to each one of us to do what we need to do ourselves. We are blessed with relationships and support systems but the real putting our feet on the floor each day and then putting one foot in front of the other always comes right down to each one of us. No one can do the hard work for you. Others can offer advice and carry you along but the heavy lifting so to speak is done individually. Finding the way to make sure you are doing that seems to be the key. Some days I must remind myself what those things are and simply make sure I do them. Today at the top of the list I take the time to clear my head of these thoughts by writing this entry. I will then tackle the other things on my list. First I will drop seeds in the row and begin growing the huge impressive sunflowers that the Kong seeds gave me last year. Grow toward the light. Stand tall once you have put your feet on the floor. Take the gifts like sun, water and attention and let others help you along the way but find that deep faith to believe that what really matters comes from within.