Lynda’s Journal

Read and Think

  Today’s post is #701

My literary journey began

with my first published story in 1980.

 Monday, June 23, 2025

I begin this day:

Early this morning, I was  off to a super-charged delightful beginning.
When I begin my day by reading in the Word of God, the Bible, time stands still as I discover new aspects of our collective history from the earliest time to the present day and year.

Reading The Book of Joshua is so relevant to everything we are seeing and reading about now; To understand the present, we must dig into the history of events, places, people, and happenings. If we don’t investigate the history, and primary sources of a thing, we are lost at sea and misguided easily to believe false reports. Everything on this earth has a source, a history, and if you don’t put in the effort to find the beginnings of ideas, you go astray easily.

Educate Yourself

I was privileged to teach and lecture in the Humanities department and our students learned to seek out the primary sources – investigate the history of ideas. It is an enlightening adventure to begin to look much deeper into a thing.

Read philosophy that was written at the time.

Read diaries, journals,  and witnesses’ reports from the place or people group you are learning about.
Search out the historical context to see where the roots of this thought first begins.
Be determined to read and educate yourself on people and events, to see how it all began and why. Be smart.

How to Read and Think

__Read and research in actual books – and don’t depend on google or other sources that may not be dependable.

__Put some energy into discovering the  facts you need from primary sources.

Thinking takes a  lot of time.  Let your research lead you to the most reliable primary sources.

__ Set apart a regular alone-time in every day to think.  My best time is between 3 and 6 a.m. when the world is quiet and I am fresh and ready to read and learn. This is the time of day when I am at my best.

__Go somewhere where there will be no interruptions to distract you from your search.  Your local public library, or a  local  university library is the best place to begin good research on your topic.  Another suitable place for research is the history centers and most counties or cities have them.

__Bring home a lot of books and read them all.

__Take notes and jot down the references, and page numbers so you can find them again.

__Take your time and be patient.  As you work through the literary or visual evidence in your search, you will be well rewarded with your efforts.

<<<<<<<<LMcKL>>>>>>>>

My Bio:

Lynda McKinney Lambert writes and creates visual art from her vintage home in the Village of Wurtemburg, in Western Pennsylvania. She writes poetry and personal nonfiction essays. She currently has six published books available at all retail booksellers. Her artworks have appeared in international exhibitions, including Japan, New Guinea, Austria, and the United States.  Lynda retired from her position as Professor of Fine Art and Humanities at Geneva College in 2008 due to profound sight loss. She invites readers to discover the subtle nuances  and beauty of a physical and spiritual world as she weaves strands from history, nature, and her personal life experiences.

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©Lynda McKinney Lambert, 2025. All rights reserved.

See You at the TOP!

Photo: Courtesy of Allauthor. Thank you!
Books illustrated were created by – DLD  Books, Boulder, Colorado
Lynda has 6 published books of Memoir, Poetry, Non-fiction.