{"id":2235,"date":"2016-07-09T10:00:09","date_gmt":"2016-07-09T15:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lyndalambert.com\/?p=2235"},"modified":"2016-07-09T10:01:02","modified_gmt":"2016-07-09T15:01:02","slug":"be-my-guest-mary-jo-lord","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/be-my-guest-mary-jo-lord\/","title":{"rendered":"Be my Guest – Mary-Jo Lord"},"content":{"rendered":"

Be my Guest, Mary-Jo Lord<\/strong><\/p>\n

For each of my GUEST BLOGGERS I have asked only one question. I invite each guest to share an article, photos and whatever else is on their mind that they want to share.<\/h2>\n

Each of my guests is a talented professional in their own field. I want to know what they are thinking about\u00a0& want to share with others through this blog.<\/h2>\n

My QUESTION is:<\/h2>\n

What is on YOUR mind?<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n

_____<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Just Pick It Up and Get On with It<\/p>\n

By Mary-Jo Lord<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When I\u2019m looking for the right words, sometimes I find them when I stop looking and move on to something else. This morning, I’m doing my Saturday chores and listening to a “Books and Arts” podcast from ABC Radio National in Australia. The poet Simon Armitage is discussing his translation of the anonymously written, Middle English poem, Pearl<\/em>. The interviewer asks him what the pleasure is for him in working on translations. His response made me pause as the words I\u2019d been searching for filled my ears. He said, \u201cAll poets know that you can\u2019t write poetry all the time. You can\u2019t exist at that pitch. You can\u2019t attend with that level of concentration. But to be able to work on a translation where a lot of the anxieties of writing your own work are taken away, you don\u2019t have to worry about how to begin it, or how to end it or what to put in the middle. That\u2019s all laid out, so whether you are in the mood or not, you can just pick it up and get on with it.\u201d I can\u2019t think of a better way to express why I enjoy editing.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For two-and-a-half years, I\u2019ve been the coordinating editor of Magnets and Ladders: Active Voices of Writers with Disabilities<\/em>. Before I became the coordinating Editor of Magnets and Ladders<\/em>, I would have never imagined myself as an editor. I was a writer with a family, a full-time job not related to writing, and had long bouts of writers\u2019 block. When Marilyn Brandt Smith, the first Coordinating Editor of Magnets and Ladders<\/em> emailed me to enquire if I might be interested in being a candidate for the position of Coordinating Editor of the magazine, I was finger-tied and speechless. After a few phone conversations and a lot of thought, I knew that editing Magnets and Ladders<\/em> would be an opportunity to stretch my grammatical muscles, bond with my inner geek, and collaborate with and support other writers.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Editing has changed the way I write. For better or worse, I go back often and check my work as I write. It helps if I\u2019m stuck and can\u2019t move on from where I\u2019m at in a piece. It also saves editing time at the end. Sometimes, I need to remind myself to just write and edit later. I remember wondering how I\u2019d fit editing a literary magazine into an already busy schedule. I asked myself when I would find time to write. Looking back, I think I\u2019ve written more in the past two-and-a-half years than I did in the years before I began editing Magnets and Ladders<\/em>. I find myself questioning the placement of punctuation in every sentence. Should there be a comma there? Would this be better broken into two sentences or would a semicolon work? When I\u2019m asking myself these questions, should I use quotation marks? No, I shouldn\u2019t, unless I\u2019m speaking out loud.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I expected that as my copyediting skills developed, I\u2019d frequently question and second guess myself. I didn\u2019t expect the feeling of expectation when I opened my email, the joy that comes with the delivery of every submission or the brief sense of disappointment when no new submissions arrive. I wasn\u2019t prepared for the powerful sense of collaboration that happens when I\u2019m working with an author to add some finishing touches to a piece. I didn\u2019t realize the extent that some poems or stories, whether or not they made it in the magazine would stay with me for days, weeks, or forever. When I feel so full of energy and excitement that I could burst, because I\u2019ve thought of the name for a section or the perfect spot to place a poem, I know this is what I am meant to do. Nothing could have prepared me for that. I thought that over time, the pride and joy that accompanies the release of each new edition would diminish, but it has not.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

At the end of many days, the minutiae of life leaves me zapped of energy, and feeling as if I\u2019ll never have another creative thought again. At these times, or when my work is frequently interrupted, I can edit. I can as Simon Armitage said, \u201cPick it up and get on with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

To listen To <\/em>Simon Armitage\u2018s interview on ” Books and Arts\u201d go to: <\/em>http:\/\/www.abc.net.au\/radionational\/programs\/booksandarts\/simon-armitage\/7512190<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

To read the current and past issues of Magnets and Ladders<\/em>, please visit: http:\/\/www.magnetsandladders.org<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n

Mary-Jo Lord writes poetry, fiction, and memoirs.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A section of her work is published in a Plain View Press anthology called Almost Touching<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Her work can also be found in Behind Our Eyes<\/em>, Behind Our Eyes: a Second Look<\/em><\/strong> and in Magnets and Ladders<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Mary-Jo is the Coordinating Editor of Magnets and Ladders<\/em>. She has a masters\u2019 degree in counseling from Oakland University and has worked at Oakland Community College for Twenty-four years. Mary-Jo lives with her husband and son in Rochester, Michigan. She has been blind since birth.<\/p>\n

__________<\/strong><\/p>\n

This Guest Blog is courtesy of Lynda McKinney Lambert. <\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n

Story and Photos are supplied by the guest for each featured article.<\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

Lynda\u2019s 2 blogs:<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n
\n
\u201cWalking by Inner Vision\u201d Link: \u00a0Walking by Inner Vision Blog<\/u><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u201cSCANdalous \u2013 Recollections\u201d Link: \u00a0SCANdalous \u2013 Recollections Blog<\/u><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Contact Lynda: \u00a0riverwoman@zoominternet.net<\/div>\n
_____<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Lynda\u2019s Bio\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \"Photo16_Bio_Portrait<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
Lynda McKinney Lambert is the author of \u201cConcerti: Psalms for the Pilgrimage\u201d published by \u00a0Kota Press. To order it, click here: \u00a0Concerti: Psalms for the Pilgrimage<\/u><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Lynda \u00a0authors two blogs on writing, the humanities, arts, and faith.<\/div>\n
She is a freelance writer and her poetry and essays appear in numerous books and literary journals.\u00a0 She is a retired professor of fine arts and humanities and she exhibits her fiber arts in exhibitions worldwide.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Currently, Lynda \u00a0has two books in development for publication in 2016.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Contact Lynda: \u00a0riverwoman@zoominternet.net<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
NOTE: If you would like a signed copy of my book, contact me for information.<\/div>\n
Lynda McKinney Lambert. Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“I expected that as my copyediting skills developed, I\u2019d frequently question and second guess myself. I didn\u2019t expect the feeling of expectation when I opened my email, the joy that comes with the delivery of every submission or the brief sense of disappointment when no new submissions arrive. “<\/p>\n Continue reading →<\/span><\/a>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-trusting-god"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4gbwn-A3","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2268,"url":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/chasing-the-green-sun\/","url_meta":{"origin":2235,"position":0},"title":"Be My Guest, Marilyn Brandt Smith","author":"Lynda Lambert","date":"August 8, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"...When I was putting my book, \"Chasing the Green Sun,\" together in 2012, I faced lots of choices about how to intermingle my fiction, poetry, and memoir pieces, \"What would Margo do?\" I dreamed some solutions one night, and guess who was helping me? I'd like to take that dream\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "#Trusting God"","block_context":{"text":"#Trusting God","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/category\/trusting-god\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Book_MarilynBrantSmith","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Book_MarilynBrantSmith-1-200x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1918,"url":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/be-my-guest-anne-copeland\/","url_meta":{"origin":2235,"position":1},"title":"Be My Guest: Anne Copeland!","author":"Lynda Lambert","date":"April 2, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\"When I felt afraid, I was the bravest of all,\" Excerpt by Anne Copeland.","rel":"","context":"In "#Trusting God"","block_context":{"text":"#Trusting God","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/category\/trusting-god\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Blog16_WBIV_3_Mar_CopelandPhotoCar.jpg?fit=402%2C369&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4249,"url":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wildgeeseinwinter\/","url_meta":{"origin":2235,"position":2},"title":"Wild Geese in Winter","author":"Lynda Lambert","date":"February 20, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Pennsylvania artist and author shares her poem, \"Wild Geese in Winter.\" Reflection on a wintry day and the beauty and magic of a snow storm and nature. 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She writes 2\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "#Trusting God"","block_context":{"text":"#Trusting God","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/category\/trusting-god\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Photo_LLambert_RedBarberrySnow_.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Photo_LLambert_RedBarberrySnow_.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Photo_LLambert_RedBarberrySnow_.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Photo_LLambert_RedBarberrySnow_.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Photo_LLambert_RedBarberrySnow_.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3334,"url":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/just-checkin-in\/","url_meta":{"origin":2235,"position":3},"title":"Just Checkin’ In","author":"Lynda Lambert","date":"July 21, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Tell me what you will do when you \"go to the beach.\" I'd love to hear what you are doing.\u00a0 I'll be knitting on a special \"Irish Hiking Scarf\" that my son wants me to make for him.\u00a0 It will take a while to do this - but I can\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "#Trusting God"","block_context":{"text":"#Trusting God","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/category\/trusting-god\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Essay_17_Saturday-Morning-Trawling_Photo1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Essay_17_Saturday-Morning-Trawling_Photo1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Essay_17_Saturday-Morning-Trawling_Photo1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Essay_17_Saturday-Morning-Trawling_Photo1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Essay_17_Saturday-Morning-Trawling_Photo1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7698,"url":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/the-jesus-candle_christmas-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":2235,"position":4},"title":"One White Candle – Advent","author":"Lynda Lambert","date":"December 24, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Did you know? Martin Luther was devoted to Mary as the Mother of God and even though many of his declarations of discontent with The Church, this was not one of them. Throughout his life, Martin Luther held the opinion that Mary was the Mother of God and he did\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "#Trusting God"","block_context":{"text":"#Trusting God","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/category\/trusting-god\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Advent Candle","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/DSC00403-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/DSC00403-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/DSC00403-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/DSC00403-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/DSC00403-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16428,"url":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/from-lyndas-journal_partridge-breasted-aloe-a-poem\/","url_meta":{"origin":2235,"position":5},"title":"Lynda’s Journal – Poem – Partridge Breasted Aloe – Poem","author":"Lynda Lambert","date":"February 19, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"From Lynda's Journal features my poem, Partridge Breasted Aloe. The poem is published in Behind Our Eyes 3: A Literary Sunburst. This book is a literary anthology by Writers with Disabilities and the Editor is Mary Jo Lord. This wintry themed poem by me, appears on page 359 and 360.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "#Trusting God"","block_context":{"text":"#Trusting God","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/category\/trusting-god\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Scan2025-02-19_134040-1.jpg?fit=745%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Scan2025-02-19_134040-1.jpg?fit=745%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Scan2025-02-19_134040-1.jpg?fit=745%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Scan2025-02-19_134040-1.jpg?fit=745%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2235","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2235"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2235\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2241,"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2235\/revisions\/2241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2235"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2235"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2235"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}