Stories From Women Who Walk

60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday: 3-Part Structure for Your Personal Story

Hello to you listening in Falkenstein, Germany!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday and your host, Diane Wyzga.Like a story in the making we are balanced between what was and what will be. All we need is the middle: what happened.  A whole story can be daunting to write; but a sentence is manageable to give you a structure that gets you started. This 3-part template is designed to celebrate the challenges you have overcome, the doubts you have erased, and the fears you have undone to change what was to what is.Three phrases and you fill in the blanks, like so:  If you had told me 20 years ago that I would [fill in the blank]I might have [fill in the blank]but instead if you could see me now I’m [fill in the blank].Here’s mine: "If you had told me 20 years ago that I would walk 500 miles across Spain estoy solo on a 5-week pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago carrying all I needed in a red backpack weighing 15 pounds I might have snorted my coffee and shaken my head in disbelief at such a ridiculous notion but instead if you could see me now having made that journey when I uncovered what I love and discovered who I am ... now ready for next ... come what may!"  Story Prompt: Now you. Write that story and share it out loud!You're always welcome: "Come for the stories - Stay for the magic!" Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together. Be sure to stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Communication Services, email me to arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as "Wyzga on Words" on Substack.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.  If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source.

60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey: What You’re Looking for Is Looking for You!

Hello to you listening in Probolinggo, East Java, Indonesia!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.Perhaps you are feeling open, poised for the race ahead, curious, or, maybe a little apprehensive now that 2026 has shown up all ready to rock and roll. I have a suggestion that might make it easier for you. Did you know that what you’re looking for is looking for you? It is!  As David Wagoner reminds us in his poem, Lost:Lost"Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside youAre not lost. Wherever you are is called Here,And you must treat it as a powerful stranger,Must ask permission to know it and be known.The forest breathes. Listen. It answers,I have made this place around you.If you leave it, you may come back again, saying Here.No two trees are the same to Raven.No two branches are the same to Wren.If what a tree or a bush does is lost on you,You are surely lost. Stand still. The forest knowsWhere you are. You must let it find you." From Traveling Light: Collected and New Poems. Copyright 1999 by David Wagoner.  The Poetry Foundation 1971You're always welcome: "Come for the stories - Stay for the magic!" Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together. Be sure to stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Communication Services, email me to arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as "Wyzga on Words" on Substack.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.  If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source.

60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday: Reverse Your Bucket List & Shine a Light on You

Hello to you listening in Shah Alam, Malaysia!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds (and a bit more) for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.The beginning of a New Year can feel daunting. All those plans to kick start, days to fill, resolutions to keep, and more to do! There’s no shame in admitting feeling a wee bit wobbly-legged about going forward in the face of wide open frontiers.  What to do? Gain some courage by reversing your Bucket List. Instead of a list of what is yet to be done, what about a list of what you’ve accomplished from the littlest things that you felt made a difference to the biggest things you never thought you would achieve. You might begin by asking yourself:What made me proud?What have I learned?How did I transform my thinking about strangers to compassion and kindness?Who revealed the meaning of true love to me?Where did I find the hope and resilience to face whatever came my way?When did I feel most content or fulfilled?What would I do all over again just for the joy of it?What did I long for as a child?  What have I created or, at least, not destroyed?Who have I lifted up?How have I defined my life?  What dreams came true? And, which was I happy to leave by the wayside?  What or whom did I fight for and why?When did I take time to play?  In my experience the Reverse Bucket List invites us to pay attention to what we’ve done, won, gained, lost, learned and kept on living no matter what. It’s proof that over and over again we have stepped outside our comfort zone to strive for something to do, someone to love, and something to hope for! Give it a go. Reverse your Bucket List and shine a light on you. You're always welcome: "Come for the stories - Stay for the magic!" Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together. Be sure to stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Communication Services, email me to arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as "Wyzga on Words" on Substack.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.  If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source. 

60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday: The Promise of the New Year 2026

Hello to you listening all over the world!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Story Prompt Friday in the New Year and your host, Diane Wyzga.Old Man Winter sighed, letting go of the last snowflake as midnight chimed, releasing tiny, glittering sprites of memories from the past year to dance away, making room for the mischievous, bright-eyed Spirit of New Beginnings, who whispered, "Twelve new chapters, 365 new chances!" as the world filled with fresh hope and the promise of endless possibilities, readying us to honor the coming days with compassion, loving kindness, and adventure.Story Prompt: Imagine this: the old ways of being have faded and a heartwarming spirit has arrived, full of potential, ready to inspire visions, curiosity, imagination, and even a bit of magic. Let’s embrace the Promise of the New Year, letting go of what was, welcoming second chances, and stepping forward with hope and gentle optimism for the future we’ll create. Write that story and share it out loud!  You're always welcome: "Come for the stories - Stay for the magic!" Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together. Be sure to stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Communication Services, arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as "Wyzga on Words" on Substack.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.  If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source.

60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey: Shoveling Snow with Buddha at Year’s End & Beginning

Hello to you, Marilyn, listening in Hancock, New Hampshire!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington, this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds (and a bit more) for Wednesdays on Whidbey—this final day of the old year—and your host, Diane Wyzga.      Shoveling Snow With Buddha by Billy Collins"In the usual iconography of the temple or the local Wokyou would never see him doing such a thing,tossing the dry snow over the mountainof his bare, round shoulder,his hair tied in a knot,a model of concentration. Sitting is more his speed, if that is the wordfor what he does, or does not do. Even the season is wrong for him.In all his manifestations, is it not warm and slightly humid?Is this not implied by his serene expression,that smile so wide it wraps itself around the waist of the universe? But here we are, working our way down the driveway,one shovelful at a time.We toss the light powder into the clear air.We feel the cold mist on our faces.And with every heave we disappearand become lost to each otherin these sudden clouds of our own making,these fountain-bursts of snow. This is so much better than a sermon in church,I say out loud, but Buddha keeps on shoveling.This is the true religion, the religion of snow,and sunlight and winter geese barking in the sky,I say, but he is too busy to hear me. He has thrown himself into shoveling snowas if it were the purpose of existence,as if the sign of a perfect life were a clear drivewayone you could back the car down easilyand drive off into the vanities of the worldwith a broken heater fan and a song on the radio. All morning long we work side by side,me with my commentaryand he inside the generous pocket of his silence,until the hour is nearly noonand the snow is piled high all around us;then, I hear him speak. After this, he asks,can we go inside and play cards? Certainly, I reply, and I will heat some milkand bring cups of hot chocolate to the tablewhile you shuffle the deck,and our boots stand dripping by the door. Aaah, says the Buddha, lifting his eyesand leaning for a moment on his shovelbefore he drives the thin blade againdeep into the glittering white snow."My New Year wish for you: As the old year folds onto itself and the new year dawns I wish for you that your everyday activities, even the very simple tasks, bring humor, contemplation, and a sense of magic in the ordinary. May you find your way on the path following a compass heading of True North. May the love you seek wend its way to you. May you dream well, journey far, and be sustained in hope that what you’re looking for is looking for you.You're always welcome: "Come for the stories - Stay for the magic!" Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together. Be sure to stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Communication Services, arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as "Wyzga on Words" on Substack.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.  If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source.