I struggle, sometimes, to write something witty or thought provoking, in an effort to increase the number of people who are reading, yet, in spite of myself, I have yet to find the magic formula.  Sometimes, for reasons unbeknownst to me, I’ll see 50 or 100 hits in a day (and on rare occasions, even more!), but on others, a meager 10 or less.  I’ve fiddled with time of day as well as content, and have seen no discernible pattern.  I’ve added labels, and, again, nothing pops.

Yet, here I am, writing once again, because, the truth is, though I love seeing my numbers go up (and what aspiring author wouldn’t?), I have to write nearly as much as I have to breathe or eat or answer the call of nature. 

For me, writing is more compelling than (yes, I’m going to say this, in hopes that I don’t cause panic in the hearts of those who know me well)…dancing!  Yes, I love, love, love to dance, and even more, love my dance friends, but writing is more than just a love affair for me.  It is a compunction I cannot ignore.  Countless times, I will stop whatever else I’m doing (but taxes finds me easily distracted) to jot down some thought or another because it just has to be committed to screen at that very moment! 

But yes, I would like to find the secret to writing things people want to read.  As  writer (and even a dance maniac), I love to entertain.  But more, I enjoy giving people something to think about, or something to relate to, assuring them that no matter how odd they think their idiosyncrasies might be, they really aren’t alone.  Someone out there shares what others might deem strange.  (and frankly, just as one woman’s junk is another woman’s treasure, I believe that one person’s strange is another person’s genius!)

Hmmm, there’s another tangent I can go off on.  What is genius, really?  Merriam-Webster defines genius as:

: a very smart or talented person : a person who has a level of talent or intelligence that is very rare or remarkable
: a person who is very good at doing something

: great natural ability : remarkable talent or intelligence

So, how do we measure talent or intelligence?  Frankly, a person could be remarkably talented at just about anything, which could render each and every one of us a genius in our own way!  Digging further, Merriam-Webster defines savant as:

 : a person who knows a lot about a particular subject

Don’t we all know a lot about something?  Others may call it useless knowledge in some cases, but just because it is useless to some doesn’t make it useless to all, right?

I think a reasonable argument could be made that we are all geniuses in our own right.  Consciously or not, we find something that interests us and learn as much as we can about it.  For example, when my daughters were in third grade, the teacher did a unit on bats for their science class.  One of my daughters was so fascinated that she came home with what I would consider obscure facts about bats, which she remembers to this day.  She was always fascinated with all things science, but she struggled to pass college biology.  It wasn’t that she didn’t understand and live the information.  She just struggled with putting the answers down when put in a test situation.  Today, she uses those talents to create the most incredible cakes and baked goods imaginable.  She’s created her own blend of gluten free flour, has learned how to cut back on sugar and butter while retaining consistency and flavor, and is happy as a pig in a mud puddle!  If you asked anyone who had tasted her offerings, they would likely refer to her as a genius (I know I do!).  Baking is an art, but it’s also a science.  Few of us can change a recipe successfully (or create one) simply by looking at the consistency and knowing it’s right!  Unlike cooking, you can’t taste as you go to see if it’s right.  You have to wait until it’s baked, and by then, it’s too late to fix it!  In fact, her twin took a very expensive course designed to produce a pastry chef.  If you ask me, she doesn’t have half the talent of her science nerd twin!   Here are a couple of her latest efforts:
 
 
 The one on the left is a chocolate cake with fudge frosting, filled (and topped) with strawberries.  The one on the right is a S’mores cake with whipped cream and graham cracker filling, meringue frosting and chocolate dipped graham crackers on top.    I was going to stop here, but I simply must post a couple more.

 This is a Reese’s peanut butter cup cake she made because her hubby loves them!  When she brought it to the club where we dance, she gave new meaning to “Gone in 60 seconds!”

But my all-time favorite is the one our friends nicknamed the “Better than Sex” cake, and it seems to be the most requested one these days.    It is her signature chocolate cake filled with a nutella/whipped cream mixture and topped with her fudge frosting.  I particularly like it because she rarely makes a true buttercream, which I find nauseating, but does things that are lighter and tastier instead.  (sorry all of you buttercream fans!) 

OK, I guess I can get off the subject of my daughter’s baking genius now, as posting more pictures could cause massive shorting out of keyboards from salivation!

This post sure took some twists and turns, didn’t it?  We’ll see how it does in the polls!

My gratitudes today are:
1. I am grateful for the genius in all of us.
2. I am grateful for my talented daughter who found a way to mix her love of science with her love of cooking and baking.
3. I am grateful for the many outlets I have to do what makes me happiest.
4. I am grateful for abundance, prosperity and balance.
5. I am grateful for the love and partnership opportunities waiting on the fringes of my vision for me to wake up and notice them.

Love and light