According to most dictionaries Rhetoric is the art of using the language and directing language skills in oral or written communication. To be well understood a person has to effectively communicate taking into account the listener’s background and abilities to perceive. Study of rhetoric is goaled to develop communication abilities as language has become one of the most important inventions of mankind. Through communication abilities people pass knowledge to each other. However, the audience decides to keep or refuse the knowledge that a rhetorician is trying to pass. The term “rhetoric” was first introduced by Greeks who used it to explain a crucial political talent to use the language persuasively. Rhetoric theories have been developed for more than 2,000 years and people still have a lot of doubts of what is rhetoric and how it works. Nowadays, rhetoric is based on a conception of reality, of human nature, and of language .To make it more comprehendible rhetoric is a closed system of defining what can, and cannot, be known; the nature of the knower; the nature of the relationship between the knower, the known, and the audience; and the nature of language. Rhetoric is thus ultimately implicated in all a society attempts. It is at the center of a culture’s activities. Now, looking at rhetorics of a particular society we can understand whom are we talking to and how should we talk to make it easy to understand us. As I have mentioned before rhetoric has many theories to it, however, the most significant ones are transactional theories. What they basically say is that knowledge and understanding come from interaction between rhethor and the audience. It does not necessarily have to be an oral speech. The written sources are also developed using rhetoric. Thus, rhetoric is in the base of knowledge and acquiring this knowledge. Traditionally rhetoric was viewed as the art of persuasion. However, some add an idea of rhetoric as epistemic. The assumption that rhetoric as the persuasion to truth is faulty. Plato said that if there is truth and it can be understood by some, what is the purpose of rhetoric? The idea was proposed as “the dynamic of elite.” This elite would know the truth and explain it to the masses. Idea of rhetoric-as-epistemic requires individual participation in knowing. Knowledge is dependent on the experiences of the community. The very part of knowing is being committed to what one knows. The commitment is created as knowledge. Truth is the knowledge in a temporal sense. This argument is used to bring the audience and speaker to an even level. The speaker and the audience unlock themselves to each other and using a trade of opinions along with the understanding that is dissimilar from their starting point. Rhetoric is viewed as a power that creates the truth and at the same time reliant on the truths that come with the sense of beginning. There is not the slightest possibility that people can communicate without sharing knowledge and other way around, share knowledge without communication. When we talk, write, wave to somebody we pass some information to responders without even thinking about it. However, the knowledge is not quite identical for everyone. That is where the major complexity in observing rhetoric as epistemic comes from. Different groups of people use different symbols that mean different things. It is when the second part of episteme (the first is knowledge) understanding is mandatory. When two groups of people have understood each other only then they can share knowledge. The purpose of rhetoric will be epistemic will live as long as the communication itself. Although, there is still a great number of discussions that are going on about rhetoric as epistemic; and it will be that way as long as people would be able to use their communicative and analytical skills. Jeff Stats is a staff writer at college essay writing service Mindrelief.net that provides highest quality custom term papers, and research papers.

Yuwie is a great place to make money online and not have to pay for it. It’s about time we got paid to have fun. You are able to have a blog, post pictures, talk to people, make new friends all the while getting paid to do so. Why not right? I have met so many people on this site. I love it because I can voice my opinion and people see what I am talking about and can respond back to me. You get paid just to look at peoples pages. You get paid to write a blog, you get paid period. I wanted to help people make money online by showing then they can write at home. But many people don’t want to take the chance to write an e-book and then not be able to sell it. So here I am again trying to give you a solution to the problem at hand. All you have to do is have fun. What more could you ask for? Yuwie is a place to hang out at and be able to have fun. Get paid in the meanwhile as well. My mother is hooked on this site. She is learning how to actually use a computer through this site because she loves it that much. Are you trying to work at home? Are you tired of making no money and spending too much? Then this is the place for you. I am not trying to sell this to you since it’s actually free. I am however trying to get word out there to you. And to everyone. So if you want to just write and make money you can…BLOG IT. If you want to just make money posting pictures your can…POST THEM. If you just want to make new friends you can…Make Them… It’s souly up to you what you do. If you want to see a video explaining how it all works and how you get paid go here: viralurl.com/mclean/Funworkmoney Remember to have fun, because once the fun stops then you know there is something wrong. Sarah. I am a mother and I work at home… we are finally free from the burdon of debts… I love helping out others work from home and write for them selves.

What is the first thought that would strike your mind when you receive an invitation to a baby shower? Obviously, baby gifts! It is quite natural on your part. We all become excited on receiving an invitation for the baby shower. And if the person is really dear to us, we make all possible effort to purchase unique baby gifts. I know as you are going through this article, you are pondering through your mind about your niece’s or nephew’s baby shower. I am sure you do not want to mess it up with an ordinary gift. So if you are up to something really creative, we are here to help you. Baby gifts are not just about creativity. They are more about thought and concern. What ever you choose to present to your nephew on his baby shower, should make sense to the mother. Yes this is the key to successful baby gifts. Do not present anything until you actually believe in it. What do I need to check before buying a baby toy? Babies are soft and fragile. You have to take acre of a lot of things before presenting them anything. Therefore personalized baby gifts are a good option to go for. Try not to choose any thing that can harm the baby. Pointed or sharp toys can harm your baby. Try to order for only organic toys. For instance plush baby toys are the best for your baby. Especially if they are organic too, nothing can get better. Also avoid buying any little toys for your baby. If you but tiny things for your baby, there will always be a risk involved. Your baby might engulf it. It can get fatal even. Be careful of little things like that. What is it that you need to know before buying baby toys? Even if you are ordering for personalized baby gifts, try to check them for ingredients. You can also test some sample. Your baby toys should not cause any allergies or skin diseases to your baby. Also check the pack for its expiry. Generally baby gifts include things that are meant to be eaten by the baby. For instance, nutrition kits include baby food and feeders. Always check that these edible items should not be expired. Always look for fresh eatable stuff. Expired things can cause stomach disorders to your baby. If your child catches any infection, you will not be able to deduce it quickly, for the reason that your baby can not speak and complain about it. If you find that your child is suffering from any infection, take him or her to the doctor at once. Babies can get serious if not treated at the right time. Not many people know but babies have sensitive digestive system that can get unwell very soon. Such things need to be taken care of very badly. Behave like proper well wisher and bless the new born baby. This author lives in Hampton, NJ with her husband and 5 month old daughter and is an expert contributing author for a luxury baby gift baskets boutique offering variety of unique baby gift baskets, wholesale baby gifts, handprint footprint kits and more.

The following paragraphs summarize the basic knowledge about major factor that you should consider when choosing laptop case. The knowledge comes from direct experience of a person who is completely familiar with all the aspects. Heed the advice to avoid any negative surprises when you have to choose one. If you base what you do on inaccurate information, you might be unpleasantly surprised by the consequences. Make sure you get the whole story from reliable sources. It can be said that today everyone has laptop computer, as since it is a type of computer that is very convenient to bring to anywhere and as a result its price is also expensive. In some case, laptop computer can cost two or three times expensive than desktop computers, so you have to make sure that you have a quality case to protect your laptop when you carry it from place to place. Looking for rugged and durable laptop case is not an easy job. But you may have to use it because it is very important. The environment and atmosphere today are very uncertain, your laptop may be wet in heavy rain, strong sunlight, shaking on bumpy road or any other of difficult environment including sometimes it may have been destroyed by chemical agents and so on. There is many of ordinary laptop cases available in the market but seem that they are not the one that you want because they might not be able to protect your laptop computer. These laptop computer cases generally made by soft materials and they are designed to protect laptop computer from common accident but they may not designed to protect laptop from severe and unexpected conditions such as bumps or drops. However, please consider main factors below, which suggest about what you have to consider when choosing rugged case for your laptop computers. Firstly, you may have to see waterproof ability. Waterproof is very important qualification for good laptop computer case. It is the basic thing that all kind of laptop case should have but good quality case should have different level of waterproof ability. The good quality ones should protect your laptop in case of you drop the bag into the water, apart from protects form rain. Secondly you should look at the material that they made from the case must be made by the materials that stand to all kind of force and impact such as crushing forces. Because sometimes, you laptop may have to face this kind of situation such as it could be squeezed in a suitcase when you travel or there might be a person step on it when you dropped the case. Do not forget to see whether if inside of the case is properly coated neatly, this is because it helps you to protect laptop computer from inside and decrease the force that harm the computer. The materials may have to have chemical resistance in order to protect the case when touched by chemical agents. It is unnecessary to look for the case that resist to all kind of chemicals because you will find no laptop case has such a qualification, but just to make sure that it resists some kind of chemicals. Explained above is only the basic information about how to choose you laptop case, so looking for more information will help you to understand more about this issue. PisanK is the writer of .alllaptopbackpack.com site, if you found this information useful, visit our site to get more information.

Two very good friends graduated from the same school with the same grades in a journalism course. What’s more interesting is that both of them have been in the same class ever since the first grade. They entered the same newspaper writing firm on the same day. Today, one of them is the editor of a renowned magazine, the other is just a normal journalist. What made the difference? You’ll be surprised at how simple the answer is - one of them write more than the other. The editor wrote more articles and so, had more writing experience as compared to the journalist although they were in the same profession the same year. Along the same lines, answer this question truthfully: Do you write more than you procrastinate? Ask any expert article writer and they’ll probably attribute their article writing skill to the tons and tons of articles they’ve written. Listen. There’s a limit to the time you spend incubating your ideas. Ideas are like eggs. Sit on it too long and they will crack and go to waste. Sit on it long enough for your ideas to grow and it will grow a chick. A good example would be the times when a million-dollar idea just hit you when you least expected it. And before you could reach for your notepad and pen, it left you as fast as it found you. As a seasoned article writer, I’ve developed a clean and nifty method to keep a record of all the ideas at any time of the day. What I did was to bring a notepad and pen with me in my bag or my pocket at all times. You might want to maintain this good habit too. But on some days when I leave my house in a rush forgetting my notepad and pen on my studying desk at home, I would simply and save the ideas as text messages in my mobile phone. Nifty, eh? Back to the topic, procrastination is the biggest killer in article marketing success. A little procrastination is dangerous. It spreads throughout your mental body like a virus and before you know it, you’ll probably reach for the TV remote rather than the keyboard. Discipline yourself by setting aside time for you to write articles. Focus on your outcome and keep typing or your pens moving. May you have an endless supply of ‘brain juice’. Good luck! Like what you read? Listen. I’ve compiled a report, Three-Step Article Marketing Secret Blueprint, specially for my valued visitors (You). You won’t get this guide anywhere else. Download the Three-Step Article Marketing Secret Blueprint Report (it’s free!) at .AutoSubmitArticleMachine.com NOW!

In Corrogue I am getting clearer insight for living. I get to see through the fog of ego. Insight means, “inner seeing.” It means allowing oneself to enjoy the experience of wisdom. The Concise Oxford English Dictionary defines “insight” as “mental vision.” Insight, however, is more an arising of the energy of the heart. Living will happen as a result of engaging with the heart. Your seeing will be clear. There will be little or no fog of ego. You will be moved to act. This action will move from a place of love. Insight for living allows one to see through the heart. It allows knowing in ways that the head does not understand. Insight means seeing from the inside out. Let me share with you seven ways to move from outer knowledge to insider knowing. Insight for living means truly listening. How often do you listen to that still small voice within? This is the voice that needs silence both internal and external in order to be heard. It means giving time for self-care instead of time for self-promotion and achieving. We are for the most part focused outward. There is no wisdom in the world of the external. There is no understanding via the heart when our focus is purely external. Light and clarity come from the experience of insider knowing. One simply knows. One becomes the knowing and from this knowing love acts. Insight for living needs imagination Go on a hunt each day. Hunt out a metaphor that describes any situation in your life. This can be a work situation. It can be a relationship situation. Imagine how you would describe this situation using any metaphor that comes to mind. Does the situation feel like you are in a fog, sailing in rough seas and in a leaky boat. What is this boat like? Is it a sailing ship? Let this be your story for today. Let this be your fairy story. You are the hero/ine. Let this be your hearts story. Metaphor is the language of symbol. We are connected to symbols on a deep level. Symbol is the language of the unconscious and the collective unconscious. Do not be afraid. Have some fun. Let it be a story called, “This is my life.” Insight for living means stepping outside comfort zones. We tend to live our lives in boxes. These are boxes that contain certain ideas. Attached to these ideas are feelings. These feeling with ideas attached are called “emotions. Some are labelled “good.” Some are labelled “bad.” To enter the wisdom and mystery of living means to go beyond labels and to simply “see.” Step outside these boxes of limitation. You are enough. Do not imprison yourself with judgement. Moving beyond what you know will be uncomfortable. Yet if you always do what you always have done you will always get what you always get. Come to the edge even if you are afraid. A soul friend may push you and you will fly. Insight for living requires authority With metaphor you become the author of your own life story. You become your own authority. This authority is validated by your inner seeing and not by the opinions of others. This inner seeing is real knowledge. It is yours. In one sense you belong to this knowing. You have opened the eyes of the heart. You become a seer of wisdom. It is always waiting. You only need to know how to look. Insight for living requires courage. The word “courage” means, “to enter the heart.” This is true courage. This is the courage to allow the heart it’s own voice. In the beginning the heart may express anger and frustration. You have been locked in the prison of social consciousness for a long time. This is not why you are here. You are here to be co-creative with life. This is living the real life. This is not just fantasy. There is escape into reality. This is seeing “what is.” This is seeing, not through a glass darkly, but directly into the light. This allows the experience of lightness of being. This is real living. Insight for living means first hand knowing We are all being encouraged to become “knowledge workers.” We are more and more focused on “logic chopping.” We are fed more and more rational and give up our birthright. This is the right to know who we are. There is a taboo against knowing who you are. Once you know you cannot be manipulated. You cannot be made to feel unworthy or small. You know where you belong. This is in the worlds of both the visible and the invisible. This knowing comes through insight. It is a feeling experience. You have no need to debate its power. How to debate certainty? Insight for living is NOW Insight happens. You have to prepare the conditions in order that it happens. You have to get relaxed, non-grasping, not looking to achieve something or even wanting anything. You allow the moment to be as it is. You come to all your senses. You allow yourself to be totally in the body. You get to stop living life in your head. You learn to keep a soft belly and an open heart. Then your energy will rise high enough for you to receive some insider knowing. This will be enough. Blessing upon you and all those you love and do not love Tony Cuckson is an Anam Cara. This Celtic term means “Soul Friend.” He specializes in providing insight for the spiritual journey, Irish Blessings, words of wisdom and finding inner peace. Visitors to Irish Blessings Matter website and Tony’s Blog get the opportunity to develop a purpose driven life through articles, newsletters and other programs. Get your free report called “7 ways to it’s a wonderful life” at .irishblessingsmatter.com or visit Tony’s Blog at .irishblessingsmatter.info for the best resources on spiritual growth, spiritual cinema, spiritual parenting, spiritual coaching and spirit in business.

We don’t mean to be alarmist, but we sometimes see “silk rugs” that are made of something other than genuine, natural silk. This is not a problem if you know that the rug you are considering is made of artificial silk, but sometimes rug dealers neglect to pass on this information! The problem happens most often with just a few rug types sold in tourist markets in Turkey and India (and sometimes in Pakistan). Real Silk Real silk is produced as the cocoon covering of the silkworm, the pupal form of the Asian or mulberry silk moth, bombyx mori. The cocoon is spun by the silk moth caterpillar of a single silk fiber that can be up to several thousand feet in length. To harvest the silk, completed cocoons are boiled or heated to kill the silkworms, then laboriously unwound into single fibers which are plied together and spun into thread or silk yarn. Artificial Silk Artificial silk is everything billed as silk that doesn’t come from the silkworm cocoon. Most often this means mercerized cotton; sometimes it means a manufactured fiber like rayon or a blend of chemically altered and/or manufactured fibers. It’s not that artificial silk is intrinsically evil, it’s just that the whole point of using artificial silk in a rug is to save the cost of real silk. It is not nice when this cheaper, artificial silk rug is misrepresented and sold for the price of a real silk rugs. Mercerized cotton A ripening cotton boll can contain as many as 5,000 separate cotton fibers, each fiber growing from a tiny seed and formed as a hollow cylindrical sheath of as many as thirty layers of almost pure cellulose. Cotton fiber is mercerized by being stretched under controlled tension at room temperature while being treated with a 21 solution of caustic soda (NaOH). The effect is to swell the fiber and make its surface much more reflective, thus dramatically increasing its luster (and also its tensile strength). After the chemical treatment, cotton yarn is often singed to remove whatever small amount of fuzz remains on the surface of the fibers. Sometimes cotton is calendered by being passed between heated rollers. The effect is to increase the luster and sheen of the fiber still more. However it is treated, cotton remains cellulose: C6H10O5. Rayon Like cotton, rayon is made of almost pure celulose, but rather than being grown, rayon is produced by first dissolving cellulose (obtained from cotton or woodpulp) to produce a thick yellow liquid called viscose. The viscose is extruded through tiny holes into a chemical bath that produces long filaments which can be spun into thread and yarn. Viscouse rayon was the first man-made fiber. In 1920, DuPont bought from the French the technology for making viscose rayon. DuPont first called the material “artificial silk”, and formed a company (The DuPont Fibersilk Company) to manufacture it. Other artificial fibers would follow quickly: acetate (also derived from cellulose) in 1924, nylon, (commonly, adipic acid reacted with hexamethylene diamine) in 1939, acrylic (from acrylonitrile, a petrochemical) in 1950, polyester in 1953, and triacetate in 1954. With all these artificial fibers around, how can you identify a rug woven with natural silk?For example handmade area rugs,silk rugs,persian rugs,oriental rugs,wool rugs etc. First of all, pay attention to whatever clues the dealer–or the rug–gives you. For instance, we have seen many artificial silk Kayseri rugs (and some Hereke rugs), both Turkish types. In Turkey, a real silk Kayseri is an ipek Kayseri: ipek is “silk” in Turkish. An artificial silk Kayseri is a flos Kayseri ( a yun Kayseri has a wool pile). The dealer might be accurately describing the piece to you as a flos rug, but by not explaining the difference between flos and ipek, he lets you jump to the intended assumption, and you unwittingly buy an artificial silk rug. Indian rug dealers are seldom as delicately circumspect as some of their Turkish counterparts. Artificial silk rugs in India are often blatantly sold as real silk, complete with certificates of authenticity and written guarantees. For many years Kashmir in northern India has been the major source for both real and artificial silk Indian rugs. Look carefully at the “silk” rug: it should be tightly woven (with more than 200 knots per sq. in., and often with 500 or more knots), intricately detailed, closely clipped, and it should have real silk fringe that is clearly an extension of the rug’s structure, not sewn on or sewn into the ends of the rug. Artificial silk rugs often have only medium weaves (less than 250 knots per sq. in., and sometimes less than 150 knots per in.), and often have cotton fringe. Good quality real silk rugs always have real silk fringe. In Pakistan we often see rugs called jaldars. These wool pile rugs often have “silk touch,” meaning that there is artificial silk inlay in the pile (often outlining part of the design). This artificial silk is almost invariably ivory in color, and is made of mercerized cotton. Tests for Silk OK, you’re looking at a nicely woven, nicely patterned, closely clipped “silk” rug with what appears to be real silk fringe. You still might be looking at a rug made of artificial silk. Here are three field tests that might help you distinguish real from fake. No guarantee; your mileage may vary. Rub it! It is sometimes claimed that you can tell real silk from artificial silk by vigorously rubbing the pile with your open palm. The real silk rug feels warm, the artificial silk rug stays cool to the touch. We sometimes think we have felt this difference. Of course, it helps to have a real silk rug with you so that you can compare a known quantity! Burn it! This test is at least good theatre, and actually can be helpful. Clip off a small piece of the fringe, or pull a knot out of the rug from the back (why should the owner object?). Burn it. Look at the ash and smell the smoke. If the material was cellulose (rayon), the ash should be soft and chalky, and the smell should be like burning paper (most paper is made of cellulose). If the sample is real silk, the burning sample should ball to a black, crispy ash, and the smell should be of burning hair (you’re burning protein, the same stuff your hair is made of). You’ve got to be a little careful with this test to avoid smelling the smoke from the match (and to avoid igniting yourself or the rug dealer’s shop). Dissolve it! The most accurate test is one that chemically differentiates protein from cellulose or petrochemicals. One such test: at room temperature, mix a solution of 16 g copper sulfate (CuSO4) in 150 cc of water. Add 8-10 g glycerine, then caustic soda (sodium hydroxide: NaOH) until a clear solution is obtained. This solution will dissolve a small sample of natural silk, but will leave cotton, rayon, and nylon unchanged.

Among the most popular type of business-related letters is the sales letter Letters are among the most popular means of communication throughout history. People loved exchanging messages through letters especially those that come far away. By now, letters were given new and different functions, most notable of which would be in business. because it is a very important tool for reaching customers and prospects. This is why sales letter writing has been deemed to be a very important aspect in marketing. Many entrepreneurs have observed the power of sales letter writing in capturing a significant portion of the market. As such, many businesspersons went their way on writing their own sales letters you can visit .the-gurus-apprentice.com Alas, not all of these aspirants were able to succeed with the materials they wrote. Some of these letters were not effectively written and were seen not to work as well as the others. It is thus important to know what makes of a good sales letter before writing one. Here are some useful tips in sales letter writing: - Gain Your Readers Trust: When your readers receive your mail, they should be able to put confidence in you so that they would feel safe to establish some business relations with you. The most common technique of doing so is by putting testimonials in sales letters to let people know of others who swear by your offerings. You may employ other tactics to gain peoples trust, what is important is for them to bank on what you say. - Show That You Are Credible: Trust is just one step for people to give you some of their time; you also need to show them that you have something truthful to say to them. You should be able to show them that what you offer delivers its promise. Good means of doing this is by including scientific studies, successful stories and other materials that exhibit the truth in what you say. You need to show it more than you need to talk about it. - The Letter should be Memorable: You can almost always expect people not to pay attention to your sales letter immediately. They simply might not need your product at the time they receive your letter, or they might not just be interested. However, this does not automatically mean that the sales letter is a failure people can still respond to your sales letter after days, months, or years as long as they would remember it. If you can make your sales letter memorable, chances are the reader would be able to remember your products when the time comes that they are needed. - Catch Attention: While looks are usually underestimated, it is important to make your sales letter writing very attractive whether you use visuals or not. It is not at all impossible to catch attention with mere words alone. Use bold statements that tickle your readers fancy. A boring letter would just end up in the trash with other junk mail. Be sure to make your sales letter writing upbeat and interesting so that your prospects would be enticed to read on and know more about what you offer. - Give Clear Instructions: Winning trust, appearing credible, making your letter memorable, and catching attention is not enough for effective sales letter writing. It is important for your readers to be informed what they should do next by giving them clear instructions on how they could respond to your sales letter. Be sure to include how they can contact you and make it easy and convenient for them by leaving a mailing address, email, website, fax, or phone number where they can reach you easily go to .sales-letters-creator.com Of course you have to make sure that these are working well so you would not miss any customer. - Give Rewards: People love bonuses whenever they purchase something. You can offer gifts, discounts, and other promotional offers to your customers. You can also give rewards to those who respond immediately so that you can easily reap profits from your sales letter writing. - Reach Your Reader Personally: It could be very tempting for you to just hit the mail merge option of your word processor. However, they can make your sales letter writing very detached and unappealing. People like to be addressed personally and it is best to reach them as individuals. Good sales letter writing is essential for today’s business. With it, you are several steps toward profitable success. .10steps-to-killer-web-copy.com .private-labels-empire.com

Fall Leadership Training Metzger’s FCCLA chapter attended Fall Leadership Training in Austin, Texas. 11 FCCLA members went to represent our Metzger Mustang pride. The training consisted of several different workshops each offering a little taste of what will be expected of them while being a member of FCCLA. The workshops also quizzed us on our knowledge of FCCLA’s past and present leaders, locations, purposes, missions, and STAR Events. In doing these workshops our FCCLA members gained new skills and learned what FCCLA is all about and all while having a great time participating in various activities. During the Leadership Training, Metzger Middle School took Part in a banner competition against several different schools. In the end Metzger Middle School walked away with first place and will also have their banner showcased at Region V Leadership Conference and on the FCCLA website. Another part of our leadership training was taking LEO’s (Leadership Enhancement Opportunities). Metzger’s LEO was over our creed, mission statement, and the purposes of FCCLA. After LEO’s were scored 9 of our students received bronze certificates and 2 of our students received Silver certificates. The following are the names of students who received bronze certificates; Shayne Andrada, Jasmine Bell, Brandun Brook, Rosavaleria Gill, Karina Herrera, Mary Hicks, Kayla Hughes, Jamie Johnson, and Samantha Sanchez, students who won silver certificates consisted of Kellee Morgan and Daniella Gonzales. By attending Region V Fall Leadership Training the Members of Metzger’s FCCLA learned to accomplish their given goals and work together as a team. Written by : Kellee Morgan ?

A book review generally consists of a perusal of the writer’s style, the story line and the flow and the viability of the subject matter. That would be nearly impossible with Alastair Macdonald’s “First Christmas.” Both the birth of Christ and the birth of Macdonald’s book hold far too much for one brief review. Here is part one of two or perhaps three. For Alastair Macdonald there would be no burning bush like the one Moses saw and there would be no blinding light such as the Apostle Paul experienced on the road to Damascus. All there would be is a “gentle nudge” between times and the knowledge that each barely perceptible nudge would lead him on a twenty five year course to write a single book that although very small would fill a huge chasm in the world. Every child and many adults will now have a bridge to cross from the ordinary events of the world to the extraordinary event that changed it forever. British subject Alastair Macdonald resides on the glamorous and romantic Island of Bermuda. In 1985 he went looking for a simple rendition of the Bible’s Christmas story to read to his two small children. Like most children Alastair’s kids were fully enamored with all the extravagance of Christmas. Santa Claus, the gifts, the decorations and the ever present sounds of Christmas carols and hymns in the background kept his children bedazzled. But he wanted a book that would touch his children’s hearts with the very heart of the Christmas story. Upon arriving back home Alastair felt disappointed and spoke with his wife about it and the surprise he felt at discovering the appalling lack of material that would tell the real story of Christmas. In the midst of the despair came the nudge. The gentle God given push would send him down a path that over the next several decades would lead to the birth of “The First Christmas” and a poem that would take its place along side classics like “The Night Before Christmas.” In fact with “The Night Before Christmas” as his model he started out to find a way to tell the story. He wanted to engage classic poetic timing but apply some of the rhyming fun of Dr. Seuss. Accomplishing such a combination without sacrificing any of the dignity and seriousness of the birth of Christ would be no easy task. In the end he chose what is known as “anapestic tetrameter” for the rhythm in the poem. That rare fact takes nothing away from the simple flow of the narrative which will intrigue both child and adult. Who would be the narrator of the story, this was the first challenge. Should it be Mary or Joseph, the obvious choices? With another gentle nudge Alastair decided on a narrator not so close to the story and one who would appeal to every child in the world, the donkey. The very donkey that helped Joseph in his daily carpentry work and finally carried Mary on her long journey to Bethlehem to give birth to the most powerful yet most humble human being to ever grace the planet earth. With a solid Old Testament name like Zeke from the Hebrew (Yechezqel) meaning “God strengthens” or better known by its English equivalent, “Ezekiel,” the story would now begin. Having never written poetry before Alastair labored in vain for a few years and never moved beyond the first verse. But the nudging of God persisted and each year he would pull out the poem and endeavor to write a few more lines. It became somewhat of a joke in the Macdonald household and each year his children would again remark “Dad’s writing his poem again.” Using rhyming dictionaries would prove lumbering and inhibiting until Alastair found an online rhyming dictionary. Inspiration is kinetic and the instant comparisons an online dictionary provided would also make the difference. Now the research could keep up with the nudges and the narrative would emerge. The story began to blossom and in a matter of only weeks started to bust out into a full fledged poem. All through the many edits and revisions another portent was looming, who would publish the poem. Getting poetry published has more setbacks than anyone could imagine. To begin most publishers won’t take a work from an author who is not already published nor has an agent. Over the transom (randomly submitted) works are like casting your bread upon the waters only much less productive. The unsolicited manuscript may never be reviewed at all or even returned if it is not wanted. A simple acknowledgement from a traditional publisher can take from three months to a year. Few publishers are interested in a book with a religious theme especially one with such a well known and often repeated theme such as the birth of Christ. Even while making a few submissions Alastair was undaunted and began a quest to find an illustrator for the book. This too would become a protracted effort but the giver of Alastair’s nudges was nudging someone else a world away to help with The First Christmas. Macdonald ignored the fact that most publishers like to choose their own illustrators and the end product is that we can be glad that he did. Alastair’s daughter, an accomplished artist, tried to help her dad with some illustrations in the style of the thirteenth century Italian mural artist Giotto. Feeling that the renderings of the characters looked too cartoonish left Alastair nearly in despair. With nothing left to lose he put the word “nativity” into an internet search engine and clicked. Over a half million images and days of searching and then one single artist caught Alastair’s eye. The art of Egyptian born Adel Nassief leaped from the screen into Alastair’s vision for The First Christmas and he knew he had found the right illustrator. Nassief, a Coptic Christian from Alexandria Egypt made his living painting and creating Coptic murals for Orthodox churches around the world. Much of his work is done in bright tempura paint and gold leaf. With communications limited to only emails Alastair and Adel came to an agreement. He would produce some twenty pictures in the traditional manner with tempura and gold leaf on wooden boards. Communicating only by emails and photos Alastair had never actually seen Adel’s original work until Adel had deliver some pictures to a Coptic Church in Dallas Texas. Since the writer has an apartment in Dallas they arranged for the originals to be included in a container bound for the Dallas church. Alastair said he was “blown away” when he first set eyes on the original art pieces. Adel had “outdone himself and every expectation Alastair ever had of him! Now with both the pictures and the poem he made a mock book and began distributing it to various publishers. The responses improved but still no one wanted a seasonal book. Back to square one. In 2007 Alastair approached Welcome Books, a publisher of picture books but mostly for adults. Not having heard from them he had a chance to visit their publishing house while returning from holiday and staying overnight in a New York hotel right near Welcome’s office. After meeting with Lena Tabori the principle of Welcome Books and a general perusal by a ninety year old artist who was present at the meeting the wheels were in motion. In a short time another meeting was scheduled in which plans were finalized and the rest is history. From simple nudges to the convergence of author, poetry, Coptic artist, experienced publisher and 25 years of being persistent, something has been born. It is the birth of something that is about the birth of someone. The birth of Jesus Christ has changed our world irreversibly and now the birth of Alastair Macdonald’s “The First Christmas” will be a part in that change going onward until the end of time. Until the end of time the “good news” will always be broadcast and now Alastair Macdonald and Zeke will always have a part in the telling of the wonderful news first proclaimed by angels. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:10, 11) For more information about “The First Christmas” visit .firstchristmas.net Rev Michael Bresciani is an author and columnist for several online and print publications. With over two million readers his articles, commentary, movie reviews and stories are now read throughout the world. Visit .americanprophet.org