tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85859046470756717022024-02-19T17:58:30.646-06:00This Side of Invisible"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye."
-Antoine Saint-ExupéryM. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.comBlogger106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-14304077939346333902023-12-18T00:08:00.002-06:002023-12-18T00:26:19.214-06:00For the Love of Writing Letters
Fun Facts about Hand-Writing Letters: Results from several studies have shown that both children and adults learn more and remember better when writing by hand. Now another study confirms the same: choosing handwriting over keyboard use yields the best learning and memory. (Neuroscience News) A few experiments have shown that the brain only recognizes symbols that it learned if they M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-49621304120123627112023-05-29T22:13:00.009-05:002023-12-18T00:25:03.193-06:00Life UnbiddenIn the memorable words of Dr. Ian Malcolm played by the incomprable Jeff Goldblum, "Life finds a way." Even when we don't want it to, when we can't keep up, when we're exhausted... it just keeps coming. Life simply happens.
But we must remember that we are created to be agents of action, not simply objects to be acted upon. Life comes at us unbidden, but we too can create the life we want. We M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-66616823583541656332018-01-06T13:29:00.000-06:002018-01-09T20:00:06.251-06:00Life on the Spectrum Snapshot: Pre-DiagnosisHe heaved between sobs, opening the car door and vomiting right there in the car line. I prayed that no one had noticed.
“Okay, okay,” I soothed him, patting his back. “It’s okay. Put your seat belt back on, we’ll go home.”
He was so hysterical that my words didn’t, couldn’t penetrate. He cried into his hands, rocking back and forth. “I can’t. I can’t. I can’t,” he cried.
I pulled out of the M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-9426725630123199982017-04-05T23:44:00.002-05:002017-04-09T14:40:01.141-05:00Being Dismissed from ServicesI heard those dreaded words today. "I'm afraid that most likely your child doesn't qualify for services anymore." I paused afraid that if I responded too soon I'd yell or cry. I asked a few clarifying questions, blinking back tears of panic. I held my own for nearly the entire conversation. And then the therapist said, "You should be so proud, Mom. He's made so much progress." Then, I cried.
TheM. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-75476468173432557452017-03-30T18:54:00.000-05:002017-03-30T18:59:58.065-05:00What I Hope My Children (and Students) Learn from State-Mandated Testing
It’s that time of year again. STAAR is here. We’ve had a lot of complaining, questioning, and even some crying at our house this week. Let me let you in on a little secret, teachers don’t like it either. And, like you, we pray that someday legislation will do away with state-mandated testing. But that day isn’t today, so here’s what I hope my children (and my students) will learn from taking theM. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-83466532141924874962017-01-21T15:02:00.001-06:002017-01-21T15:04:03.428-06:00To Be AliveI wrote the following a year and a half ago.
"We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul-We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek afterM. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-15975428307002144642016-12-28T23:12:00.004-06:002016-12-28T23:14:43.338-06:00New Year's Staying Power
This time last year, I was salivating for a new year full of opportunity. I was aching for new chances to learn, to grow, to prove myself, to improve myself. And I had this great plan to help me accomplish all these dreams I had: I was going to have a word for my new year. I was going to research my word, dive into my word and let it guide me through my year. This word had to be perfect, had to M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-52947967771851647172015-07-20T22:27:00.001-05:002021-06-06T19:18:44.744-05:00Writing My Story
Anyone that follows my blog... ehem, all two of you... has probably noticed that the tone has changed over the last year. I've written less and what I have written, some of it has been almost cryptic. There's a reason for that.
I've been struggling with this question: How do I write my story when it involves so many others?
Perhaps this is the answer:
Also, Ernest Hemingway said, "M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-91626190934027342292015-04-19T22:06:00.001-05:002015-04-19T22:09:50.222-05:00Mixed MessagesMixed Messages
by Aimee Rae Ellington
MIXED MESSAGES
MIXED MESSAGES
MIXED MESSAGES
Dinner is served.
"All is well."
All is not well!
"Stop whimpering! You are fine!"
I am NOT fine.
&M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-73820957730342784032015-01-20T18:36:00.002-06:002015-01-20T18:36:17.907-06:00No More Hiding
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mso-pagination:M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-60666776855510047632014-09-08T21:56:00.004-05:002015-02-01T16:53:37.437-06:00"Meet My Character" Blog HopThanks to the brilliant C.J. Anaya, I get to introduce you to one of my favorite characters today. C.J. invited me to be a part of this blog hop and few weeks ago, and, finally, it's my turn.
But before we get to my man Luke, please meet C. J. Anaya.
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M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-89835345076772055342014-08-16T10:35:00.000-05:002015-02-01T16:54:04.911-06:00Celebrating Victories, Creating Joy<!--[if gte mso 9]>
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Looking back now, it’s all so obvious. But you know what
they say about hindsight…
The first time I cut my own hair, we were living in Wyoming, it
was summer and I was hot. I was tired of trying to grow my M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-7889666700006653182014-08-12T16:48:00.001-05:002015-02-01T16:54:59.345-06:00Inside Depression
A while ago, I was prompted to write about a place I had been, I chose to write about my experience inside depression.
INSIDE
It’s dark in this place. The kind of dark that paralyzes every muscle and weighs heavy in one’s lungs. It presses in on my ears with its silence, causing them to ring. I want to scream, but my mouth won’t open. Every joint and ligament is tense, M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-57083324902452892912014-08-05T00:54:00.002-05:002014-08-15T23:35:09.434-05:00My Brother's Keeper
The house is quiet… mostly. Except for the whispers of my boys who are determined not to sleep. Not that I can blame them, there’s a pretty awesome thunderstorm happening right now. I’m sitting in my dark office, watching lightning illuminate the world outside the large picture window. The almost dead, but refusing to die tree in the front yard is rocking rather precariously over my husband’s M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-48154852799537968342014-07-25T09:07:00.000-05:002014-07-25T09:17:12.848-05:00goodbye
Dear Insecure, Unstable, Unlovable Girl,
It’s not you. It’s me. Honest.
I’ve outgrown your skin. I’m too big to live wrapped up tight in your shell, being an observer in my own life. I want to be the main character in my story. I’m no longer content to pass through my days listening to the voices in my head that write my life for me. I want to create my own magic.
I’ve met this man. M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-63653986987760123422014-07-07T19:11:00.001-05:002014-07-07T19:18:32.178-05:00Not Done Yet<!--[if gte mso 9]>
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There's a tree in my front yard that's quite pathetic. It
has but a small tuft of leaves on its topmost branches. Many, strike that, all
of its lower branches are long gone, stripped away by forceful winds. AndM. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-52255538553662224022014-06-06T13:38:00.001-05:002021-04-14T09:38:50.239-05:00Effects of War: First-Hand AccountsToday is D-Day, a day that never really meant anything to me. Just some distant event in a long bygone war that I had no part in. I'd read about it in high school, briefly studied it in college and seen and heard reference to it on the news over the years, but I never felt connected to it. That was, until I met my husband.
A few days after we met, I drove from Idaho to Utah with M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-57558302625193530622014-03-27T11:35:00.000-05:002014-08-15T23:36:02.581-05:00Why God doesn't save all His children from sufferingLet's be clear, I'm not God. Nor am I His spokesperson. But I have studied His words for the majority of my life. I've poured my heart out to Him. I have listened to His still, small voice. And, I hope, I've learned a few things about Him.
Of course, I could be wrong... but as I understand it--in my understanding of God's love for His children--this is why He doesn't save all the starving M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-69946198447806596922014-02-20T14:41:00.001-06:002014-08-15T23:36:50.296-05:00It's January... well it was at any rate.*I began writing this last month, but have been stalling finishing, because vulnerability is scary and it's sacred. I don't write this lightly, but I write it in hopes that somewhere someone else needs to hear what I have to say.
Three years ago, my father died. It was January 4, 2011. On January 6, 2011, I called my husband and said, "Congratulations, we have a 400 lb.. 12 M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-33840014498508049482014-01-11T17:56:00.001-06:002014-02-22T08:52:11.457-06:00They'll get there.When I was pregnant with my first, I read several books, like What To Expect when You're Expecting, and the like. I'd been babysitting since I was 10 and had taken care of countless infants. I thought I'd had most things figured out. Of course, like most new mothers, I was wrong in this assumption.
There was a time, shortly after my son was born, where every evening when my M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-81207501217170889662013-12-13T13:27:00.002-06:002013-12-13T13:42:46.478-06:00open letterToday I learned that Congress is trying to cut my spouse's military retirement by 124K. This literally makes me sick. Our politicians have become so out of touch with America and its people; it's maddening. So I wrote to my Senators in hopes that they might reconnect with the military families of America... if only through my little one here in Texas. And I hope that no M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-42484165357590330472013-12-08T13:17:00.002-06:002014-08-16T00:08:32.017-05:00things as they really areThere is verse of scripture that reads: "for the Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls." (Jacob 4:13) And this morning as I lounged in my bed, refusing to get out from under myM. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-30934317544714141762013-12-02T13:56:00.000-06:002014-02-22T08:53:43.647-06:00The Angry SpotIt was a dreary English January morning, the sky was an oppressive grey and cold, wet mist enveloped everything. The kids had mad cabin fever and my husband was deployed to an unnamable location. We were nearing the end of a trying Christmas holiday--everyone had had strep, which, when you have a child with Asperger's and the doctor wants a throat culture means you've just gone to Hell and M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-34143185271681452912013-11-13T17:10:00.002-06:002015-02-01T16:56:24.683-06:00it's a hard knock life... for girls. so go easy on each other.Seriously.
Mean Girls, making life miserable for girls and women everywhere since... forever!
I remember every encounter I had with means girls growing up; from salt in my hair at a slumber party, to rejection on the playground, to the taunts in PE freshman year, and all the name calling in the halls and whispered rumors behind hands, it was all ridiculously petty, and unfortunately it was M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8585904647075671702.post-47972040221912571762013-10-22T13:09:00.003-05:002013-11-02T11:58:32.335-05:00Confessions of a Busy BodyI'm woman enough to admit that last week I had a small nervous breakdown. A mini meltdown, if you will. It seems a bit silly now in retrospect, but I assure you it wasn't silly in the slightest last week.
All my life I have been a busy body. I don't mean the gossipy, busy body; I mean the real deal, genuine body that must be busy doing something meaningful. As a young M. Leigh Marrotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18266133421170079870noreply@blogger.com0