Blog | Madhu Bazaz Wangu
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Writings and Readings Blog

Madhu Bazaz Wangu

Machu Picchu & Galapagos Islands

Posted on September 21, 2023
in Journaling
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Dear Friends and Readers,The early morning of September 22 (6:00 am), Manoj and I will be on the flight to Lima, the first stop of our journey through Peru and Equador. The access to WiFi would be limited until October 9, the day we come back. I will not be able to share my adventures during these travels but after my return home I’ll certainly post the photos and short pieces for you to enjoy. IN PERU:Cusco high in the Peruvian AndesThe Sacred Valley of the IncasMachu PicchuThe Andean Baroque Route IN EQUADOR:Galapagos IslandDarwin BaySantiago IslandFernandina and Isabela IslandsPuerto Ayora and Isla Santa FeBahia Gardner and Punta SuarezCerro Brujo, San Cristobal I’m familiar with only two names in the list above, Machu Picchu and Galapagos Islands. The rest of the places are new...

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THE BLACKENED MIRROR-A SHORT STORY

Posted on September 20, 2023
in Reading, Travel
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CHANCE MEETINGS: Selected Review Excerpts:Chance Meetings . . . encourages deep thought and arouse the spirit to examine the beauty and harshness of the human condition. Wangu's gift for sensory detail and her lyrical prose take the reader on a cross-cultural journey. . . (Rosemary Hanrahan MD, MPH, Author and Life Coach) In Chance Meetings, an eloquent collection of stories, Dr. Wangu weaves a rich tapestry of the human condition with the strong, clear language of myths. Whether it's a tale of an impoverished orphan in India with no family or friends to turn to in a desperate moment, or an elderly American woman imprisoned within the walls of illiteracy, each story hangs like a bead on a japa mala - for the reader to touch and be touched by the...

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The Prequel & A Short Story

Posted on September 17, 2023
in Writing
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Dear Friends and Readers,I'm thrilled to announce the publication of the prequel to my novel THE LAST SUTTEE (Writers Digest, Readers Favorite and TAZ Awards winner) and the revised version of the story The Blackened Mirror from my story collection CHANCE MEETINGS (Readers Favorite Five Star Winner). Both available at:Smashwords: https://tinyurl.com/2yedu7m2Barnes & Noble: https://tinyurl.com/4ejxsh9cRakuten Kobo: https://tinyurl.com/3352msy6Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/28448c7d ...

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FIVE-STAR REVIEW: UNBLOCK YOUR CREATIVE FLOW

Posted on September 4, 2023
in Being in Nature, Journaling, Meditation, Reading, Travel, Writing
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LOOK WHAT I RECEIVED TODAY! Reader's Favorite 5-star review! Reviewed by Asher Syed for Readers’ Favorite Author Madhu Bazaz Wangu, Ph.D., offers a systematic 365-day program in her self-help book Unblock Your Creative Flow: 12 Months of Mindfulness for Writers and Artists. The book aims to increase the creativity and productivity of those in the fields of writing and art. In order to help people reach and maximize their full creative potential. . . This all-encompassing strategy takes into account a person's bodily, mental, and spiritual needs to enable intentional and meaningful living. “An inner journey like this that you have chosen to walk upon demands commitment,” says Dr. Madhu Bazaz Wangu, but I can assure you that Unblock Your Creative Flow rarely feels like a book of self-help chores. Yes, commitment is essential...

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Abundance and Mindfulness

Posted on August 25, 2023
in Meditation
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Mindfulness Fructifies in Abundance (Cont.) I’m grateful for the place we are moving into—the apartment, the neighborhood, the city and the state. I’m grateful for going to be closer to our children and grandchildren. Grateful for a home that would have all the conveniences one needs at our age, mid-70’s. And I’m thankful to the universe for little and big things. Gratitude has brought abundance into my family.  When we settle within with attention and awareness, we become one with our consciousness. Our attentive presence focuses more on what is right inside us and outside us, than what is wrong. We feel grounded. We feel good. Don’t let yourself . . .  Continued at my Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/madhubazazwangu/ ...

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Writer’s Block

Posted on August 20, 2023
in Writing
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Mindfulness and Moving Houses (Cont.) Follow me at: https://www.facebook.com/madhubazazwangu/ My writing routine is in shambles these days. To soothe my writing self, I write in snippets about our move to Virginia. I also journal 2-3 pages after my meditation. Although journaling serves many other purposes, it can’t replace writing practice.  Before this interim period of changing homes, I was in the middle of writing my next book, my third novel. It’s three-fourth written but I’m facing blocks for the last quarter. Aakash, the protagonist is at a major crossroad. Without giving anything away, I have to let you know that the antagonist is death.  Before Aakash, the protagonist retired he was an archeologist of Maya palace, pyramid and temple ruins. In college, he was mesmerized with sports related sacrificial and ritual deaths of Mayan civilization....

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Marvelous Japaese Woodcut Prints

Mindfulness and Japanese Prints

Posted on August 16, 2023
in Meditation
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Mindfulness and Looking at Art Remember last month, to be precise on June 13th, I wrote a post about going to Carnegie Art Museum to see, “Japanese Printmakers, 1912-2022”? But I was disappointed because this show had not yet open. We ended up seeing Joan Brown’s retrospective instead. And how her emotionally charged and painterly works introduced me to an artist I did not know that had left me invigorated and inspired? The show of woodblock prints has finally opened. Last Friday I got to mindfully saunter through “Japanese Printmakers, 1912-2022” on view until February 2024. If you love Japanese woodcut prints as much as I do, this exhibition is a must see. Japanese printmakers have been and continue to practice and adapt to their centuries old art tradition for technological age. The...

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Cherry Blossom, Ashby Ponds

Posted on August 9, 2023
in Journaling
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Mindfulness Matters and Refirement (Cont.) We had been in search for a comfortable house in beautiful surroundings with conveniences our age (we’re in our mid-seventies) requires. Our daughter helped us find this haven of a neighborhood called Ashby Ponds in Ashburn, Virginia. I wonder which Pennwriters Area is Loudon County, Virginia.  We have visited Ashby Ponds several times and once stayed for two nights to get a feel for the place. We loved everything about it. Spacious and sunny apartments. Meticulously maintained lawns with fountains and ponds. None of the building is more than four or five story high and most have a restaurant on the first floor. The food is tasty and nutritious. Of course I’d cook in our fully equipped kitchen but if there are days I rather not, I...

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Matters of Mindfulness and More

Posted on August 7, 2023
in Meditation, Online Mindful Writers Group
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Matters of Mindfulness, Mindful Writers Groups and More (Cont.) At the end of October, we are moving from Wexford, Pennsylvania to Ashburn, Virginia to be closer to our daughter. Never has mindfulness been more helpful to me than it is now. Moving to a new home from the one where you have lived for thirty years is believed to be a traumatic experience as traumatic as death of a loved one, divorce, major illness or job loss. The in-between period can overwhelm you, bring you down or depress you. But with mindfulness as my tool I’m going through such a negative experience with self-awareness and loving attention to the tasks at hand. And to my own surprise I feel no stress, regrets or nostalgia midst all this emotional disarray. Remember me, the one...

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From Mindful Path to Mindfulness

From Mindful Path to Mindful Writers Groups

Posted on August 1, 2023
in Journaling, Meditation, Online Mindful Writers Group, Reading, Writing
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From Mindful Path to Mindful Writers Groups (Cont.) One of ways in which invisible realities that our eyes can’t see, ears can’t hear and mind can’t comprehend are made visible, audible and comprehensive by creativity and imagination. I believe creativity is rooted in spirituality. Like creation of life, artworks seemingly conjure from nowhere and nothing. I am the one who writes or paints but the process itself is guided by an inner source from which new ideas bubble forth. At the same time, the universe assists by sending cues and clues. Once birthed, an artwork has a life of its own. To be able to create one must be completely devoted and dedicated to one’s art whatever it may be. As an author I have a morning routine that I have diligently...

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