Erika Wood
Bio
I am a student of life just wandering my way thru the maze and enjoying every turn. Visit my sight as I write about the state I live in and other random thoughts that come my way.
Stories (26/0)
A Candle Burns
The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. My curiosity burned like that candle that night as I crept closer. It seemed to burn in my soul like nothing else ever has. I felt drawn to it like a moth to a flame.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in Fiction
Dear Mom and Dad
Dear Mom and Dad, You divorced when I was 11 and in fifth grade. Before that, you separated the summer before my 3rd grade year. I remember standing in the garage as you packed your motorcycle dad, and you left my mom for another woman who lived over 650 miles away. A woman as far as I know you had never met. I remember before that being dragged around town as my mom looked for you on a Friday because she thought you were with another woman. I also remember when you came back.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in Families
Beauvoir In Biloxi Mississippi
On the gulf coast of Mississippi sits a piece of history that is not well known. When I moved to Mississippi as a junior in high school, I knew from history class what the civil war was, a war to end slavery. I didn’t know that the home of the president of the confederacy laid not far from our first apartment. On a trip to visit this historical place, I learned more about this man who quietly made history by standing up for what he believed. He worried about the rights of the states and at the end of the day, I learned that the civil war balanced on the rights of each state to change the course of their path, not a central all-controlling federal government. I also learned that the dynamics of the Civil War wasn’t slavery, though this was a component. Not to go into perceptions and interpretations of the past we know what is written and saved not actually what was happening at the time history was made. We are here to take a short little trip to Beauvoir and see what life was like in the 1800s
By Erika Wood2 years ago in FYI
Book Review: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is a book about a person and a discovery that changed the face of science. Henrietta Lacks was a simple woman born in a time of Jim Crow laws that limited African Americans in society. This is a story of a woman with cervical cancer whose cancer cells were taken and made into a multimillion-dollar research industry. Henrietta lived with hardship and died young buried in an unmarked grave. This book includes her voice retelling her history, the voices of her family who were in the dark to what happened, and facts about those who used her cells without her permission to shape medical research that changed lives around the world.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in Humans
Finding our Writing Voice on Vocal in a World Full of Noise
Writing is something I have always done. Whether it be journaling, schoolwork, or passing notes in school. I talk a lot, so I also write a lot of words when four might get the point across I use four sentences instead.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in Journal
Suggestions for Attending a Funeral
The day will come if it hasn't already when you will have to say farewell to a loved one, a friend, or someone in your life. This day will come to us all and we will all feel the pangs of grief as we say our final goodbyes. It is not easy, but it is something that we all must go through.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in FYI
The Cliché of When Life Hands You Lemons...
When life hands you lemons...like everyone else you want to smash them into mush because you just want life to hand you something else. I get it we all have our moments of pure frustration. We want something to just happen in a way that those lemons don't come our way. But they do come our way for all of us.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in Motivation
Being a Prepper and Using Our Brains
I used to be on a few Facebook groups for preppers… I'm not a prepper per se but I wanted to see if there were any good ideas for canning, storing food, emergency preparedness, etc. I love to garden and can my produce and it's nice to get other people's thoughts and ideas about it. Some are way out there, some are a little closer, and some are really informative.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in Humans
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand was originally published in 2010 by Random House. Unbroken has also been made into a movie of the same name directed by Angelina Jolie. This book is about a man whose footprint in history is small but is a piece of a wider history that marks our country. Beginning with his story as a child and ending with a story of a generation who were strong and courageous beyond measure.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in Serve
The Biloxi Lighthouse a South Mississippi Landmark
The gulf coast of Mississippi is rich in history and the south loves to declare its history. The coast has been under several flags and nationalities creating a mixture of cultures. From American Indians, French, English, Spanish, the Civil War, the seafood industry, casinos, military bases, and manmade beaches you name it we've got it. The landmark everyone knows though is the Biloxi Lighthouse.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in FYI
The Passing of Voices
Time passes without our notice when we are children, as a teen a turtle moves faster than the hands of the clock, and as an adult those same hands move at lightning speed. We transverse this earth one day at a time. And at different seasons of our lives, we seem to be at different speed limits. The passing of time can be measured in the scars left behind and the memories we leave.
By Erika Wood2 years ago in FYI
