Spotlight On Writers
Doug Bartlett
- Where, do you hail from?
- What is the greatest thing about the place you call home?
The greatest thing about my hometown, with few exceptions, are the people. They are friendly, down to earth and unpretentious. They are willing to help each other when the need arises. For example, we recently had severe flooding in our area. Many people stepped up and went out of their way to help others. It’s nice to be able to help others and it is nice to know there is help available if you should ever find yourself in that situation.
- What turns you on creatively?
My creative juices seem to flow better whenever I listen to the music I listened to when I was much younger. The time period of the late sixties and the decade of the seventies. It also helps when I think about God and His creations. I think about how intricate His creations are and how creative when he made His creations, like the stars, planets (especially the Earth), animals and human beings. Also, the systems that are put in place that keep everything together and working properly.
- What is your favorite word, and can you use it in a poetic sentence?
My favorite word is generously. God has generously showered me with many blessings throughout my life. The word “generously” is my favorite word because I had a special experience with it. A few years ago I had a stroke. I was air-lifted to the hospital in Santa Barbara. After my hospital stay I was released to a rehabilitation site. During this time I had lost the ability to read, which was very frustrating for me. One day we went on an outing to the Fine Arts Museum. I walked past a large painting that stretched from floor to ceiling. In the bottom left corner of the painting was a framed area with all these letters in it. Some of these letters were close to other letters, so I knew they were words, even though I couldn’t tell you what they said. I stopped in front of that painting and as I stood there I bowed my head and closed my eyes. I shot up a prayer to God asking Him to let me read just one word before we left the museum, even if it was just a two or three letter word, like “if”, “it” or “the”. When I opened my eyes I raised my head and looked at the top of the wall (I don’t know why I didn’t look back at that framed area on the painting). There was a quotation on the upper part of the wall I had not seen before. My eyes were fixated on one of those words in that quotation. That word was “generously”. I had asked for a small word and God was giving me a ten letter word. It was like God was looking down at me and gave me a wink. I gradually continued reading little by little until I fully regained the ability to read again.
- What is your pet peeve?
My pet peeve would be when I see people, myself included, not reaching their full potential. I believe every person on this planet is important and has value. People are gifted or talented in different areas. By not reaching that potential means that value is just going to waste. That shortchanges what they could experience and feel about themselves, but it also shortchanges the rest of us as we are not able to experience and appreciate what they have to offer.
- What defines Doug Bartlett?
I would define myself by my relationship with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I believe in Biblical principles and use them to guide my life. I also have a personal relationship with Jesus and He has helped me many times throughout my life. He gives me peace and the strength to get through various challenges I have had in life.
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