A New Chapter

I have this ritual that I've done for the past decade or so of my life. Every year, I stay up the night before my birthday and reflect on my life. This usually involves some kind of writing, and normally it's done in a journal. But this year I decided to be different.

I'm 29 this year.

I was talking to a friend tonight, who is 20, and she was saying how she felt like she's got her whole life ahead of her--and she does. I'm nearly a decade older, and I feel the same way. Suddenly.

For a while, I was really wrestling with this whole "29" thing. I mean, let's face it. I am NOT where I thought I'd be by now. Far from it. And yet, there is a kind of freedom in that. For whatever reasons, God in His wisdom has kept me here since college. And I'm okay with that, because He's always provided for me.

But now, I sense a change on the horizon. it's like it's been there all along, just...hidden. Elusive. Tucked away.

The odd thing is, part of accepting that change means letting go of where I am now. There is an area of my life, a ministry I've been involved in for a while, that I have to leave behind, and God is using a very painful method to get me to let go. But everywhere around me, I keep hearing things that make me think that this is His plan for me. I mean, sometimes it happens this way. Caspian had to be chased out of his castle to find Narnia, right?

I'm going to Ireland this summer.

That in itself is a big deal; but I'm not going just for the prayer conference or to be a tourist. I'm thinking (& praying) about living there. Moving there. That's right, becoming a missionary.

I don't know what will happen. Maybe God will close the door, like He's closed other doors. but maybe not. Maybe it's time for me to move on again, time for another new chapter in my life.

Chesterton says: “An adventure is, by its nature, a thing that comes to us.
It is a thing that chooses us, not a thing that we choose.”

And Aslan says: "You would not have been calling me unless I had called you first."

Finally, Tolkien says: "The road goes ever on and on, down from the door where it began
....and whither then? I cannot say."

Would you continue to pray with and for me about Ireland? I wish I could be more eloquent about it, but at the moment, my heart's too full...I see blank pages before me. I feel like I'm still waiting for a sign; but really, I just want to feel supported. I want to know that's where God wants me.

And I want to sing, like Switchfoot does at the end of "Prince Caspian,"

I've been searching
For a place of my own
Now I've found it
Maybe this is home...

I Still Write, I Swear!

Have you ever noticed how life tends to go in cycles?

A couple of years ago, right around this time, I had the privilege of releasing a story I'd written into print format. It was pretty exciting for me, to have my words and thoughts so widely available.

To everyone who bought and read "Found Phoebe," I thank you from the bottom of my heart. If you didn't, don't worry, I'm not keeping a list or anything. I was just pleasantly surprised that folks did take the time to read--and more importantly, respond. I received a lot of positive feedback from that experience.

One of the most unanimous comments--to my overwhelming surprise--was: "When is the next one coming out?"

I still don't have a very good answer for that.

Truthfully, getting "Found Phoebe" printed by Red Lead always seemed like kind of a temporary solution, until I could find a "real" publisher (who would presumably then publish other works of mine, for example, the sequels).

But these past couple years have been sort of busy--not crazily so; just enough to keep me kind of distracted from my writing. I still write. But I spent a large chunk of my writing time tweaking another story, entirely unconnected to Phoebe.

Recently, however, Phoebe's been on my mind again. I've cycled back to it. I'm a little over halfway through the second book. I think. I'll work on other things, but Phoebe is still there, lingering, her story waiting to be told.

If you're interested, I have links to first chapter excerpts for both "Faladdyr's Rescue" (Phoebe Book 2) and "The Jagged Edge of Lightning" (my other project). Let me know what you think.

Writing is slow work, but I love it. Maybe someday I'll be able to devote more time to it.

Anyway, thanks again for reading--and responding!