Every once in awhile life throws you a curve and you wind up taking a detour in life you never thought you'd have to take.
    In the spring of 2012, I lost my job. The next 6 months turned into a financial nightmare. I wound up living on what was left of my savings and my retirement. When that ran out, I got a part-time job. It helped, but it wasn't enough. Bills began to pile up, creditors were calling me and I was getting cancellation notices in the mail. I tried applying for assistance, but I wasn't eligible. I didn't know what I was going to do. My faith was severely tested. My writing suffered as well, but I tried to write some as a way to feel calm in a stressful situation.
    I made my situation known to my family, friends and church. Money began to pour in from every direction. I was amazed at how generously people gave. Some of the most generous gifts were from people I hardly knew. As I began to trust in the Lord's provision more and more, I knew He would see to my needs...and He did. Sometimes it was at the eleventh hour, but the funds I needed always seemed to be there just when I needed it. 
    At the end of 2012, I landed a full-time position. The job wasn't ideal, but it was a regular paycheck for which I was very thankful. It gave me a chance to start over and rebuild my life piece by piece.
    It's been a little over a year since I took that job and I still have a ways to go to recover from the debt I found myself in, but I'm headed in the right direction.
    I still don't understand why I had to go through such a difficult time, but I'm thankful for the lesson it taught me. My trust muscles were stretched like they had never been stretched before and the end result is a deeper faith and trust in the Lord's provision and faithfulness (Ps. 145:13-16).
    It has also helped me to recommit once again to my writing and other creative projects. The Creator gave me a creative spirit and it is my resposibility as His creation to fulfill what He designed me to be. 
    Getting a fresh start can open up a host of new opportunities and present a realm of possibilities. Happy New Year!

I recently read some startling statistics about decline of the publishing industry as we once knew it. As a writer, I find that disturbing and heartbreaking.

Printed books, magazines and newspapers seem to be a thing of the past. I don’t, nor do I ever intend to, own a Nook or a Kindle. I actually like holding a book in my hand, physically turning the pages and highlighting text with a marker, if I so choose.

Ever since I was little, I have loved going to the library. I wonder with everything that’s online and electronic versions of this book or that magazine, will libraries eventually become obsolete?  It makes me wonder about the survival of the printed word.

I grew up in an era before the Internet, e-mail and text messaging. I remember how I used to look forward to the mailman coming and how excited I was when there was a letter or card from a friend inside the mailbox.  That’s a feeling that many younger people will never experience.

E-mails and text messages are fine, but they’re not as personal as a hand-written letter. I’ve kept a few hand-written letters and many of the cards sent to me by family and friends. They are physical reminders of my relationships with those people and I will treasure them for the rest of my life. It warms my heart to read hand-written messages from loved ones. It makes me feel close to the ones who are so far away and sense the presence of those who have passed on.

Hand-written cards and letters remind me of a simpler time when people took the time to get to know their neighbors, spent more time with family and friends and weren’t in so much of a hurry. Penmanship was a part of a student’s required learning. Now they don’t even teach cursive in the school’s anymore!

I may be old school when it comes to the printed word, but I think something precious is being lost and once it’s gone, I’m afraid it won’t come back. I realize change is inevitable. We must change and adapt if we are to survive. However, just like historical buildings, old movies and recordings, and products from bygone eras, we must preserve the printed word. It’s part of what makes us who we are.