New Kid on the Block

Hello Mormons, Mommies and Writers!  And anyone else who pops in!

I'm happy to be joining the team here at MMW to share my thoughts twice a month, and I thank this group of talented women for welcoming me into the club.  I'm not Mormon (I'm a very ecumenical Catholic), but I am a mom and a writer, and I love to ruminate about family, writing, and faith. 

I have a good friend who is Mormon, and when she lived close by, we talked about faith often.  Doctrinal differences never mattered.  She attended a Catholic Mass once and said, "It was beautiful.  They didn't give me the biscuit, but that's OK."

I feel the same way.  People of faith don't have to be aligned on every point.  God reaches out to each of us where we are and with whatever "biscuit" facilitates a closer relationship with Him.  That's one reason He's so cool.

I discovered my love for writing in 9th grade when an English assignment required us to rewrite the ending of Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes.  I don't remember what ending I wrote, but I remember being intrigued by the possibilities, the freedom to craft characters and a story line that could take any path.  I do believe, in my ending, Charlie lived.

I've been writing since, some years more productively than others.  I have short stories and a novel I've not looked at in a while.  In 1997, while working for a crisis pregnancy center, I wrote a high school curriculum on character education.  With a team of educators, I taught that curriculum in our public school system for twelve years. 

In 2010, I started a blog - Adventures in the Ballpark.

Blogging is sometimes viewed as silly and self-absorbed, but I'm often both those things, so it works for me.   

I'm married to a very generous Air Force retiree who is now an operations manager for Home Depot.  We have three children, all young adults now, but they will always be my babies in my heart.

I'm currently helping my partially disabled parents (89 and 92) who live close by in an assisted living facility.  I thought I was a pretty capable cookie until my dad's stroke in 2007.  I've since learned I must rely on God's strength and direction every day.  Whatever I think I know about life, it will be challenged tomorrow.  As soon as I learn the new thing, that will be challenged next.   God certainly keeps me on my toes.  And on my knees.

I've lived in Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Idaho, Italy, Sicily, and Germany.  I currently reside in the Sunshine state, where I can live on fresh salmon, mangoes, and the best oranges in the world.  If I could just get my sweet tooth yanked, Sandra Bullock and I could probably share clothes (hey, a girl can dream.)  

Thanks for reading!  I'll see ya' March 8!