July, 2013
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Story Sparks 

"Stories are the sparks that light our ancestor's lives, the embers we blow on to illuminate our own"

 

Greetings!  

 

 

Photo of Josh and Rebecca on beach, photographer Sarah Robinson

Ephemera (objects of an historical record that are neither documents nor maps) clutter the window sill over my kitchen sink. A ceramic lamb reminds me of my mother; a lady bug plant holder brings my friend, Gabby, to mind. Most of the time I don't notice these treasures right in front of me. My mind is somewhere else - past or future - when I face the window sill.

             

 The recent challenge of my great-nephew and his wife has made me more aware of those small things in life and how critical it is that we live in the present rather than the future or the past.     

 

Up until the 16th week, their pregnancy progressed just fine. A first baby for  Josh (my sister's oldest grandson) and his young wife Rebecca. Josh is career air force and the two were high school sweethearts just as Josh's parents were. So excited about their baby.

             

But at sixteen weeks, bloodwork discovered something. They got a second opinion quickly confirming the news: their baby has a neural tube defect( NTD). Neural tube defects are  birth defects  of the brain, spine, or spinal cord. The pregnancy develops like any typical pregnancy but because of a particular anomaly, babies with anencephaly especially are either stillborn or die shortly after birth. 

             

This young couple chose to continue their relationship with their baby begun when they first learned of her existence. The history of their baby would be made up of ephemera of the moment. Yes, they would think about  life after the delivery but only as they needed to, with the neonatal hospice nurse, exploring how to say good-bye to Savannah Joy as they continued saying hello.

             

Rebecca started a blog. http://sweetsavannahjoy.blogspot.com

that tells their story. I am in awe of their plan to have their baby experience at least 100 special things before she's born. (Shamu and Sea World wowed Savannah last weekend; in this 27th week she helped build a fort in the living room her parents love so much they can't bring themselves to take it down). When the baby kicks in the morning and Rebecca feels such joy she writes: "In that moment I just wish time would stop."

             

Any of us can add to that 100 Moments list. They've asked us to. For now their baby book is a white board where they record significant milestones in Savannah's weekly life then transfer it to the keepsake book they will share with future siblings. Josh's sister Sarah takes pictures and crocheted a hat for her and another matching hat for Savannah's dad. Both mother's and father's day were celebrated with awareness that Savannah's not too happy with chocolate late at night.  

             

"It's like living in two worlds," Rebecca told me. "One life is a regular pregnancy, enjoying my baby's personality, how active she is. We love the ultrasound pictures where we see her face and her long legs - like mine." She pauses. "Then there is this other life where we meet with the hospice nurse and discuss what choices we can make, how to comfort her when she arrives. We talk of  living with the uncertainty of not knowing how long we'll have to hold her in our arms."

             

What Rebecca describes is the great courage it takes to live in the present moment. None of us really knows when we will end our time on this earth and yet we go blithely along behaving as though we have a lifetime with those we love. Josh and Rebecca decided at the 16th week of Savannah's life that they would be as present as possible, not move into fear and anxiety of the unknown nor be held hostage by past regrets. They would do now all they could to love this child and have her experience the now of that love. They pray for a miracle (as do we all) and accept the answer for now by the moment to moment awareness of this present joy.

             

When my sister was dying (Savannah's great-grandmother) her son and I spoke quietly as our hands held my sister's. "It's a lot like birthing," I said. "I was just thinking that," he answered. "The waiting, the breathing changes."And if one's heart is right the anticipated joy of the next moment of more life.

             

"Where but in the present can the eternal be met?" wrote C.S Lewis. My sister's grandson and his wife are living a life of love, cherishing the present moments of their daughter's life and their precious relationships composed of neither documents nor maps but the ephemera of treasured moments. It's a reminder for me to be present with those I have relationships with for who is to say how soon I will have to say good-bye when it seems like just yesterday I said hello.

In This Issue
Celebrating Books
National Cowboy Day
Jane's Schedule
Word Whisperings: Roses Have Thorns

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Celebrating Books!

LogCabin A Log Cabin Christmas will be reissued this fall. My novella inside, "The Courting Quilt"  is my New York Times bestseller (I love being able to say that at my age!) There'll be a big giveaway of -ahem -ephemera - in September so be sure to visit my blog or Facebook page then if not before. In November Emma of Aurora will hit the stands. Called a 3 in 1, this single book will contain all three of the Change and Cherish novels about the Aurora colony. So you can purchase all three to give to friends who won't need to wonder which book came first or get in trouble for not returning the originals to you. I've also learned that A Gathering of Finches and A Land of Sheltered Promise will return temporarily to their previous more reasonable (in my opinion!) prices, hopefully in time for Christmas! I'll keep you posted. And, I just learned that my novella, "A Mother's Cry" tied for third place in the Inspirational Reader's Choice Awards! I'm delighted and happy for all the many winners and readers who made the nomination and choices.

National Cowboy Day 

 

July 27th is National Cowboy Day. Another nephew - a cowboy - wears a tee shirt that reads: "Forget the whales. Save the Cowboy." Let's save both. If you're near Oklahoma City consider visiting the Western Heritage and National Cowboy Museum. They gave my first novel one of its highest awards back in 1996. We've visited often since then to see the art, history and special exhibit wings of this world class museum. www.nationalcowboymuseum.org

             

Much of a cowboy's life is filled with tedium - riding fences and fixing them; moving cattle from this pasture to the next. Feeding the leaves of summer during the winter and branding in the spring. Modern cowboys run tractors and as did their ancestors, write poetry. Yes, poetry. Treat yourself to the Elko, NV National Cowboy Poetry gathering. http://www.westernfolklife.org/National-Cowboy-Poetry-Gathering-to experience the connection between Celtic lyrical poets, Robert Frost and modern day bards like Wally McCrae and Baxter Black. My husband Jerry is a cowboy. He wears his western belt and boots daily now that he's feeling so much better. For awhile, he wasn't supposed to bend and just getting his boots on took too much energy. But he persevered which is what cowboys do. Let's celebrate that hardiness in them - and in ourselves.

 

 

Jane's Schedule

    

What's next on my schedule?  

Take a look and see where our paths might cross during upcoming events.

      Be sure to check the website for updated event information!

 

July 22-25 - Oregon California Trail Association National Convention

Monarch Hotel, 12566 SE 93rd,  Clackamas, OR.  Join Jane on Wednesday evening 7-9 for Author's Night. Come meet a dozen Oregon Authors who celebrate history, the west and great stories!

 

August 12-14 - Albertina Kerr Center 424 NE 22nd, Portland, OR Annual fundraising event. http://www.albertinakerr.org/A third day (August 12) has been added for Jane's 13th visit to help raise funds for this fine organization that serves children and adults with disabilities and special needs. Reservations are required. Cost is $35.  Call 503-297-3984.

 

August 15 - Newell House Museum Garden Tea and Fundraiser 8089 Champoeg Road, St. Paul, Oregonhttp://newellhouse.com/Call 503-678-5537 to reserve space for this luncheon event. Join Jane as she helps keep history alive at this beautifully restored 1800s home of Robert Newell.

 

August 21 - Teacher In-service for Buff Elementary School. This is a closed event but Jane celebrates the work that teacher's do and encourages others to do the same. " In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something less, because passing civilization along from one generation to the next ought to be the highest honor and the highest responsibility anyone could have. -Lee Iacocca, automobile executive (b. 1924)

 

 

For all event information and updates, please visit 
Jane's website and click on Jane's Calendar.  Or follow this link directly to her calendar.

 

Thanks!   

Word Whisperings 

 

Roses Have Thorns

 

A Novel of Elizabeth the First by Sandra Byrd. (Howard Books, 2013)

 

Whenever I know that a Sandra Byrd book is being released I am ecstatic. Her stories set in the 16th Century told through the eyes of a woman close to the court of Henry VIII are filled with lush details of palace life, singular characters, and enough intrigue to keep me up for hours turning pages. These are based on actual women which of course is what I love. Roses Have Thorns, the third in the series, is no exception. (You don't have to have read the earlier books To Die For and The Secret Keeper (a Library Journal best books of 2012) but you'll want to!

             

 The narrator is Swedish Elin von Snakenborg who discovers that her fianc� has fallen in love with her sister. Deciding to make her own destiny in a time when women didn't, she makes a treacherous journey to England at the age of seventeen. Once there her native intelligence and political insights transform her life - and her name. She becomes Helena the Marchioness of Northampton, one of the highest ranking woman in Queen Elizabeth's circle. How she maneuvers her way to find peace with a husband she's not sure she can trust and a Monarch who demands all will take you back in history but also bring you into present day struggles women have: to discover where our loyalties lie between home and work and where we allow faith to make the bridge. Beautifully written, evocative, insightful and warm. That's a Sandra Byrd Book to me. If you like Philippa Gregory's expansive Elizabethan tales then you'll find rich fodder in Roses Have Thorns.

In piano music, pieces with a singular idea evoking a particular mood are known as Character Pieces. The titles suggest brevity such as Debussy's Pr�ludes. A character concept inspired this piece from my Simple Gift of Comfort Book that I hope will give you words of encouragement in this composition that is your life. I think it speaks especially to the importance of living in the now.

 

"Who's to say that interwoven, complex works of art contribute more or stay longer in the memory? Who's to say that shorter songs of rich or vibrant tones leave less behind when their melodies cease? Each is important in the music of our lives, no one greater than the other."

           

I hope you listen to the music of what was, however long the symphony, however short the composition, and remember all the deep and enlightening notes. Let them linger and encourage you, and be a reminder that you will hear music again.

 

 

Warmly,

 

Jane Kirkpatrick