A Light in the Wilderness has been out three months and I've received heartfelt letters from readers happy to have met Letitia Carson. Yesterday afternoon I Skyped with a book group in Laurel, MT who had read her story. Great fun. I'm currently working on a book that will be due next September and one of my research materials is a family history published in 1929 in...Laurel, Montana. Pure coincidence but intriguing. And now we begin the selection of the cover for the book coming out next September. I haven't seen the possibilities as yet. It's titled now: The Memory Weaver. It's based on the lives of Eliza Spalding and her daughter Eliza Spalding Warren. The former was an early missionary to the Nez Perce and her daughter a hostage during the Whitman massacre of 1847. It's about memory, family, and choosing not to be held hostage by our past. Readers of Letitia's story will find a character shows up in The Memory Weaver. No, not Letitia. You'll have to wait and read it! Mark September 1, 2015! 

Bob Welch and I are preparing for our 10th anniversary of Beachside Writers in Yachats, OR February 27-March 1, 2015. I confess, I'm always anxious about this event wondering if I really have anything to offer. Then I get there, hear the ocean, meet new faces, greet old faces (I mean previous attendees) and see what magic Sally and Anne have put together for ambiance and fabulous food and I'm so glad I came.

In some ways, scheduling this weekend workshop is a Christmas gift to myself. I know I'll encounter new stories of writers who started their project, who met with an agent or editor, who decided to self-publish and see their works in print. I have the privilege of listening to brave souls read their works out loud and share their passion and vulnerability, both necessary to give words their weight. To be a part of seeing someone take the next step in achieving their dream is truly a gift. One you might consider giving to your writing friends. I have to say, a good number of people have shown up at Beachside on the beautiful Oregon coast because someone gave them the gift of confidence and signed them up. Something to think about for that writer in your life who has everything. www.bobwelch.net for further information and registration. Even if you're not a writer or don't plan to ever publish, writing is a healing art and this year, I'll be exploring a bit of that in addition to fiction. Hope to see you there. Because it's an anniversary year, expect surprises!

When I have to drive across the Cascade Mountain passes in winter, I leave the radio off. I focus on the road, scanning the sides for errant deer, stay alert of other drivers going too fast or not able to manage ice patches hoping I can respond quickly and correctly should I need to. By the time I reach my destination usually three hours away, my fingers and back ache from gripping the steering wheel and staying hyper alert. It's even worse if my journey is alone and at night.

That level of adrenaline push is the closest I can come to understanding what my nephew, a police officer, goes through each eight hour shift. Always alert. Always aware. Always having to look for people in need and possible danger. He works in a large metropolitan area. All his life he has wanted to protect and to serve. As a child, his compassion and alertness was tapped by school counselors to be a part of a group of students who noticed distresses of others, who could reduce agitation and argument, model ways to deal with bullies, who listened well in order to help. They offered skills to those kids, skills that likely helped save lives. As an adult, he completed a degree in criminal justice and last month he qualified for the SWAT team. He works the night shift and likes it but he spends his days getting to know the neighborhood of his assignment. And he stays alert.

I used to pray for his safety but one time in talking with him I realized that if he wanted to be safe he would have chosen another profession. He knows the risks. Now I pray that he will exercise good judgment, that he'll be aware, that he will take professional precaution, that he will see people as people first and that when he finishes a shift that he'll able to gather needed sleep, something I find hard to bring about after hours of adrenaline and anxiety. He says he appreciates those prayers.

So this weekend when I march with community members from our church and carry a sign that says we support the local Police Department and one that says "Black lives matter" I'll be thinking of him and of those served across the country. To quote from a letter to the community written by many local pastors: "The current debate and protest in our country has made many feel as if they must choose between police or people of color. That is a false dichotomy. The opportunity is to take to heart and turn into action the words of Dr. King, "All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality... Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be, and you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be." We must seek ways to bridge the divide that often exists between law enforcement and the people they are sworn to protect.

My nephew knows he is supported by many and I hope others involved in law enforcement know of that support, too. AND, I want people of color to know that reconciliation, justice and mercy are a part of the caring for all of us who are in that "inescapable network of mutuality." May the conversation continue without violence, with respect for differences, and with liberty and justice for all. 

The Care and Management of Lies by Jacqueline Winespear Harper, 2014  

I fell in love with Jacqueline Winespear novels last year and read a bunch with her protagonist Masie Dobbs. This novel is not part of that series but a stand alone novel of WWI. It has the same compelling narrative, lives of men and women caught up in war and homeland and all that goes between. Thea wants to avoid the violence of war and hopes that marching for peace will do that. But others see her actions as traitorous. Kezia heads to the country-side to work beside her husband Tom, Thea's brother, to raise food, an essential for the war effort. But soon Tom feels he cannot stand aside while others go to war on his behalf. Kezia must run the farm on her own. Horses are conscripted - but Kezia convinces the authorities that her two are too old or mean-spirited so they're left behind. But because so many other farmers and delivery men have lost their horses to war, the Marchant animals go into the service of the community. It's a story of love, of hopefulness, of security for country, of coming of age in a time of war and a 100th anniversary of the start of WWI. It's also about protecting and serving. As with many British novels, everything isn't wrapped up as a happy gift at the end; but the read is satisfying indeed. Ms Winespear came to a small nursing museum in Cannon Beach, OR this summer. A friend went to see her. I wish I'd known. I'd have driven five hours to meet this remarkable author who has made WWI come alive and brought me hours of rich reading pleasure.