Now on sale . . . Muffins & Mayhem: Recipes for a Happy (if Disorderly) Life by Suzanne Beecher, and when you purchase it, request a free autographed bookplate, by visiting:
http://tinyurl.com/Muffins-MayhemPO
Join my email book club. Over 350,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/
Dear Reader,
I'm a storyteller. When I retell a story from my life, I can take it in whatever direction I choose. I may decide to leave out parts of the story, yet deep in my heart I'll always know exactly what happened. I can't change what happened, but I can rewrite the stories from my life so they lift me up. I can pick and choose, editing my thoughts so when I remember, the tears may still flow, but I find peace in retelling the story.
My grandson Paul, and Darlene a reader at the book club, have both reminded me that the ending of a story, the lesson I take with me, the feeling in my heart after "The End" is mine to write.
Days after a fire consumed his home, three-year-old Paul walked into his piano lesson, sat down on the piano bench by his teacher and said, "Ms. Marcy, it's so sad. Our house had a fire, Maggie and Frank, our cats died, but they are in heaven now, and I'm living in a castle until our house gets fixed."
Stories are what we make of them, but sometimes we need a little help rewriting "The End."
"Dear Suzanne, your column today about how you deal with a crisis really hit home with me, because that's how I had always reacted my whole life, too...until 9/11. I was working at the Pentagon on that day in 2001. Thankfully, I was on the opposite side of the building from where the plane hit, so I wasn't injured and was able to help calm down some of the younger people in my office, and the children who were in the daycare facility on that side of the building during our evacuation.
To make a long story short, I became extremely sad every year on the anniversary of that tragic event, until this year. Our daughter-in-law, Katie, gave birth to healthy twin boys on August 19th. Their Baptism was scheduled for September 12th, because our son Mike's National Guard unit was being sent for training the next week, to prepare for going to guard the National Capitol Region.
Since our family is spread out over five different states, many of us drove or flew in for the celebration a day or two ahead of time. When we gathered at dinner the night before the ceremony, Mike raised his glass and gave a toast, "To the ninth anniversary of our mom being safe."
That's when I realized that my children and their spouses, and my older grandchildren chose not to be sad, but to rejoice that I survived that day. My whole perspective has changed! I can still mourn the loss of my friends and co-workers, but be grateful for all of us who survived and still keep in touch.
Thanks for sharing your life experiences and reading with me."
Sincerely, Darlene Perry
Paul and Darlene have it right. Things are what you make them.
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Warmest regards,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
http://www.muffinsandmayhem.com/
AUTHORBUZZ: Deadly sins, creepy spiders and piano lessons are just a few of the things to read about at this week's AUTHORBUZZ. Win part of your holiday gift list: books, a classical piano CD and a $25 bookstore gift card.
Enter the authors' free giveaways; then send an email to me at [email protected] letting me know which author's giveaway you signed up for, and your email will automatically enter your name in a drawing for a $25.00 bookstore gift card.
DiAnn Mills/PURSUIT OF JUSTICE
S.G. Browne/FATED
Anna Goldsworthy/PIANO LESSONS: A MEMOIR
Kathi Macias/RED INK
Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader
* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE PENGUIN BOOK OF GASLIGHT CRIME edited by Michael Sims. Start reading now and enter to win a Penguin totebag. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/November10Classics
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