Editing can be really tough; I thought I knew that.  What I am learning it the final edit is the hardest.  After asking some of my sweet friends to help me and give me their thoughts on my book, I found I had a lot to work on.  That wasn’t the hard part.  I knew that my book was going to need work.  The hard part is deciding the advice to listen to.

I have found that every person has a slightly different idea of what makes a great book.  This can be good, because you get different perspectives on different scenes.  However, it is also that difference in perspective that can make editing such a challenge.  One person will tell you need to change something, while another person will want you to keep things the way they are.

One of the biggest lessons I am learning in this part of my writing adventure is to hold what I wrote loosely and be willing to change anything.  This can be very hard for a writer who has spent hours writing a particular section.  There are inevitable parts of the book that meant something to you that your readers won’t get, or things your readers want to know that you could care less about.

So that is where I am in this adventure called writing.  Where are you?

Hi, I’m really busy this week (which you may have guessed by the lack of posts but I wanted to post something. So here is a quick update about me.

This week I have been

That is what I have been up to.  What have you been doing?

Okay, I admit it, I can be a snob.  I was homeschooled all the way, so I tend to think that a lot of education issues would be solved if more people would homeschool.  But let’s be honest; there are a huge number of people that for one reason or another can’t homeschool, or it would be a bad choice for them.  I knew a dear family that tried homeschooling, and it just didn’t work for them.

When my co-workers asked if I would attend a seminar on behalf of the office on online education I said yes, but was prepared to be bored out of my mind.  I mean, what did I care about the subject?  With that in mind I headed for the conference, little knowing that I was in for a big surprise.

The keynote speaker was a man by the name of Michael Horn.  He and many others talked about the amazing potential for online education.  After about fifteen minutes I was enjoying myself.  It was so neat to hear about something that could truly help the broken education system.  Online education could easily make it so that every child, including homeschoolers, can have access to classes and experts that they haven’t had before.

Although I enjoyed the seminar immensely, I was reminded of something that I too often forget; homeschooling is not an option for everyone.  We who are homeschooled often forget that fact and point our fingers at the public education system.  Yes, they have an issue, that is why our parents chose to keep us home, but that doesn’t mean we should write them off.  We should be champions of bettering the education system for those who need it.

Well, that is what I learned this week on the job.  What have you been learning?

Here are some blog posts that have encouraged, inspired, and convicted me.

Outside the American Dream – Radical Love 

Praise and Worship; Born to Climb – Young Homemakers 

No Perfect People Allowed: When Life Disappoints You – We are the Light of the World! 

Heart, Why? –  Rose’s Daring Adventure  

What you see above is a sneak peek of what is to come.  Right now some good friends and I are working hard to get my book “The Destiny of One” to a publishable point.  I am working hard on the final edit, and, if all goes well, my book will be available this April.

I cannot tell you how excited I am.  To see the end it sight is an amazing feeling.  So stay tuned for forthcoming details.

It is easier to stand in the cold protesting than to stand in the warmth with someone whose life is falling apart.

It is easier to stand an hour shouting than to spend an hour listening to a breaking heart.

It is easier to know what you are supposed to do than to actually do it.

It is easier to take a stand when you have people who support you than when you are all alone.

It is easier to judge someone when you yourself have never been in their place.

It is easier to say someone should do something than do it yourself.

It is easier to walk to the other side of the road and ignore the outcasts.

It is easier to tell someone what they are about to do is wrong while we stand on this side of the fence.

It is far easier to be a hypocrite than any of us would like it to be.

It is hard to love those who standards are so low, but that is what Christ did.

It is hard to be kind to a person who is making bad decisions, yet Jesus did it every day.

It is hard to believe that many would waste the precious gift of grace that God holds out to them, but isn’t that what we are doing?

Have we forgotten that God loved us at our worst?  That he took hold of us while we were in our sin?  That we didn’t have to wait until our morals were high to receive our salvation? Have we forgotten that God loved us before we ever loved him?  Have we not learned that we are supposed to extend that love to those who are dying in their sins?

It is easy to believe that we are too holy to reach down and touch a shattered life.

It is hard for us to except that sometimes, we try to live a life holier than Jesus did.

It is easy to thank Christ for saving us from our sin and gave us his love.

It is hard to live that love.

So what have I been doing at my new job?  A lot of research.  That may sound boring, but I am truly enjoying it.  I love learning, so researching is a great job for me.  I have learned so much about different groups and issues already, it’s amazing.  Who knew that raw milk had an enzyme that overcame lactose, or that there are so many websites set up to help people in state legislature?

Research can be boring at times, I admit.  I have found that teachers are right after lawyers in how dry their writing can be.  I have also learned that it can take days of work to make a two page summary on an issue for my boss.  I didn’t know how long it took to do those nice summaries that I see everywhere.  Now that I know, I am a lot more thankful.

I’m really excited about what I’m being allowed to do and all that I am learning.  I look forward to sharing some of that with you in the coming days.

Please forgive the lack of posting the past few days; life has been very busy.  I spent all last weekend with my two sweet nieces so my sister and brother-in-law could go to an awards banquet.  It was fun to play Go-Fish, checkers and to bounce on the trampoline with them.  Needless to say I was thankful for movie time so that I could rest.  I don’t see where such tiny kids store all that energy.

On a more somber note, our neighbor and dear friend Mary is having a very hard time now that her husband is gone.  That is perfectly understandable, but it seems that though she struggled with being forgetful, his death has made it much worse.  She has forgotten people and major event,s and it is so hard to watch. So your prayers would be welcome.

Other things that kept me from posting are my job (which is going well), trying to get a bunch of writing in my book done, and making sure I spend enough time with family in the midst of all my projects.  What have you been up to?