Enjoyed being with Ms. Lourey’s 8th grade English class at East Central High School, Sandstone, MN.  Ms. Lourey invited me to the class.  She said her students were interested in writing.  I shared some of my journey with writing and encouraged them to use their creativity to write about things that interest them.  They got right to it and began writing.  I was impressed with their attentiveness and eagerness to write.

I also spent a class period with the 7th and 8th grade students at Harvest Christian School in Sandstone.  I taught at Harvest for two years from 1995-1997.  Working with teen-agers has been one of the joys of my life.  It was great to be with these two classes of students to share my passion for writing.

Thank you to Franklin’s Ben Franklin store in Sandstone for hosting a successful book signing.  It was fun to see many old friends who came by to say “hi” and get acquainted with the “RJ” books and just about every other book and devotional-journal I have ever written.  My husband and I moved away from Sandstone 21 years ago, but we have many friends who we cherish there.  A big thank you to Mary Ann Nelson who was the creative force behind the display and who served as cashier and PR person.  It was a great day!

RJ’s Legacy is now available on Amazon.  It is the third and final book in the RJ series of historical fiction.  RJ’s Legacy is different than the other books.   In the first two books RJ tells her story through her journals.  In RJ’s Legacy her children and others dear to her tell their remembrances of RJ and the impact she had on their lives.  RJ’s Journey is about a girl writing of the adventures with her family on the Oregon Trail and beginning a new life in the Willamette Valley in Oregon.  RJ’s Valley is  that girl grown up and coming into her own life’s story as she continued journaling.  RJ’s Legacy tells more about RJ as an adult, the family she raised and the causes she championed.

The fictional “High Meadow Ranch” where RJ and Joshua Weaver raised their family had the beautiful Mt. Hood in the distance east of the ranch.  So, this photo taken by Carla Danielson of a cabin in a meadow with Mt. Hood in the background is the perfect cover for RJ’s Legacy.

Fall is my husband’s favorite season.  I’ve heard him say thay many times.  It can be beautiful I admit.  The days shorten.  The air has a crispness to it.  The changing colors annouce the end of summer.  Yes, I like autumn, too, but I have mixed feelings about it.  I like the newness of spring and the vibrancy of summer.  Fall is the end of all that.  Fall is the transition into the cold and sometimes bleak winter.  There is a sadness about fall for me.

 

Here is bread, here is wine: Christ is with us: He is with us.

Break the bread; taste the wine: Christ is with us here.

Here is grace, here is peace: Christ is with us:

Know his grace; find his peace: Feast on Jesus here.

In this bread there is healing; in this cup there’s life forever.

In this moment by the Spirit Christ is with us here.

Here we are, joined in one: Christ is with us: He is with us.

We’ll proclaim till he comes Jesus crucified.

(Words by Graham Kendrick)

We sang this song during Holy Communion yesterday.  The Pastor asked us to be thinking during the worship service about what Holy Communion means to us.  I was saying to myself, it means Jesus is present.  Then we sang this song.  During the observance of Holy Communion and at all times I know Christ is with me.  Thank you, Jesus!

 

 

But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, And His righteousness to children’s children, To those who keep His covenant And remember His precepts to do them.  Psalm 103:17-18

Love having the grands around.  This morning it is the boys…HuskerDo, Uno, baseball and of course “wheels.”  May they grow up to be followers of Jesus…men of integrity and may “No weapon that is formed against you (them) will prosper; And every tongue that accuses you (them) in judgment you (they) will condemn.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD,  And their vindication is from Me,” declares the LORD.  Isaiah 54:17 

 

History has been more interesting to me as I have gotten older.  I liked it well enough as a student years ago, but it has been more fun studying it now.  I can choose what part of history to pursue.  I have chosen to pursue the mid-1800’s for the time being.  I have enjoyed reading about the wagon trains and Pony Express.  Writing fiction about such things has been a fun way to immerse myself in the pioneer days.  I had Great Grandparents and Grandparents who lived the pioneer life in the mid and late 1800’s and early 1900’s. I can only use my imagination and the records from that time to put myself in their shoes.  I know it wasn’t easy, but it was the life they lived.  I’m just glad I have some of that pioneer blood in me.

Fellowship with followers of Jesus is part of a believer’s “DNA.”  We encourage one another.  We share faith with one another.  We worship and pray and spend time in God’s word.  I have been blessed to be in many small groups of believers through the years.  Each group has been a joy.  Currently, I am meeting with a small group at Grandview UMC and we are going through my Romans 8 devotional-journal.  There is much encouragement in this one chapter.  I urge you to read it sometime soon.

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1

The book signing event after church service at Grandview United Methodist Church was fun yesterday.  Thank you, friends, for your interest in my books.  It inspires me to keep writing and use story-telling to connect readers with history and relationships and faith. Grandview UMC is a congregation that meets and serves its community in Grandview, Missouri.  We have been worshipping there for several years and the fellowship is sweet.  Pastor Judy leads the congregation with love and compassion.  The music is worshipful and the messages are encouraging and challenging.  May the Lord bless and lead the faithful of GUMC.

It started out as a book for my grandkids.  RJ’s Journey was so fun to research and write.  I realized there was more to the story, so RJ’s Valley followed.  Now, RJ’s Legacy is with my editor and should be available some time this fall.  I guess maybe things really do come in “3’s.”  It seemed like I couldn’t leave RJ as a young mother too busy to write in her journal.  So, in “Legacy” each of her grown children tell the rest of her story from their own perspective.  As I have written before, RJ became an interesting character to me and in some way she will always be special.  Her story, though fictional, has inspired me to keep writing.  I have a collection of stories in the works about a place called “Nelson’s Pond.”  I will reveal more about that later.  In the mean time, be looking for RJ’s Legacy.