Gifts of Confidence
Sometimes when the world seems beyond our control (it’s actually always been so) it’s important to focus on what we do control: how we respond, how we reach out, how we move forward in our own little worlds. Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl wrote “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” I’ve taken to buying bouquets of tulips and leaving them at a neighbor’s door to brighten their days. (Her fourteen year old cat died; another recovered from surgery.) I’m sending handwritten notes of gratitude, making phone calls just to say “I’m thinking of you.” And perhaps a big push for me is talking to strangers. Years ago at a course I took, we were asked to approach others in the class (strangers in the beginning) and say something to lift their day. The instructor called it “Gifts of Confidence.” The recipient’s task was to just “take it” not return it with “I like your sense of humor too,”or “You look good in a beard, too,” but just accept. Many of us have a hard time taking in the gifts that fuel us. There is even a term for what we become: Stroke Deficit. We evaluate those gifts as meaningless or we’re critical of them (“What do they really know?”) and so we miss those moments of kindness that can help fuel a more positive attitude.
At the Emergency Room this week, Jerry and I waited for nearly 10 hours. During that same time, a man with his about four-month-old daughter in a carrier, waited too. She cried. He moved far away so others wouldn’t be bothered. He comforted. All. Day. Long. As we got called in about 5:00pm (Jerry came in by ambulance at 10:00am, was triaged, had blood and other stuff cultured and found not to be as priority as others. They served over 300 people in ER that day. I asked). I stopped and said to this attentive father, “I’m so sorry your little girl isn’t feeling well. But I so admire how you have cared for her all day.” I felt myself tearing up, so grateful that we did not have the responsibility of caring for a sick child and that this little girl had a very attentive parent. He looked a little stunned but smiled. “Thank you,” he said. “It’s hard.” And so it is. But maybe he received a tiny gift of confidence for the work of being a dad. I hope so. I got some fuel too for acting on what I was feeling and giving what I could: a small gift of witness. I’ll keep looking for more opportunities. It’s what I have control over.
Rupie’s Rendering
“I say! My mom got a lot of kudos about my renderings last month. I might be a writer in addition to being adorable and opinionated and entertaining – oh, that’s what all writers are and do! I thought I’d let you know that while my mom and dad are off doing I-don’t-know-what (she says they’re “at the hospital as my dad has sepsis, pneumonia, a UTI and A Fib. I guess you go to the hospital for telling lies?) I’m spending a fair amount of time all by myself. At home. Mom leaves the TV on for me on HGTV. Not that I watch it when they aren’t here. I sit in the window to gaze as folks walk by. I check out the hummingbirds coming to the feeder. I eat, drink. I lay on the couch with my feet up in the air, chase a ball I push with my nose. Hump a stuffed otter my mom’s friend sent to me. (Can I say hump?) Mostly, I sleep – not in my bed but in the shoe department. That’s the closet where I make a nest of my mom’s slippers and shoes and can hide behind her blouses hanging down. And I practice looking pathetic when as soon as I hear her at the door, I run out and sit like I’ve been waiting. All. Day. Long. I don’t know what you do when you’re left behind, but I hope you work on making the person who left you feel guilty because it always results in new treats! Just a little insight for February! Until next time, Woof! Woof! Rupie. PS don’t tell a fib.
Black History Month
One of the delights of my writing life was discovering the story of Letitia Carson, a black woman who came to Oregon as a common law wife of a white man with their one child. She came at a time when people of color were not legally allowed to be in the territory unless they were “property.” Letitia was a free black woman. And after her husband died in 1857 and she was told by the administrator of the estate, that she got nothing for her seven years of building up a homestead, except her “freedom” which she already had, she sued and won. She sued a second time and won again. This happened during a time when a person of color was not allowed to testify against a white man. She refused to be a victim. The juries were all white men. Letitia went on to be one of the first women to prove up a homestead in her own name thus going from being property at one point in her life to owning property. A contemporary Letitia Carson Legacy Project carries her story on through archeology, student curriculum, site restoration and more. Visit Friends of Letitia Carson on Facebook. I wrote about her in A Light in the Wilderness, a novel that Bob Welch in his recent substack newsletter (Heart, Humor and Hope bobwelchwriter@substack.com) named as one of the best books about Oregon on Oregon’s birthday February 14th. And recently a children’s book- K-5, The Story of Letitia Carson by Christy Koegler with illustrators Kay Beverly & Mei Sansone, became available on Amazon. These titles are great ways to share Letitia’s story of resilience, courage, and compassion with kids. The $10.60 price covers printing, nothing more. Be sure to pick up a couple!
A Writing Tip
I wrote a short piece about staying in the room for ACFW website (American Christian Fiction Writers) and adapted another I hope the Western Writers will use in their Round-up Journal. Here’s one of those writer tips. “When starting a new book, I give the two main characters the names of John and Mary with plans to change their names later as their characters develop. That way I don’t spend time reading baby name books instead of writing.” But in Across the Crying Sands, I didn’t have to change names because the main characters, based on historical people, are John and Mary Gerritse. Sometimes the synchronicity of writing is just a joy. I also learned today that a local resident of Cannon Beach where the story is set, has named two eagles John and Mary, in their honor. Gosh I hope people like my version of Mary and John’s lives! Coming soon to a bookstore near you! And here’s a pre-order price reduction. AND, there’ll be a gift-giveaway that any of you who are receiving Story Sparks will automatically be entered into. Tell your friends to sign up for the newsletter to be enrolled too! More on what’s in the gift bag later.
Events
It’s getting closer, the release! Look for some news about a drawing that I hope will bring some lucky winner a treasure trove of coastal goodies including an exquisite print by renowned artist Jeff Hull of Cannon Beach, Oregon. He’s donated it for this give-away! Thank you Jeff!
Schedule – Mark your calendars!
Book Release event at Paulina Springs Books
May 20, 2025 – 6:30pm Paulina Springs Books, 252 West Hood, Sisters, Oregon, presentation and signing – Release Date of Across the Crying Sands
Book signing event at Waucoma Books
May 31, 2025 – 12:00 – 2:00pm Hood River, Oregon. from 12:00 – 2:00pm
Book signing event at Cannon Beach Museum
June 7, 2025 – Cannon Beach Museum, Cannon Beach. Presentation and signing. Books provided by Cannon Beach Book Co. – Join Jane and poet Dana Hunke-Stone, author of Amuse Bouche a Taste of Melancholy. With permission, Jane used one of Dana’s poems in Across the Crying Sands. Dana, a local coastal poet, will share some of her wonderful poems along with Jane telling stories!
Special Event at Aurora Colony
June 11, 2025 – Special Event– stay tuned for details
Book signing event at Tillamook Library
June 13, 2025 – 5:00pm – Tillamook Library – presentation, book sales and signing.
Book signing event at Beach Books
June 14, 2025 – 11-2:00 Beach Books, Seaside, OR. Signing and chatting.
Word Whisperings
Pond’rings: a Writers Memoir
By Marcia Laycock.
I met Marcia at Guelph, Ontario at a conference outside of Toronto several years ago. I was a featured speaker and we shared stories of our writing and faith journey. (Later her writer’s group in Edmonton invited me to speak at their conference where we spent more time together and Jerry and I spent time with friends who had only been penpal!). It was at the WORD conference, we both heard Rudy Wiebe, a master Canadian story-teller and professor of English – Emeritus – say “Write your own people.” His words inspired me to write about my grandmother in A Flickering Light and An Absence so Great. Marcia went on to write her story of God’s faithfulness and her journey into trust including Pond’rings. Beautifully written with the struggles of living that we can relate to. Humorous and insightful, you don’t have to know Marcia to be moved by her memoir but you’ll feel like you know her when you’ve read the last words.
A Hundred Magical Reasons
By Laura DeNooyer
Scrivenings Press LLC
If you loved The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L Frank Baum, you will love this book. This is a story within a story within a story and yet it reads as smooth as cream cheese. A young woman trying to escape a controlling family spends the summer helping a reclusive woman who has secrets while trying to clear her deceased husband’s name. The secrets also involve the Baum family who come alive under the pen of this Wisconsin native writer. Back and forth from 1980 to the turn of the century, we discover the importance of the magic in our lives. I hope you enjoy this charming book that I think would make a great mini-series!
Birthdays
At least eight people in my life have birthdays this month (which means their parents – and mine – were very busy the previous May). In some ways having so many special days to remember – friends, nephew, great nieces, cousins, a god-daughter and my grandmother – makes my own passage of another year less shocking. My grandmother shared a birthday with Abraham Lincoln which made it easy to remember and my nephew’s B-day is the day before. I’d much rather focus on them than on me. One year I figured out how to have a fundraiser for my friends in Burundi. A couple of years ago I had a walk-by cupcake gathering where I gave away cupcakes for my birthday. This year I’m just happy to have the energy to look after Jerry. But it would please me if as I described in the opening, you might give the “gift of confidence” to a person in your life. That would be a wonderful present to give them, yourself and me!
