Stories of Strength

Wow--sure has been a while! Let's see if we can't speed things up-to-date.

First, I want to thank everyone for their love, prayers, and condolences, especially Cortney, Ceci, Mridu, Joanne, Megan, and AGK. *hugs*

We attended Michael's granddad's funeral, which, though sad, was quite a lovely time with family. I adore the family I married into. Wonderful people, so incredibly loving, and so much like the family I was born into, as well.

When we returned we spent a somewhat quiet weekend trying to recuperate from the two weeks that were spent driving back and forth between Texas and Oklahoma, 7 hours each way. No sooner was that weekend over when we started to hear warnings of a certain Hurricane Rita. As the week drew closer to a close, we decided it would be best to evacuate, as it was highly recommended. We drove to Dallas throughout a period of 12 hours (should have been 4.5, but the traffic was horrendous! It took us literally 4 HOURS(!!!) to drive 20 miles during the first part of our trip!), and stayed with Michael's sister and her husband for a few days. We returned during the latter part of the weekend, and I am *still* unpacking and trying to catch up on relaxing and work. Thank God--our area experienced very little damage. Still, we're grieving with those who have lost so much, which brings me to what I want to share next.

I have happydancenews!

Stories of Strength: An Anthology Benefiting The Red Cross

My personal essay about strength, entitled "A Walk in the Clouds," has been selected to appear in the upcoming (October/November, 2005) anthology, Stories of Strength. The idea for S.O.S. came from Jenna Glatzer, proclaimed author and Editor-in-Chief of AbsoluteWrite.com. She approached the AbsoluteWrite community, and it became a community effort.

Some well-known names of those who have contributed stories include: science-fiction guru Orson Scott Card, famed actor/author Wil Wheaton, Christian romance novelist Robin Lee Hatcher, and, of course, our beloved Jenna Glatzer, along with many, many others. (Hee hee, Cortney--I think I hear you all the way over here--YES, THE Wil Wheaton! Love you, my Cort-ster.)

All proceeds from the sale of this anthology will go directly to the Red Cross for the hurricane relief effort. We authors and editors are donating our work for this worthy cause; none of us will receive a penny. Please be sure to buy a copy when it is released! You will not only receive a book fill of wonderful stories of strength, but you will be giving to those in need. This is a gift that truly keeps on giving. For more information, please visit: http://www.storiesofstrength.com. I'll be adding links to places where you can buy it when it is officially released!

Also, I am starting a website for writers, entitled Writers Remember, to help bring inspiration to those who often feel discouraged, burnt-out, and rundown in their writing goals and careers. It's not completely set up yet, but it will be, soon. Enjoy!

The only other news I can think of at the moment is that my website has been revamped. I decided to make it my everything-site, so it will include both things about myself as a writer, as well as Temlyn Writing (& Editing) Services.

Edited to add:

Almost forgot--I'm moving my blog to WordPress, but will update when I do. It may not be for a few days.

A Passing

Michael's (my husband's) granddad passed away Tuesday night. (Thanks, Ceci, Cortney, & AGK, for your loving words. Ceci & Cortney, I hope we can talk sometime next week after we've returned. *hugs*)

All weekend things were touch-and-go; his granddad was off all of the medications and he actually seemed to be improving a bit, though we knew it probably wouldn't be for long. It was more of a swan song. We finally left his parents' house on Monday morning to drive back here, as his granddad was surviving indefinitely, and we couldn't continue taking vacation time when we weren't really doing anything but waiting.

We were notified Wednesday morning of his passing.

I'm sorry I haven't been around much online, but even though we've been back since late Monday night, we both knew we'd probably have to be traveling again soon, and things were so up in the air. I've been having to prepare and such, and put my work off until we return next week.

So, I've got a lot to do today with laundry and such, since we've leaving early tomorrow.

This time, to save on gas, we're driving up to Dallas (5 hour drive) tomorrow morning, where Michael's sister and her husband live. We're going to pile into their car and drive the extra 2.5 hours to Oklahoma. We'll stay overnight Friday night, and Saturday will be the funeral. I think we'll be driving back to Dallas Saturday night, stay over with sis-in-law, and then return to our house Sunday afternoon/evening. We have a marriage class at church that night, and Michael is taking an extra bereavement day on Monday, to rest up. I may be online a little on Monday, because of that, but from tomorrow morning, until Monday, I won't have internet access.

I look forward to returning and catching up with everything here soon! Thanks so much for your prayers and thoughts.

Out of Commission for a While

My husband just called me; we'd been planning a weekend trip to his parents' house to visit with his grandparents, as his granddad hasn't been well for a long time, and is now getting worse. We were supposed to leave tomorrow morning, drive to his sister's house in Dallas, and then spend the night there, before driving to Oklahoma on Saturday morning. We were due to return on Sunday evening.

The leaving date of tomorrow morning is still the same.

However, his father just called and told him that Hospice has said it may not be long now, so we're not sure when we'll return. We're bringing enough clothes and such for a week, in case he passes during the weekend, since the funeral would only be a few days later.

*sigh* This is difficult for me, and I know it must be moreso for Michael. His granddad has not been coherent or responsive since before we met, so I've never known him any other way. It's difficult for me to sit there and not know what to say or do, and I don't really feel comfortable. I don't really feel like I have a place there in times of such stress.

Please pray and/or think happy thoughts for us. My in-laws have dial-up internet access, so I'm not sure how often I'll be able to log on and check in, but I will try to let you know whenabouts I might return.

Note: I have several websites (All Info About musicals, beauty, and marriage) that were going to be updated tomorrow and this weekend, but as these circumstances have come up, the updates will be completed at a later date.