When we lose loved ones...

A dear friend of mine just lost her sister.  I was told that at the funeral the pastor read Scripture that she had underlined in her Bible.  What a reminder to us all that we should spend our time daily walking with the Lord Jesus.  We are never promised tomorrow or even tonight...but the present is ours to do with as we see fit.  Our Lord would be pleased if the first thing we all did, upon opening our eyes in the morning, was to walk with Him.  Then, He will open our eyes the rest of the day to see the things that are good and precious and things upon which we should reflect.  May we all make that endeavor in this coming year to walk daily with our Savior and to seek Him first as our day begins.

The New Year is almost here...

How quickly time goes by, especially at this time of year. It is almost the start of all the new resolutions and the sad ending of those resolutions we could not or would not keep.  I am not making any this year.  I resolve to just do the best I can in all areas of my life.  That includes a lot of things and if I start making a list I will be overwhelmed since there are so many places to go, things to do and people to see.  I would see them a lot better if my windows were cleaned; I would go more places if I didn't spend so much money on "stuff" and put more gas in my car; I would do more things if I felt younger.....oh...exercise..that could help...on the other hand I would have to resolve to do more of that and I think I will pass.

I will reflect on the year 2010 with joy and sadness.  As always, the Lord puts His children through lots of trials and I count myself as one of His and therefore, you can see the handwriting on the wall...He has sent me trials.  However, He has been there with me through all of them and I know more will be coming in 2011.

I am pleased to have published two books this past year and hopefully, there will be three more coming in the new year.  I have made new friends through this endeavor and because of that I feel doubly blessed.

My wishes for all my friends are health and happiness and most of all that the Lord will be the center of all of your lives.  God bless you all and if you read my blog I hope you will continue to follow me through the coming year.

What Is Your Name?

My newest book has been released and I think it's a hit.  Children are loving the pictures of the animals and they like the poems.  So, all in all, it has been fun.  The printing was a problem since the first two printings had typos.  I guess we are all human and I am not laboring over the fact. It was an experience and fun. For those of you who would like to see it my website is http://www.carolynfindlaydavisbooks.com/  I would welcome your support and  appreciate all of my friends who have been so supportive.

The Christmas holidays are nearing and I have so many blessings to count.  It snowed today and I couldn't help but think how dependent I am on my wonderful children who came to shovel me out.  The snow is beautiful and I pray for safety for all those who have to travel in it.

The birds were especially hungry today and I know that God takes care of each of them..how could I doubt that He will take care of me?  I praise Him today as always.  May He bless all of you.

What Is Your Name?

My latest book, What Is Your Name?  has just been released and will be delivered right after Thanksgiving.  It is written to be read by your child or fun read aloud. It has a poem about each individual animal with real photos of that animal...to delight all ages.  Animals include the elephant, giraffe, tiger, lion, mouse, kangaroo, crocodile, humpback whale, bald eagle, monkey, worm, bunny, and other poems.  Send me an email for shipping if you would like more than one book. 

I am blessed to have so many supportive people in my life and  I couldn't write without them.  To all of you, a very blessed and happy Thanksgiving.

Miss Sara Sit-a-Spell has arrived...

What a happy surprise to see the final proof of Miss Sara Sit-a-Spell's Garden.  It is even cuter than I thought it would be..so bright and cheery with colorful pictures throughout.  I am thrilled to say the least and I am so proud of my granddaughter, Kimberly, for doing such a great job with the illustrations.

So...this is my encouragement to all of you who are traveling this path with me...never give up.  Sooner or not, you will see your work in print and bringing smiles to the little ones who will be reading it.  Thanks for staying with me because the work is not finished. There are three more books in the publishing process and each will await your review.

The website to order is http://www.carolynfindlaydavisbooks.com/
Have a blessed day.

Waiting on the printer....

Today I received the final proof from the printer and Miss Sara Sit-a-Spell's Garden will be off to the printer tomorrow.  The proof was adorable and Kimberly's illustrations are so bright and cheery.  I will have a website to view the book available this week.  I hope you will journey with me down the path that takes this book to a popular seller in children's books.  It is a story that teaches youngsters about the results of hard work and how nice it is to enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Stay tuned for the website and hope you will join me there.

The First Manuscript is Completed...

Today is the first day of the rest of my book selling days.  The completed manuscript has been sent to the publisher along with all the beautiful illustrations done by my granddaughter.  It's a masterpiece...that is, we think it is.  Now for the wait for the printer to do its job and voila!  We will be in business.  The first book to be published in full by Carolyn Findlay Davis and illustrated by Kimberly Freeman.  It is called Miss Sara Sit-A-Spell's Garden and is a delightful story to be enjoyed by children of all ages. 

My web page is being designed and soon will be up and running.  This is an exciting time and I am pleased to have you travel along with me to see where the end result will be...secretly, I know it will be gobbled up by a large publishing company and be on the best seller list soon.

Rain, rain, go away.....

It was a dark and stormy morning.  The wind was howling and the trees bending beyond their natural ability.  Shingles flew past the window and the leaves that were changing so colorfully are now completely detached from trees and are blowing down the street as if chased by the wind's fury.  Sirens screamed and although I have been taught to seek shelter in the basement, that was the last place I wanted to be.  Excitement was in the air and the clouds were swirling in different directions, as if they couldn't decide which way to run.

That was this morning.  It is quiet now and although things are looking wet and the trees are now bare, there is quiet in the air.  The sirens have stopped that incessant screeching and the wind no longer howls.  The excitement is gone and so is the story...why didn't I stop and let the thoughts take over my mind while I wondered if the roof would hold?  Now the story will just have wait and I will just praise the Lord that the shelter I needed was only in His arms and not the basement.  I am well.  I have survived another storm.

There will be another one. I just don't know when.  But, I do know that when it comes I will be ready. Pen in hand and candle ready to light.  I will write the terror of the wind and the frightening sound of the rain hitting the window.  But, that is another day.

Rain, rain, it went away.  It will come back another day.

Blessings of health...

I sat with my wonderful friend today as she had a heart cath done....everything was ok and we are so grateful.  As I sat there thinking about her friendship and how much it means to me I couldn't help but think of God's hand at work as I moved in next door to her.  She is always there for me whenever I need her.  She laughs with me; she cries with me; she raises her hand in anger with me; she saves all the homeless animals she can find.  I could have moved next door to someone entirely different and I praise God for His blessing.

Last summer, while mowing the grass, my lawnmower found Mrs. Rabbit's nest.  Two of her babies were now gone and I don't know who cried harder, me or my wonderful neighbor.  Not everyone understands a deep love of animals.  She does.  We put the rest of the babies back in the nest and covered it up the best way we could.  Mrs. Rabbit came back and moved those precious darlings.....she hasn't built another nest there so we all learned a valuable lesson. I walk the yard every time before I mow.

Recently, another neighbor moved away and left a sad, skinny, cat.  Can you imagine someone just up and leaving an animal to care for itself and wander the streets?  I know the cat is safe now, because of my dear friend, and I also know that someday those people will be made to pay the price for their inhumanity.

Animals can teach us so much about love.  They are always so grateful to be fed and petted. They are loyal beyond compare.  They depend totally on us for their well being.  In the wild they are to be left alone and not bothered.  In captivity we have the responsibilty of their care.  We become their shepherd and they learn our voice and our touch. 

I lost my rottie two years ago but he will always be with me in my heart.  He was there to meet me when I came home every day and never left my side.  I was the one who left.  He stayed behind, patiently, waiting for me to return and then couldn't wait to shower all his love on me...all I had to do was to take care of him.  He wasn't demanding.  He was just grateful.  Now, Winston waits for me and pounces on my lap every chance he gets.  It helps my hurting heart.

I am grateful for my Father's care and I know He never leaves me.  I thank Him for the precious friends, human and animal, that he has give to me over the years.  They are always in my heart.

Acceptances...they cometh slowly.....

Well, I have had a story accepted for publication by an online magazine. That's the good news.  The really good news is I get to see something I have written in print.  The really bad news is that they don't pay anything except by giving me the priviledge of seeing my name in black and white. 

Now, don't get me wrong.  I am very pleased and happy that someone is willing to take a chance on me.  But, that brings me to another thought...there really is no chance in life...we know that everything is ordained by our Almighty God.  So, I am thanking Him for this priviledge of receiving an acceptance instead of another rejection.

Our tiny writers' group met this afternoon and I was 30 minutes late...now the reason is not because I was not excited about being able to share my good news...it was because I couldn't find my car keys.  Like so many other IMPORTANT people, I have a lot to think about.  I came in on a run from doing errands, opened the mailbox with my keys, picked up my stuff from the car and walked into the house.  That was the last time I saw my keys.  I intended to be early to our group today so I started picking up my things in plenty of time...hands full, I reached for the keys.....they weren't there.  Twenty minutes later I called the hostess to say I was homebound until a miracle happened.  I had gone through the garbage, checked in the fridge, checked all my pockets, checked the floor, went back to the mailbox....no keys.  Then, I remembered to pray.  I no sooner finished shouting my prayer, half in frustration with myself, than I saw my church bag still sitting on the floor beside the kitchen table....surely they couldn't have dropped in there, I thought.  Well, there was my miracle and I arrived at my destination in total humility.  I vow tomorrow to be more organized but if that happens it will be another miracle.

Until tomorrow......

Watching the grass grow....

The lawn people have just re-seeded my lawn and as I ponder each blade of grass establishing its roots and struggling up through the solid clay foundation of my lawn, I am thinking how much this is like writing and publishing.  We cast our thoughts around, hoping they will fall together and take hold to make a story that everyone wants to read.  However, as the clay makes it difficult for these newly spread seeds to grow, so it is for the story lines to run together in an acceptable form.  This is harder than my clay could ever be. 

As the days go by the tiny seeds try to escape being devoured by hungry birds...as my story characters try so hard to stand their ground and develop into special beings...ones that will stand up to hard scrutiny by editors.

Some of these seeds, and stories, will survive.  They have passed the first test.  But, that is only the beginning.  Now they must hang in there over the winter months, to sprout again in the spring.  My characters have passed the test of my friends and relatives all exclaiming their power in the written world.  Will they survive the winter?  Will they survive the test of the publisher?

I will water my grass seeds daily until winter.  This will give those tiny seeds as much nourishment as I can possibly give.  They will be fertilized once more before they go into hibernation.  My characters will be given new lines and rewrites until I am exhausted from trying and have done the best I can do.

I will have to wait and watch.  It's a slow process and one that requires patience.  Is that why the Lord has given me the gift of writing?  Is it to instill patience in me..a very impatient person???  I want that grass now.  I want my book to be published now. 

Maybe the best part of all is that I have been given the time to wait and watch and to perfect that which I can.  When I have done all that I can do it may not be good enough for the world; I may not have the best looking lawn on the block.  No publisher may ever want my book.  But, I will have tried and used all the tools I have to obtain my goal.  I will try to be satisfied, knowing that I have been happy doing what I love the most...growing things.  Growing grass; growing stories; growing patience.

Counting my blessings before I forget.....

As I passed the beautiful autumn tree decked out in all its splendor I thought I should jot down on my list of blessings the eyes that God has given me, through which I can see His miracles.  So many colors all around me.  Yellow, brown, red, green and all the in-betweens!  I cannot describe all the beauty in these living statues of creation.  I only know that I am so blessed to be able to be out and about and to enjoy them while they last. 

So, while I count my eyesight I should also count, among my blessings, the ability I have to walk and drive and communicate with the outside world.  How much we take for granted.  I am reminded that we are not promised tomorrow or even the next minute...only now, as I write, is certain. 

However, as I count all my blessings I must count the best...the one that will provide a mansion for me one day at the feet of my Lord and Savior; the blessing of salvation.

So, beautiful trees, thank you for sharing your stunning wardrobe with me and thank you, God, for the miracles of creation all around me.  Keep my eyes open and my heart turned toward Thee as I wait patiently for Thee to shower more blessings on me as you do, daily.  Make me thankful and open the eyes of those who turn to trust in Thee, alone.

What a glorious day this is!!!  I can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring.....

More Writers; New Friends

Have you ever stopped to think about how we writers can't wait to meet other people who think like we do??  I'm classifying myself in with the best when I say "we" but as the writer of this blog it is my priviledge to do so.  However, I should clarify that statement saying that I am not yet a publisher of BOOKS.  The more I hear about fellow writers and book signings the more excited I get and I haven't seen the first draft yet. 
I have been blessed further today by making the acquaintance of more writers and finding out that they, also, have anxieties.  Why am I so insecure, I ask myself?   It is because I think everything someone else writes is wonderful and can't imagine that I, too, will one day have my own book signing.

The Saturday work is finished...the lawn is mowed; the bushes cut; the cake baked...this is MY time and how I choose to spend it is not unusual for me.  I sit at the computer and the thoughts run through my head faster than I can put them down on paper.  But, they will still be running on Monday and I will return to my blog.

Right now I am missing my children and grandchildren and think it is time to put some of those words in a letter.  Some of the pictures on my blog bring back so many memories of visits with them in Switzerland.  What a wonderful country and if I could choose a place to write a story it might just be sitting along the edge of Lake Geneva surrounded by the smell of roses and cooled by the spray of the jet d'eau blowing in the wind.  Sometimes there is a boat that sits in the water with wine aboard.  They send over a basket for your money and they return the basket with bottle and glasses.  Could it get any better?

Until Monday....God bless you all.

Praising God for Blessings...they keep coming...

I am reminded that October is Breast Cancer Month.  I have so many friends and loved ones who have been through this terrible ordeal and I am so blessed that I have been spared.  However, that doesn't mean that I don't take precautions.  I have my mammograms faithfully.  I think that the Lord gives us physicians and technology to use in His name and I believe that we should do all we can to take care of our own health in the best way possible.  Now, this also means that we should be good stewards of our bodies.  Sugar is my favorite food but it is not my body's favorite...my body hates sugar and yet I force it into my mouth, knowing the result.  Veggies are better but my mind tries to convince me otherwise.  Let us do all we can to protect these precious bodies the Lord has given us and when your hand reaches for that piece of chocolate, smack it!
More rejections today but I am not discouraged.  It's only a piece of paper.  I am healthy, and wiser but not very wealthy...oh, yes I am....what am I saying???    I have more wealth in love and family than I could ever keep in the bank.  I will also try and be a good steward of that love which the Lord has given me, giving it back 100 fold to those around me.  In most cases it is easy but a dear person finally convinced me one day that not everyone in the world will like me.  Therefore, there are those who don't care if I love them and that is the hard part.  I won't be able to do that alone because I am human, but with God's help I will love those who do ill toward me and treasure the trials that go with it.  It is not easy to love those who hate you.  I am not a martyr and, therefore, it's hard to turn the other cheek.  But, I will look to the Lord for that power and believe that He will see me through these times.



I pray today for my friends and loved ones who are suffering through the illnesses that this life has brought and that the Lord will draw them to Him and lead them in His path.  It is a short journey we have in this life and it must be the Sonlight at the end that stays our course to the end.  What rewards we will have then...until that time let us all try and be good stewards of all we have, including our health.



Thank you, God, for these hands that can still type and for my mind that still thinks up stories to write, even if I am the only one who receives pleasure from them.



The weekend cometh and so does the best day of the week. I pray you will all be praising God in His house on the Lord's Day.  Until Monday I remain....your writer.

Rejections...Bring 'Em On!!!!!

I thought that the best way to get a story out there for the world to see, published, of course, was to send out as many copies as I could. So, I busied myself sending hard copies and emails to anyone and everyone I could think of or find addresses for.....it paid off!  I am getting rejections!  They DO know who I am...one day they will be sorry when I have the best seller and they have passed it up.  Until then, I will keep those rejection letters stacked up until I want new wallpaper and then..voila...there it will be in a stack instead of a roll.

Now, this doesn't discourage me, no siree.  I will keep on sending those stories out until I run out of time..I probably have a good 20 more years.  Then, I will stipulate in my will who is to send them on after I no longer can.  Those publishers will definitely know MY name by the time I am finished.

Now that I have made that decision I can move on to bigger and better things.  More stories.  Do you know that they are all around us and we pass them by.  I do volunteer work once a week and there are so many stories there that I have not written down.  Why???  Just because I didn't think to do it before I forgot all about it.  I am turning over a new leaf...I am following my own example. I wrote a story, which WAS accepted for publication, about holding your head high and always carrying a pencil.  I think that is good advice for all writers-to-be.  How can you write if you don't experience?  How can you experience if you don't go places?  How can you go places WITHOUT something to write with????? 

Starting tomorrow I will always have a pencil and paper with me and if you're not careful I may be writing a story about you.  Until then I pray that our Lord will keep you all under His loving care.

Clean house or write a story?? Decisions, Decisons...

Good morning world!  The sun is shinning and now I can see all the spots on the windows that need to be cleaned.  Thoughts run through my mind as I get out the cleaning tools...they are now lying on the floor next to the computer that has taken over my better judgement.  To write...that is my decison and I will try not to trip over all my cleaning tools when I get up from my computer, eyes blurred from overuse.

At my critique meeting yesterday I was reminded of so many memories that could be written into short stories. I read one of those stories aloud yesterday.  It was a story of picking blackberries for my mother who was very ill at the time; a little humor tucked in, having been covered with chigger bites after the bucket was full. This one was a prize winner in a recent contest and one of my friends suggested that I make a book of memories...I don't know if my memories would be as interesting to others as they are to me, but it might be worth a try.  At any rate, I am committed now to a book of short stories...many of which, like the blackberry story, have won contests (upside) but for which I have received no pay (downside).  Of course, finding a publisher for such a book will be very difficult and I may die before it ever gets published.  So...right now I won't worry about those details and just concentrate on bringing out that memory box again.  Time to go through it and toss the forgettable ones and preserve the ones I never want to lose.

The trees are beginning to turn beautiful colors now and maybe they will glorify the lanscape even without the so much needed rain.  How ironic that I just called my sister in Arizona to see if she was okay after the news showed pictures of so much flooding. That is not a problem here and my sprinkler system is on overload.

So many sad things on the news this morning and I was reminded, during my quiet time in the reading of David's life, how the Lord is with us through all the good times as well as the bad.  I am praying for all of my loved ones today, knowing that we are not promised an easy path, but that He will be with us when the going is rough and right now it seems to be all uphill. I am reminded to praise Him in all things and to lay my burdens at His feet.  That is what I am leaving here to do right now.....I pray that for my friends who will read this, that your burdens will also be lifted as you put your trust in our Lord. 

Tomorrow may bring things that are unexpected, but I know that I will be able to handle them...perhaps, there may be a beautiful memory to tuck into my special box....maybe a new story to start.

Coffee and critique with friends....

Tuesday is the day I look forward to all week.  There is a small group of us who love to write and read what others have written.  The best part is getting to read the next chapter in my friend's newest novel that has not yet been published.  The first novel this beautiful 84 year old gentle lady has written is Angel's Choice and I couldn't put it down. She just has a way with her characters that blows my mind.  Her developement of them begins with their birth and goes through all their accomplishments throughout their lives...however, this developement is just what she knows.  They are her friends as she writes and sometimes they dictate to her how the story develops.  I was taken back at the end of Angel's Choice but I won't let you know the outcome because you will need to read it for yourself.  But, she tells me that she didn't intend for the story to end that way...it was the character that decided it.  You can buy this book at Trafford.com or on Amazon, in case you want to read it. 

I have decided to begin my collection of the short stories I have written and maybe I will begin to think of putting them together in a book.  That decision doesn't have to be made today but it is a start.

I just returned from having morning coffee with a dear college friend who just returned from a trip to Maine.  Her description of the harbors there have left a hole in my heart for the ocean in Florida.  How I miss the smell of the ocean breeze and the salty taste in the air.  I miss the calming effect of the waves washing over my feet and the hot sun on my back.  For now I will just pull those memories out and treasure them for a short time before I have to put them back in the box and move on to things at hand.....my next story....

Patience is a virtue for which I am praying constantly....

Just another Monday in the life of a writer-to-be!  Spent much too long on the Internet researching new avenues and lost my "writing" time.  Just a headful of thoughts too flighty to put down on paper for this day.  Have two manuscripts going out in the mail but this only helps prepare me for the rejections to come back to me in the same mail!

It has been drought time in Indiana...that sounds like a new story line....and my water bill soars as I try and keep what little grass I still have, alive.  Oh..how the weeds are loving this.  The green people (company which I will not mention by name) have promised faithfully to be here today to reseed. However, they disappoint me only once again...they forgot to leave tiny flags to protect the sprinkler system.  Why does that surprise me????  Now we will just have to reschedule and hope that it will be in time for some of the seeds to sprout.  Is this company run by somebody named "Murphy" and do they use his law???

Off to volunteer at the Pregnancy Care Center...what a wonderful agency they are and I so look forward to my day there.  So many babies having babies and so many tears to wipe away..some of joy and some of terror.  In the end there is a decision to make and I pray for our Lord to allow me some positive intervention at the right time.

The sun is out and the leaves are beginning to turn their glorious faces to the clouds, readying themselves for their trip south, to the ground.  How much more beauty would they hold if we had just had some of the water that is inundating the rest of the country.  Our tiny county is spared the floods and is drying up one blade at a time.

I am praising God for this sun and cool weather and know there has to be reason we are also spared the rain. 

Until tomorrow......who knows...a story line may appear at any time now.

The Lord's Day

This past week has been very busy since I have been writing and sending out as many manuscripts as I could.  Today I have paused and reflected on my many blessings.  Such a wonderful message was delivered from the pulpit today and as I ponder over it I have begun to think back along the paths my life has taken.  Would that I could do things over again, many in such different ways, but I know that I am where I am supposed to be at this time in my life.  This is not a life of chaos; our God is a God of order and my life is a life ordained by our Lord and Savior and one that I will try to live out in utmost humility. Until tomorrow....

I have created a website at www.carolynfindlaydavis.com and hope you will follow me there and on facebook. I am busy trying to revise several articles I have written and hope to submit them, soon.

I attended the online writer's conference at WriteOn.com and it was wonderful. The information will be posted there for awhile for those who are interested in finding new and exciting tidbits from accomplished authors.

I am revising and revising and beginning to enjoy deleting all of the wonderful words I have written. I have read books and more books and think that if I shall ever one of my own published it will be one of the highest compliments I could receive. That is my dream and I know if I reach high enough and pray enough some door will open. It may not be the door I want, but it will be a door and it will lead onto a path that I will follow. If you stay with me you may find out where that leads.

Today is the first day of the rest of my blogging days.

July 26, 2010

My granddaughter, Kimberly, is showing me how to set up my blog site.