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Word of the Week – Bran(d) New

by Roseanna White | Dec 10, 2018 | Word of the Week

This is another word that my daughter came running out to show me in her history book. And one I found even more intriguing when I looked it up on my own, as etymonline doesn’t, in fact, agree with said history book!

So, according to A History of Us, the phrase brand-new was once bran-new. This because imported items were shipped in barrels that used bran as a packing material. So if something was fresh from the crates, just taken from the bran…

Other sources, however, say that the original was brand-new, dating from the 1500s…though the idea is actually rather parallel, in that it came from the notion of being straight from the forge (brand at the time meant “fire). Shakespeare actually used fire-new.

So whether it has a D or not, it certainly carries the same meaning–something freshly made.

Thoughtful About . . . Not a Flower

by Roseanna White | Dec 6, 2018 | Thoughtful Thursdays

Many times through the years, I’ve joked about being a “delicate flower.” Generally, this is what I say when there’s heavy lifting to be done that I don’t want to do, LOL, or when my husband is teasing me and I’m trying to convince him (sort of) to stop.

I say it because it’s funny…but it’s only funny because we all know it’s not true.

Now, I’m not a large person by any stretch of the imagination. I’m a whopping 5’3″ over here, and not exactly a weight-lifter. So I do have definite physical limitations. There are feats I simply cannot perform. But I’m not delicate. Maybe I look that way, but ask my family when it’s moving day–I will probably heft more boxes over the course of the day than just about anyone. Where I come from, you might be small, but you work your rear off when there’s work to be done.

I’ve also long joked about my sensibilities. To a certain extent, I embraced naivete. There are quite simply things I had no desire to expose myself to, and I still don’t. But I’m also part of a world that doesn’t agree with my sensibilities. I’ve answered phones at an insurance office and occasionally had disgruntled clients using some very, er, colorful language. I could have chosen to be offended–and was, honestly, quite shocked that someone would call a place of business and talk like that. But I decided that I wasn’t going to be a delicate flower there either.

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Because if I choose to be offended at everything offensive in the world, if I choose to let it affect me rather than just lifting my chin and showing a better way, then I’m never going to get away from that, right? I’m always going to be offended. The Bible tells us time and again that offenses will come. The advice of Paul and Jesus? Just don’t be the one by whom they come. #BeBetter than that. In the Gospels, this instruction is about not leading others into sin. But I think it also applies to our own minds–don’t let other lead us into the trap of always focusing on what they’re doing. We need to focus instead on what WE need to do.

I’ve mentioned before the book The Coddling of the American Mind, which I’ve been listening to on audio. In this book, the authors point out that many college-aged students right now have the mistaken belief that they’re fragile. That they need someone to step in and stop things whenever ideas are too challenging and cause them emotional distress, whenever they feel any slight or bias against them, whenever something might be construed as dangerous–not just to their physical bodies, but to their peace of mind.

This is a sad trend, but one I can quite easily believe. I don’t know how many times in recent years I’ve heard someone saying they can’t imagine letting their kids do the things that they did when they were the same age. Walk three blocks alone to the local ice cream shop? Heavens, no! Go adventuring through the countryside without an adult? Are you kidding? And yet, the world is SO MUCH SAFER now than it was twenty, thirty, forty, even fifty years ago. Crime rates are at an all time low…but perception is something else entirely. We have it in our heads that we must protect our kids from…well, from everything. But studies have shown that when we do that, what we’re really teaching our kids is that they can’t handle it. That the world’s out to get them. That they’re fragile–they’re delicate flowers, and the world’s just waiting to crush them.

This is so untrue, my friends. It’s untrue first because people are just stronger than that. And especially if we have the Spirit of God inside us, lending us His strength on top of our own. What did Jesus tell us to do when someone hurts us? To pray for them. When they attack us? Turn the other cheek. When they won’t accept our beliefs? Shake the dust from our feet. Jesus told us NOT to be offended over every little thing, NOT to be delicate flowers. He told us to persevere. He told us to stand strong in Him. He told us to face dangers and persecution for the sake of Truth. That sounds pretty darn not-delicate to me, right? No fragility there. Faith makes us stronger, not weaker. Because we’re grounded on the Rock.

I want to keep my kids safe…but I also want them to be fully functioning adults, capable of standing strong in the face of the world. I want them to appreciate the beauty of flowers without thinking they’re as fragile as those blooms. Frankly, I want them to see how stubborn some flowers are as they cling to the cliff side, flourishing in the most adverse of conditions. And that means letting them take risks. It means teaching them that beliefs must be challenged if they’re really going to understand why they believe them. It means knowing that they don’t have to choose to be offended just because something is offensive. They can choose to be bigger than that instead. They can choose to lift their chins and keep pressing on.

There are abuses in this world–genuine, horrific ones. There are tragedies. There are crimes. But when we magnify every little thing to that level, all we’re doing is teaching ourselves that we’re more delicate than we are. And taking away from what we really should be focusing on changing.

We’re stronger than we think we are. Our kids and grandkids are stronger than we often let them be. We are not flowers.

Or…no, maybe we are. But not the kind that flourishes in the meadow, here today and gone tomorrow. If we’re flowers, then we’re a heartier kind. Not delicate. Not fragile. We’re the kind clinging to the Solid Rock, beautiful in the face of the tempest.

Word of the Week – Dub

by Roseanna White | Dec 3, 2018 | Word of the Week

We’ve been studying medieval history in our homeschool right now, which of course means learning about knights and the process they go through to become knights. Which naturally led to a question of where in the world the word dub came from.

Dub has been around since the days of Old English–its exact origins are unknown, but the theory is that it was borrowed from the Old French aduber, which meant “equip with arms, adorn.” That, in turn, may have originally been a Germanic word, though etymologists aren’t certain. At any rate, this borrowed word meant “to knight by ceremonially striking with a sword” as early as the 11th century.

By the late 1500s it had been extended to the less-specific meaning of “to provide with a name.”

Two New Stories!

by Roseanna White | Nov 28, 2018 | Books

Once in a while, it’s fun to pause from telling y’all about my stories and talk instead about the other books that make up my life. 😁 And this last month, I’ve been SUPER BUSY preparing two amazing books for publication. So naturally, I want to tell you about them. 😉

WhiteFire Publishing has just officially launched its young reader line, WhiteSpark. And our two launching titles are pretty fabulous. Leading the way is our Young Adult title, Gone Too Soon, by bestselling, award-winning author Melody Carlson.

Now, Melody has long been established as a writer of both young adult and adult novels, historical, contemporary, you name it. At this point, I’ve read quite a lot of her books. But I gotta say. This one. This one is my favorite. This one is something special. This one grabbed me by the heart within pages and just didn’t let me go again. This one will rock your world.

It’s about a family–a family on the brink of disintegration. Six months before the story opens, the eldest daughter, Hannah–the “perfect” daughter–was killed in a car accident. And now nothing is right. Kiera, the “problem child” middle daughter, doesn’t know what to do. Their father barely ever comes home. Their mother is relying more and more on alcohol and prescription drugs. And her little sister, Maddie, is being shipped off for the summer. It seems like nothing will stop their family’s tailspin…until Kiera finds a diary hidden away in her older sister’s room. Then even what she thought she knew is turned on its head. Apparently, Hannah wasn’t so perfect. Apparently, her last year was far from ideal.

And apparently, their family’s problems began well before Hannah died. The question is…can her words now somehow help put things to rights?

I’ll say up front that I’m not an emotional reader. I don’t often cry when I read. But this one…okay, so I didn’t cry, but I got chills, people. Genuine, “Oh my goodness!!” chills. Aimed at teens who are sure to see their world in the one between the pages, it’s also suitable for adults. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Get it for your teen. Get it for yourself. Get it for anyone who needs to see the hand of God at work. It’s available at a bargain price for your e-reader, in paperback, and also in hardback with dust jacket.

Amazon

Digital | Paperback | Hardback

Barnes and Noble

Digital | Paperback | Hardback

Oh, funny behind-the-scenes. I did the cover design for this, of course–but as I tried out various options, Melody and I agreed we wanted to see the diary on the cover. But I couldn’t find a single decent stock image of a diary like I wanted. I could, however, find one on Amazon. 😉 So I ended up ordering one and staging my own photo shoot. It isn’t often I use my original photos for a cover! I had to purchase the keychain too…it’s not actually in the book, but it’s representative of the car that plays a huge role in the story.

Next up is Benjy and the Belsnickel, a middle-grade story that the 8-12 crowd will LOVE. When this book was first submitted to us, I actually read it to my kids (9 and 11 at the time) as part of our homeschool day to get their take. (Hello, beta testing!) They both highly enjoyed it, especially my son.

Benjy is such a fun story! The title character is an 11-yr-old boy in a rural Pennsylvania town in the 1930s. He attends a one-room schoolhouse, where he is constantly pulling pranks and getting in trouble with the schoolmarm. The thing is, he’s not sure why. He tries to be good–he wants to be good–but the allure of mischief is just too strong. I mean, who wants to do spelling when it’s one of the last warm days of autumn and his baseball bat is calling his name?? Who wants to suffer through math when the first snowfall promises fun sledding?

But with every prank he pulls, Benjy is met with the same threat from all the adults in his life–he’d better be careful, or he’ll earn a visit from the Belsnickel.

This is what I LOVE about this book–the Pennsylvania Dutch legend that comes to life! The Belsnickel, you see, is an old PA Dutch tradition that runs parallel to Santa Claus. We all know Santa is known for bringing presents to good kids and coal to bad ones. Well, the Belsnickel is his antithesis. He only visits the naughty children, and he comes with a whip in hand, a terrifying hat decorated with porcupine quills and bells, and a strict warning: make better choices or face the consequences.

Benjy’s pretty sure the legend is just that–folklore. Except he keeps hearing bells at every turn and is pretty sure he sees the Belsnickel’s shadow looming. Is it his imagination or truth? And is the threat enough to make him change his ways?

With just enough legend to make kids squeal, but plenty of humor, hope, and family love to keep them firmly planted, this is a must-read this holiday season for the young ones in your life!

AND…inside the book, there are illustrations at the chapter heads and between some of the chapters. Illustrations were done by my daughter! When Bonnie (the author) mentioned a few line drawings to me, I immediately thought of my budding artist of a daughter and wondered if her style would fit. I sent Bonnie a few samples of her work to see if it fit the style she had in mind, and she gave me an enthusiastic “Yes!” So my thirteen-year-old wowed us all with her talent (as usual) and produced the 23 pictures now featured in this book. Yes, I’m a proud mama. For good reason! This girl is GOOD!

Benjy and the Belsnickel is also available in three formats, though the hardback version is case laminate, not a dust jacket. Better for those younger readers, and more handy for lending and sharing. 😁

You can watch a fun interview with Bonnie HERE.

Amazon

Digital | Paperback | Hardback

Barnes and Noble

Digital | Paperback | Hardback

Cyber Monday Sale!

by Roseanna White | Nov 26, 2018 | Sales

It’s Cyber Monday!

Which of course means a SALE in my website’s store!

So here’s what you do.

1. Hop over to www.RoseannaMWhite.com/shop

2. Cross a few items off your shopping list, for you or for someone else 😉

3. Enter coupon code “THANKS2018” for 25% off your entire purchase AND free shipping on orders over $50!

A few quick notes. When you’re checking out, there’s a red bar at the top with instructions on where to fill in personalization requests (namely, in the “order notes” section, which is the last section of the checkout form). This is where you tell me to whom you’d like your books signed. =)

The coupon code is entered in a drop-down. Beneath that RED bar, there are two BLUE bars at the top, the second of which says “Have a coupon? Click here to enter your code.” Click on that, put in the code, and voila! The percentage discount will apply to every order, and free shipping will be automatically added if you’ve spent enough.

This sale will only last through Tuesday 11/27!