by Roseanna White | May 23, 2013 | Thoughtful Thursdays, Uncategorized
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| Baby at Play by Thomas Eakins, 1876 |
As a mama working from home with two home schooled kids, one of whom is only kindergarten aged, I know a lot about interruptions. People frequently ask me, “How do you get anything done?” And in answer, I usually have to shrug. Sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I only do by popping earbuds in and turning on some instrumental music to drown out Max & Ruby or Octonauts. Sometimes I do a lot of growling about, “Please, just five minutes without squabbling. Please.”
For the most part, my kids are good at entertaining themselves. But as I was trying to hammer through the last few chapters of my manuscript the other day, I found that the interruptions were of a certain type. Rowyn was building. And when Rowyn in building, I hear a lot of this:
“Look, Mommy!”
“Mommy, see what I did here?”
“Hey, Mama, do you know where the other piece like this is?”
“Mommy, ta-da!”
Despite being pulled yet again from my story, I had to smile. It’s such a cute and intrinsic part of childhood, isn’t it? That need to be not just noticed but acknowledged. To have one’s actions and accomplishments cheered and encouraged.
I remember those days. I remember standing at the edge of the pool and saying, “Watch, Mommy. Mommy? Hey, Mommy, watch me! Look what I can do!” before jumping in. I remember rushing in from a day of school, waving the picture I’d colored or the fat red A on the top of a test. I remember my mom smiling and laughing, giving me a kiss. Even though sometimes she was probably thinking, “Yeah, look at you, jumping into the pool exactly like you did twenty seconds ago.” 😉
An adorable part of childhood, to be sure. And yet…not peculiar to our early days, is it? Maybe I don’t have to show my mother every paragraph I write anymore (I mean, as I write it–she still reads most of what I put to paper, LOL). Maybe my every move isn’t a cry of “Look! Notice me! Approve of what I’m doing! Be proud!” Not aloud–but we never really outgrow the instinct, do we?
I can’t design a book cover without showing my husband or best friend. I can’t finish a hard day without inviting someone to note all I accomplished. I can’t scrub a floor without surveying it at the end and saying to my kids, “Just look at that! Doesn’t that look nice?”
People crave approval like we crave air–it’s a necessary part of who we are. We need those pats on the head. We need the smiles. We don’t necessarily need someone to say, “Wow, that’s the best thing ever!” We just need to know they see. That they notice. That they care.
It can be tiring to be the one always having to notice, without often being noticed (says the mom with young kids who really don’t care about a clean floor, LOL). But you know, people pay attention to that too–and more, God does. I think he must smile over our every indulgent smile. I think He must pat our backs when we pat the back of another. I think He loves little more than watching His children love one another.
Sometimes I need the reminder to slow down and notice. To spare those few seconds that make another’s day. So this is me reminding myself. And it’s me reminding you. Pay attention today. Take a few seconds to let those in your life know you’re watching, you’re really seeing them, that their ever little action is a precious part of your day, of your life.
Cherish those ta-das. There’s nothing else in the world like them.
by Roseanna White | May 9, 2013 | Thoughtful Thursdays, Uncategorized
Phew. It’s been a week, that’s for sure. A rather long one, with trips to and from Baltimore, worry over my brave little princess, and nothing remotely resembling routine.
Praise be to the Lord, elbows heal fast, so Xoe’s not in pain except for when she bumps it. But there are some obvious adjustments that come when one can’t use one’s dominant hand, and as a homeschool family, we get to make all those ourselves. A few lessons have just been suspended–like handwriting. Spelling is now out loud or on the chalk board rather than in a notebook. But others involve a scribe. Which would be me, LOL. It can be fun to find alternative ways of doing familiar lessons, but it takes a wee bit more time.
We “collected” a lot of prayers last week, and I’m just in awe of the amazing group of prayer warriors who surrounded my little girl with their petitions. I can’t thank everyone enough for that, or for the continued prayers for correct healing. We’ve been showered with cute little gifts and cards for the Xo-girl.
Tomorrow is an all-day field trip to an Army Heritage museum, so my still-reeling self will be trying to play catch-up-and-get-ahead today. I can’t quite believe it’s Thursday already! So please forgive me for cutting this short this morning. And thank you, again and again, for all the prayers for my family this past week!
by Roseanna White | May 8, 2013 | Remember When Wednesdays, Uncategorized
Back in the fall, I shared a bit about a biblical idea I had and asked for some help with titles. Well, I’m happy to say that I’ve settled on a title, and the book is slated for publication in fall of 2014!
Song of Solace will be my third biblical fiction with WhiteFire. I’m only two chapters in, and will be writing it between my Harvest House books, so I need a nice cushion of time there. =) But I’m excited!
In a nutshell, Song of Solace takes the parable Jesus tells of the wedding feast and sets it in the time of Abraham. The righteous king who cannot get anyone to attend his son’s wedding is Mechizedek. The guest who refuses the wedding garments is the antagonist, someone from my heroine’s past. And my heroine is Aziza, of the house of the Pharaoh. I have nothing even remotely resembling a blurb or synopsis at this point, but let’s see what I can toss together here real quick. =)
Daughter of Egypt…Son of Melchizedek
Aziza, sister of Pharaoh, has brought a curse onto her brother’s house. The vizier is the only one who denies it, and he dares to only because of an echo of childhood love. She knows that if she hopes to avoid the underworld much longer, she must escape Egypt. Must follow the path of the song always whispering through her spirit, calling her across the inhospitable deserts of the Red Lands.
When Zedek, son of Melchizedek, agreed to search for a wife, he never expected the journey to take him all the way to Egypt. He and his father, who once rode the waves of the Great Flood, agree that his bride must serve the Most High. And what maiden in Egypt possibly could? But when he sees the Pharaoh’s hated sister, he cannot deny the voice of wind within him that says she is the one with whom he is to build his nation. He will not wed her until she loves El Elyon with all her heart, as he does…but he will take her back to Salem with him to learn the ways of the Lord, despite the warning Pharaoh gives of the curse she will bring with her.
And it seems a curse–or a battle beyond their vision–does indeed follow. All the world seems set against their match…and as Aziza and Zedek pursue the soaring song of love and praise, it seems all the world will tremble in protest.
Combining Jesus’s parable of the wedding feast with the mysterious Old Testament world of Abraham and Melchizedek, Song of Solace will sweep you into a past lost to the sands of time and make you strain to hear the melody of the Spirit.
So. I have about a year to write this baby, and then a few months for editing. Doable, I hope, though this one’s going to require lots of original research. But I’m excited! Here is my opening paragraph (as it stands right now. Who knows if it’ll make it intact to the final version, LOL.)
Aziza held her breath and hugged the shadows when a guard strode by, his spear at the ready. And prayed to Amun-Ra, the hidden one, to hide her as well. To Thoth, that he might turn the face of his luminous moon for just a moment. She would have sent up a petition to Isis too, for good measure, but the guard turned the next corner, and her breath eased out in relief.
by Roseanna White | May 6, 2013 | Uncategorized
We’re currently in the Baltimore area, getting ready for our appointment at Johns Hopkins for Xoe’s broken elbow. It’s at 10:15.
So I would appreciate prayers for this appointment, and then it will be resolved as easily on my princess as possible.
There’s the possibility they’ll be able to set it and send us home…and the possibility it will require surgery. Having no idea yet what it will be, I’m making no plans. So while I may try to post updates as time, energy, and internet connection allows, normal blogging won’t resume until we’re home again.
I hope everyone has a lovely spring week!
~*~
UPDATE!
As it turns out, that was the easiest appointment ever. =) Not only does Xoe not require surgery, she doesn’t even need a cast! Elbows have an enormous blood supply apparently, and heal twice as fast as other injuries. Her arm has already knit enough that surgery would just make it worse, and the doctor said that in kids’ cases like this, he’s just a proponent of letting the body heal and then fixing anything that needs fixing afterwards.
So we get to keep the splint on for another week, and then we can start taking it off and letting her move her arm around. In three weeks, she ought to have full motion back. How amazing is that? Thank you SO MUCH, everyone, for your abundant prayers!
by Roseanna White | May 2, 2013 | Uncategorized
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Xoë, Duchess the cat (Rowyn brought it to the hospital for her),
popcorn, and a Fancy Nancy pedicure.
We believe in making the most of a bad situation! |
Well, yesterday was quite a day, and not in the sunshine-and-rainbows way. At about 12:30, my daughter Xoë was running through the yard, and her shoe came off. She tripped, fell, and broke her arm. We took her first to her primary care doctor, who sent us for x-rays. The x-rays showed fractures, so we ended up in the ED for treatment.
Only they couldn’t really treat her. The fracture is a Milch fracture, which looks like a piece of bone twisted away and up. It’s right at her elbow, and there’s another crack around the ball of the elbow too. After the awesome PA we saw in the ED made phone call after phone call for us, the new orthopedist in town verified that he wouldn’t touch it and we’d have to go out of town. So after six hours and three different medical sites, we ended up with a splint, a sling, and an appointment at Johns Hopkins for Monday.
Xoë was amazing through it all. This was the first time in her 7.5 years we’ve ever had to take her to the doctor for anything but a checkup–but boy, when she needs to go, she needs to GO. Surgery is the most likely recourse, though we won’t know anything for sure until they see her at Hopkins.
I’d so appreciate prayers for my brave little princess. Not only does she hurt, not only do we have a long way to go yet before this is stable, but it’s a complicated, high-risk-in-children fracture, and I don’t even want to think about all the issues it could cause. So please pray. Pray for the short-term pain and the long-term healing, pray for the doctors, for the travel, for everything.
Thanks, everyone.
by Roseanna White | May 1, 2013 | Uncategorized
Today’s a very important day, y’all. Today, my best friend’s fourth book releases in all digital formats. And this is really, really special, because of all the many books of hers I’ve read and critiqued, this one is my favorite. (That’s saying something. Seriously.) I’ve read three or four different versions of it at this point, over three or four years, LOL, and each time I thought, “Wow, this is the best young adult novel I’ve ever read!” Then she somehow made it better and better.
Here’s the blurb, which has one of the best hook sentences ever, doesn’t it? And I got to help write the back cover copy, so obviously I adore it. =)
Don’t just get even—write a novel.
Ellie Sweet is a lot of things—good girl, novelist, silent adorer of
the new boy at school, Palmer. But when “outcast” gets added to the
list, she decides it’s time to take reality into her own hands … and
tweak it as needed.
In the pages of her book, she’s Lady Gabrielle, favorite of the
medieval Italian court. Her once-friends are reduced to catty
ladies-in-waiting, and the too-charming Palmer—who in real life never
spares her a second word—gets to be nothing more than a rake wracked by
unrequited love for her. She even has a perfect real-life villain in the
brooding Chase, who hails from the wrong side of town.
But just when she’s getting along great in her fictional world, the
real one throws her a few curves. With Chase pursuing her, Palmer
wanting to date her—but in secret—and the details of her manuscript
going public, Ellie suddenly receives more attention than she ever
really wanted. And when her former-friends discover what she’s been
writing, they’re determined to teach Ellie a lesson about the severe
consequences of using her pen as her sword.
I cannot possibly recommend this book enough. Buy it for the teens in your life. Buy it for yourself. Recommend it to everyone you know. Why? Because Stephanie does what so few writers can:
I kept saying my endorsement was going to be “Best. Book. Ever.” but I decided to get a little more creative. 😉
I love this book. I love Ellie. I love Palmer and Chase and the cast of snippy friends, I love the family that stood behind her when it mattered, I love the dreams and crushed hopes and sometimes-cruel reality that made her grow into a person I could love even more.
Though I’ve read it countless times, you can bet I’m buying it today and will read it again! (Again, that’s saying something. Seriously.)
Find it on Amazon!
Find it on Smashwords for other devices!
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.