Ramblings-n-Writings

Archive for January, 2010

Do you remember reading the Mandie books when you were growing up? Or maybe your girls or granddaughters have read the series? Here’s the description of the first book …

Amanda Shaw, Mandie for short, is almost a teenager, and she is certain God no longer loves her as she watches her father being lowered into his grave. Mandie’s move into a neighbor family’s home, when her mother remarries, does not soften her grief. Her only comfort is the promise from her father’s faithful Cherokee friend, Uncle Ned, to watch out for her and be a friend.

Will Mandie be able to escape her new and nearly intolerable home situation? Will she find her long-lost family? When she finds a mysterious key, she hopes it will unlock the door to a secret tunnel and her own family’s history. This wholesome, entertaining series for young readers is a delightful mingling of suspense, tears and joy. Recommended for ages 8 to 13.

I remember getting Mandie books for my birthday, Christmas, good grades on my report card, and probably other occasions. I was growing up at the time when author Lois Gladys Leppard was writing the series so it was always a looooong wait between each book. It probably wasn’t as long as it seemed, but to a little girl wanting to know what mystery happened next, it seemed like forever!

(According to the Mandie website, there’s 40 books in the series. If your daughters (elementary – middle school age) haven’t read the books, I highly recommend them.)

Anyway, I found out the most interesting piece of information via Facebook today. And, by the way, this totally made my day! Someone made a Mandie movie!!! In fact, there’s a sequel that is scheduled to start production very soon. (I learned this fun fact from one of my former students who is on the film production crew for the sequel – how cool is that?)

The first movie is about the first book, Mandie and the Secret Tunnel. From what I’ve been told, the movie follows the book’s plot fairly close. And the preview trailer makes it look like a great movie.

Since I have the entire series of Mandie books gracing a shelf in my office, I had to order the DVD. I feel like I’m 12 years old again waiting patiently for the next book to come out. And, I know that others of you who enjoyed the series or have little girls who enjoy would love to watch the trailer and other movie/production clips. I’m including the trailer here but make sure you go to the Mandie Movies site to see more.

MANDIE and the SECRET TUNNEL Trailer from Owen Smith on Vimeo.

*This is not a paid review, but merely ramblings of my own about something that made my heart glad.

Gooding, Texas, is about to gain a double blessing–a veterinarian and a doctor. But when siblings Enoch and Taylor Bestman arrive, the discovery that Taylor is a lady doctor has the town up in arms. Especially Karl Van der Vort, the town blacksmith, who becomes the first patient…against his will.

Though hesitant to believe in Taylor’s doctoring skills, Karl finds himself oddly protective of this surprising woman who dares to drive about town on her own, wearing the color red, for heaven’s sake! Taylor, on the other hand, wants only to prove that doctoring is her life’s calling, despite the town’s opposition. The result? Pride meets attraction head-on, and sparks begin to fly.

MY THOUGHTS

That Certain Spark quickly earned a spot on my favorite books list. Author Cathy Marie Hake did a superb job of creating delightful characters immersed in a somewhat fast-paced, definitely intriguing storyline.

I absolutely loved the relationship between Taylor and Karl. Their verbal sparring and debates were at times hilarious yet also serious in message. The bond created between the two of them grew into love so quickly that neither recognized it or wanted to admit it. Of course, finding out they were in love leads to some great moments.

The idea of a woman doing a man’s job isn’t foreign to fiction, especially historical fiction, but there was something fresh about this story. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but within the first few chapters, I found myself hoping that some adventurous Hollywood producer reads this book and turns it into a movie. The interaction between the characters far exceeds most Hollywood scripts.

The book is charming and witty yet shows the hardships of modern medicine as we know it. I have to admit that I was surprised when Taylor performed breast cancer surgery on a patient. We hear so much about breast cancer in today’s world, that I never stopped to think of women having it back in the late 1800s. Plus since most 1800s fictional doctors deal with broken bones from accidents, gun shot wounds, and flu-like illnesses, the idea of breast cancer was different and refreshing. Don’t worry – Taylor also treats gun shots wounds, broken bones, and illnesses.

This book isn’t preachy but weaves a wonderful message of God’s forgiveness and providential care throughout the story. I would definitely recommend this book, and it is suitable for older teenage girls.

This book was sent to me free through Bethany House’s book review program. The words under “My Thoughts” are my own, and the rest is promotional material supplied by the publisher. No affiliate links are in this post.

Note: And again, the gremlins are at work. This post was auto-scheduled to post Saturday morning. For some reason, my scheduled posts don’t want to cooperate and actually post. Grrr.

Just when I think I finally figured things out, something always throws a monkey wrench into the delicate workings of my life. Of course, I should probably stop trying to figure things out, and life would move along smoothly. LOL!

Life has actually been pretty calm so far in 2010. But I just don’t seem to have the time for writing. I think part of my problem is I went from my deadline in December to Christmas break straight into January’s deadline. My usual 1-2 weeks between deadlines were filled with holiday stuff rather than writing stuff.

As you can guess, since I’m actually posting something two days in a row, I’m on my 1-2 week break between January and February deadlines.

Since the past six months have a been a little rocky in my blogging world, I’d like you to help me out as I get refocused. Could you answer the following question in the comments or send me an email?

What would you like to see more of on this blog?

I am planning on cutting back on the number of book reviews simply because in order to keep up, my nose is always stuck in a book. I do want to write more about the lessons God taught me in 2009. And I plan on talking more about my goals and my business and how I might be able to help those of you who are aspiring writers. Any other suggestions?

Note: This post should have automatically posted on 1/5/10 but for some reason auto scheduling didn’t work. The gremlins must be at work again…sigh.

So many things happened in my personal life during 2009, and those events drew me even closer to God and relying on Him for grace, strength, and peace. People seem to think that I should be hurting and a mess after my divorce. So not true. Initially I was for the first few weeks, but I realized that God didn’t want that for me. I was to turn to Him, cast all my cares on Him, and move on. When I reached that point in late July, things slowly began to fall in place and my heart was overflowing with peace.

As I look back at how far I’ve come and how things have changed in the last six months, I know everything happened for a purpose and none of it was a mistake. It was all part of God’s perfect plan. I was recently reminded of a song (I believe it was written by Mac and Beth Lynch.)

My life I give to you oh Lord use me I pray
May I glorify Your precious name in all I do and say
Let me trust You in the valley dark as well as in the light
Knowing You will always lead me
Your will is always right

I know God makes no mistakes
He leads in every path I take
Along the way that’s leading me to home
Though at times my heart would break
There’s a purpose in every change He makes
So that others would see my life and know
That God makes no mistakes

And when some day in heav’n above I see His dear face
May I then be counted faithful as a runner in this race
But now I’m trusting in the Savior to show me the way
In His righteousness He guides me as I seek to please Him day by day

I know God makes no mistakes
He leads in every path I take
Along the way that’s leading me to home
Though at times my heart would break
There’s a purpose in every change He makes
So that others would see my life and know
That God makes no mistakes
God makes no mistakes

I’ve tried to live each day reflecting the peace in my heart, and I know it baffles people. But God didn’t make a mistake in giving me those events to live through. I wouldn’t trade a single one of them, no matter how emotionally or physically painful, for a million dollars. They’ve made me a better and stronger person, one who is looking forward to what will unfold in 2010.

As I was contemplating possibly moving after my divorce, my heart always felt heavy, but I never quite knew why. All of the usual reasons came to mind – friends, work, etc. – but they didn’t seem to be the root of it.

Finally, earlier this week, I figured it out. I was walking to my car with a friend one evening and we stopped to gaze at the stars. Here in our tiny county in the center of the West Virginia, the eye can see thousands upon thousands of stars. My jaw drops every time I gaze at the sky. There are so many specks of light and tiny galaxies!

Our area has little to no light pollution making the night sky jet black. The closest city with street lights is 25 miles away – probably a little closer if you were a crow – but that little town only has 1 street lined with lights. The closest major city giving off a glow in the sky is about 60 miles away. So, our nights are really, really dark – don’t expect to see your hand two inches in front of your face unless you have a flashlight.

To give you an idea of what our sky looks like … below is an image of the constellation Orion and is considered a magnitude 6 (that’s apparently astronomer speak for how dark the sky is, and there’s only one level higher where you can see more stars). For all I know, we could be a magnitude 7 and, honestly, the picture really doesn’t do it justice. All I know is it is gorgeous.

But anyway, I’m slightly off topic. The thought that ran through my mind that evening consisted of the words to How Great Thou Art…

Oh Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all the worlds thy hands have made, I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, thy power throughout the universe displayed, then sings my soul, my Savior, God to thee, how great thou art, how great thou art.

I realized that here in West Virginia I see God every day, and that deeply increases my personal faith and walk. I couldn’t live where there are huge homes with perfectly manicured lawns lining every street and shopping plazas and drug stores on almost every corner.  That describes where I grew up – goodbye farmland, hello drug store.

There’s something deeply personal to me about being able to drive down the road and see a newborn calf just figuring out how to use his wobbly legs. Or standing outside on a summer afternoon listening to the thunder roll through the hills and echo for miles. Or gazing at millions of stars on a cold winter night. Or watching an ugly weed next to the ditch turn into a beautiful wildflower. Or noticing a fawn or a flock of turkeys or a hawk or a small barn owl.

I finally figured out that seeing God through nature is part of what makes me tick deep down inside. And I couldn’t possibly leave it behind.

And, as a little treat today, I’m ending with my absolute favorite version of How Great Thou Art. Every time I hear Carrie sing this song, I get goosebumps. This particular video doesn’t quite do Carrie’s performance justice, but you can catch the “live” version on either CMT or GAC on a really great show called “How Great Thou Art.”