Confessions of a Flibbertigibbet by Lorrie Orr

 

Explore

This month’s prompt is taken from July 2014, written by Sandi Somers, and asks you to explore, to travel in new directions. Perhaps you tend to write in only one particular genre, or in one particular voice and style for a particular audience.

This month, become an explorer by selecting a genre or a voice/style that you haven’t worked in before (or rarely). Write for a different audience. Do a little research. Then tell us how you saw with new eyes, what you discovered, and if you would consider further writing in this genre.

I married a curious and adventurous explorer, and I've embraced much of his spirit, albeit with more trepidation. We've lived in and visited places that have my heart pounding and my hands sweaty. Our most recent adventure took us along two infamous roads in British Columbia. The portion of Highway 20 (Heckman Pass) known as The Hill descends from 5000 feet to sea level in 10 kilometres. There are no guardrails, up to 18% gradients, hairpin curves, and a very steep drop off the edge. "My life is in your hands," I kept reminding God as we crawled down the road in four-wheel drive-low range. The views at the end of the road, in Bella Coola, were well worth the chewed-off nails.

Exploring can be uncomfortable in any area of life, writing included. And it can be a grand adventure, full of unexpected twists and turns. Jane Austen's words "Indulge your imagination in every possible flight," taken with the idea of writing in different genres, fit my writing persona well. When asked what I write, I have to think for a moment to come up with a concise answer that doesn't make me sound like a flibbertigibbet. My writing life runs the gambit of genres from poetry to fiction to devotionals to nature writing. And I'm currently writing (nearly finished) a memoir. Whew! A children's story or two lurk at the back of my mind, as well.

Writing is a way of exploring my own heart and mind, and a way to communicate with others. Lists keep me organized. Pouring out my heart in written prayer connects me to Jesus. Journaling crystallizes my thinking. I hope that devotionals encourage those who read them. Louise Penny says that she began to write mysteries because that's what she enjoyed reading. That inspired me to begin a mystery of my own, now set aside until the memoir is finished. In my limited experience with fiction, I pray that spiritual truths will be made clear even if the name of Jesus is never written. Nature writing is inspired by the wonders of creation, from the tiniest ladybug to the grandeur of stars moving across a night sky.

I have always been one to try new things; hobbies, recipes, books, and crafts. My interests are varied. Several years ago I read Refuse to Choose: A Revolutionary Program for Doing Everything You Love by Barbara Sher. She groups people into two loose categories, Scanners and Deep Divers. How free I felt after reading that Scanners like me need to do different things, often have multiple careers, and can be involved in parallel fulfilling activities. This is the way God made me. I use my character trait without guilt, but I am careful to make the effort to focus on finishing projects rather than just having many unfinished pieces. Sticking with a project until it's done is important.

As Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote, "The world is charged with the grandeur of God," and although Hopkins was speaking about Nature, God's grandeur includes human minds, created in God's image. I pray that my writing will, in a tiny way, reflect the glory of He who gave me the desire to write.

I will go anywhere, provided it be forward.

David Livingstone

Lorrie Orr writes from her home on Vancouver Island,

from where she accompanies her husband on adventures near and far,

always taking a notebook and a camera along to

record her thoughts and impressions.

Is Listening to a Book, Reading? by Mary Folkerts

I must confess that I have started something, and I'm unsure if I can go back to how things were before.

A few years ago, I discovered that my public library offered audiobooks that I could borrow. Now you will find me on long summer evenings, swatting mosquitoes and battling weeds with my mind engrossed in an alternative reality. I can make a mundane task more enjoyable while reading (no listening!), to a good book. It's great, except I now seldom pick up a novel to read anymore, and that, I don't like!

I used to devour novels while I sat, letting my eyes soak up the words, fully engaged in the scenes created on the pages. If I wanted to read, I had to take the time to do so. Now I can multitask, and it takes more willpower for me to sit quietly and dedicate time just to read. I can certainly make it a priority, and I need to, because there's nothing more refreshing than sitting quietly with a book in hand. Technology advances have their drawbacks!

I have read many genres over the years, from romance, mystery (I was a diehard Nancy Drew fan!), science fiction, thriller(ish), historical fiction, self-help, and more. I have many favourite authors who paint vivid stories that leave me feeling like I have visited a part of the world I have never seen before (and now want to). Some such authors: Francine Rivers had a way of weaving a fantastic story with beautiful biblical truths about God's love, Eugenia Price transported me to early Savannah, Georgia, with her descriptive novels, Sharon Garlough Brown in her "Sensible Shoes" series created a desire in me to write fiction that would speak to those suffering with generational pain, Kristin Hannah in "The Nightingale" and Ronald Balson in "Once we were Brothers" made me feel the horror of WW11 with shocking realism, and Mary DeMuth in her "Daisy Chains" series revealed family secrets and those suffering abuse. Then there are the Christian authors who have inspired me to grow in my faith and writing, such as Ann Voskamp, Jennifer Dukes Lee, and Hannah Brencher, among others.

It's the author who shows me, rather than tells me their story, that catches my attention. Don't just tell me what happened; describe the scene and emotions so I feel like I am there with the characters. Help me merge into the story.

Writers must also be readers, at least that's how I see it. We find inspiration in how other writers string words together, how they build their stories, and what keeps the readers' attention.

And on that note, I must carve out time this summer to pull a book off the shelf, sit on a lawn chair, and let the story transport me to another time and place. There's nothing like it!

Mary Folkerts is mom to four kids and wife to a farmer, living on the southern prairies of Alberta, where the skies are large and the sunsets stunning. She is a Proverbs 31 ministries COMPEL Writers Training member involved in church ministries and music. Mary’s blog aims to encourage and inspire women and advocate for those with Down Syndrome, as their youngest child introduced them to this extraordinary new world. For more inspiration, check out Joy in the Small Things https://maryfolkerts.com/ or connect on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/maryfolkerts/

Books and Life Long Learning by Colleen van Nieuwkerk

Today we are pleased to welcome Colleen van Nieuwkerk as our Guest Blogger. We hope you will enjoy reading how books have been her lifelong companions.

Reading is one of my favorite pastimes. There is hardly a day that goes by where I do not read something.

Reading was a pastime encouraged by my mother as she instilled a love for reading into me and my four siblings. She read a lot herself, she sometimes read to us, and we received many books as gifts from our parents as well as from our grandmother who owned a Bible Book Store which she ran from her enclosed front porch. There were many treasures found there!

I remember the first time I went to the public library. I was amazed. So many books from which to choose—The Trixie Belden series, The Bobbsey Twins, and Joy Spartan of Parsonage Hill. Grace Livingston Hill was a well-loved author I read as a teen. Required reading at school did not seem to be a chore to me. I have always loved to study.

Historical fiction is my favorite genre. I am the family archivist and reading historical fiction has helped me to understand what our families walked through as they emigrated from Europe to the United States and then into Canada. My husband’s parents lived through WW2 in Holland and emigrated to Canada.

Some fiction authors I enjoy are Brock and Bodie Thoene, Lauraine Snelling, Lynn Austin, Jane Kirkpatrick, Jan Karon, and Francine Rivers as well as many others.

A slower pace these days has not diminished the life-long desire for learning that was developed through reading and studying over many years. As I served in full-time vocational ministry in our church for twenty-three years, I chose to create a plan that would round out my reading and allow me to grow in many areas. In the beginning, about thirty years ago, I began to read in four separate areas, often writing notes and recording quotes:

1. Theology—Bible reading and study as well as authors such as Nancy Leigh DeMoss, Ann Voskamp, Elisabeth Elliot, and Beth Moore.

2. Womanhood—We can always grow as women, even as our age and stages of life change. I read authors such as Sally Clarkson, Jean Fleming, and Anne Ortlund. These authors and others have influenced me in growing into the person I desire to become. Many of these authors write in all these categories and I have collected many of their books in different genres.

3. Children and Ministry to Children—Authors such as Edith Schaeffer, Tedd Tripp, and Jani Ortlund, as well as many curriculum developers influenced my philosophy of ministry to children and helped me to parent our children.

4. Leadership and Ministry—Authors such as Kevin Leman, Oswald Sanders, Michael Hyatt, and Gordon and Gail MacDonald have all had an impact on my life. Since retirement, I no longer read in the areas of Children’s Ministry or Leadership, but I do continue to read about womanhood for my own personal growth, and also as an author who leads as I write and teach curriculum for women. Theology is still on my reading list. I have recently added two new areas of reading in these genres:

5. Grief and Loss—I became a widow five years ago, and have read excellent books by Jerry Sittser, Clarissa Moll, Lisa Appelo, Elisabeth Elliot, and Mark Vroegop who have helped me to learn to allow joy and sorrow to reside side by side deep in my soul. These books were hard reading and yet became so precious to me as I read good and practical advice.

6. Writing—I love to read Memoirs, Biographies, and books about how to grow as a writer. This is an area where I need more study.

Book clubs have never really interested me, except where I have gathered women in a church setting to read and study both the Bible and godly authors who help all of us to grow in our faith.

The ministry that I lead, Heart2Heart: Strength and Dignity, was influenced by reading books about intentionality and legacy. God used these topics to enlarge my writing as ideas for life and ministry alongside women became a new focus for me. I look back over these past ten years, as I have written and taught this course, and am amazed at how books we read can change us forever. Legacy becomes the opportunity we gain to encourage others who are on the journey behind us as we continue to learn ourselves from those who are ahead of us—this is lifelong learning!

Thank you for the opportunity to share my love of reading and studying with you all. I enjoyed reading your posts and now have some new authors to search out.

Colleen van Nieuwkerk is GG to three sons plus 3; twelve grandchildren; and two great-grandsons. She loves to read and enjoys reading to the littles in the family as well as gifting books to them. Colleen writes curriculum for women as well as teaches and is currently writing the story in book form of how this all came about. She lives in northern Alberta and can be found online @colleenvannieuwkerk.com

A Bookshelf Tour ~ Valerie Ronald

 

When my husband and I moved to a smaller house last year, my extensive collection of books needed downsizing. It took time and consideration for me to decide which books made the cut and which did not. Those I kept reflect my reading interests and history. Come with me on a journey through my bookshelves to catch a glimpse of my reading world.

Bronzed bookends styled with swirling vines and leaves hold several favorite children’s books. Bound in faded blue cloth, The Enchanted Garden by E. Nesbitt, was a book prize presented to me long ago, as top pupil in my grade five elementary class. I read this treasured book often as a child. Its setting in Victorian England sparked a life-long interest in that country. Beside it are several picture books containing art by my talented daughter, a children’s book illustrator. Her creations remind me of helping her discover the magical world of books by reading to her when she was a little girl.

The next shelf holds collections of books I never tire of re-reading, written by two of my favorite novelists, Rosamunde Pilcher and Elizabeth Goudge. Both these British writers, though living decades apart, excelled at creating beautifully detailed settings that come alive in my imagination. Goudge’s vivid scenes are particularly vital to her engaging plots, rich in nostalgia and hope still found in the timeless corners of the world and in the hearts of those who live in her stories.

“Her books satisfy my yearning for the mysticism of old legends and folklore, yet they are founded on the truth of Christianity. Jesus walks every page of her books without being named, for He shines in the eyes of innocent children and beasts, He paints the natural world with strokes of love and beauty, and He speaks through the struggles and fortitude of characters who strive to do the right thing.” 1

Below a display of my travel keepsakes are the books which have taken me far spiritually. Ann Voskamp’s One Thousand Gifts, Charles Stanley’s The Spirit-filled Life, Richard Foster’s Sanctuary of the Soul, and several books by Jan Johnson. Her book, Enjoying the Presence of God, helped me discover how to enjoy God’s presence in the rhythm of my ordinary days.

Next to my collection of rustic angel figurines are devotional books I read yearly. I met author, Jane Rubietta, at a women’s conference where she was the keynote speaker. Her seasonal devotional books companion my daily quiet time with God, bringing depth and application through studying the lives of Old Testament characters. There is a list of these books at the end of this post. 2

An old book is more than just words on paper ˗˗ it is a sensory experience engaging smell, sight, and touch. It gives me satisfaction to hold a well-worn volume in my hands as the pages fall open, emitting the scent of old ink, paper, and glue. That is only one reason why I am drawn to an old book. I like to think about who its previous readers were and what drew them to this particular book. Reading words from a bygone age captures the atmosphere of the era when they were written. Some of my bookshelves house early editions of the Anne of Green Gables series by Lucy Maude Montgomery, leather-bound copies of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, and the Brontë sisters’ Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. Most cherished is an English translation of Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables, published in 1887. And, yes, I do read my old books.

My personal library does not have a particular theme or favorite topic. Rather, I choose to think of my books as old friends, varied in personality and character, like my human friends. I do not just see books on my bookshelves, I see a treasury of beloved stories, characters, and wisdom that have positively influenced my writing life and more. They have shaped my thinking, my beliefs, my creativity, and most of all, my imagination.

1 Learning in the Shadow of Two Elizabeths

2 devotional books by Jane Rubietta - Winter - Finding Your Way (Adam and Noah), Spring - Finding Your Promise (Abraham), Summer - Finding Your Name (Isaac and Jacob), Fall - Finding Your Dream (Joseph)

Valerie Ronald writes from an old roll top desk in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, with her tortoiseshell cat for a muse. A graduate of Langara College School of Journalism, she writes devotionals, fiction and inspirational prose. Her purpose in writing is to encourage others to grow in their spiritual walk.