Rachel: a woman who tried the earn the unearnable

This month’s study is on Rachel, the woman Jacob wanted to marry. He worked seven years for her father and his uncle, Laban, to marry her. He would be tricked into marrying her older sister, Leah, first and then worked another seven years to finally marry Rachel. Rachel’s name means ewe as in a female sheep. For the most part, Rachel was manipulated by her father and had very little say over her own life. After all she had to share her husband with her older sister and eventually two servants. However, she learned to be a manipulator herself. She was a schemer and a victim of schemes. What is her story? What were her strengths and weakness we can learn from? What does her story tell us about God’s promises?

Rachel was the cherished wife of Jacob but despite his love and devotion, she felt she had to earn it. She had captured his heart at the well when they first met and he worked for her father, for a total of 14 years, to finally marry her. Despite this obvious devotion, Rachel believes that Jacob does not truly love her because he won’t give her a child (Genesis 30:1) to which Jacob would reply that he has nothing to do with it (Genesis 30:2). Her longing for children ultimately led to her death in childbirth. Her longing and her need to compete with her sister. Leah had a habit of naming her children in a way that emphasized her fertility and Rachel’s infertility. When she couldn’t have children, Rachel gave her servant, Bilhah, to Jacob. Bilhah went on to have two sons. She would claim that the struggle with her sister was over, but their battle was far from over (Genesis 30:6). When Leah stopped having children, she too gave her servant, Zilpah to Jacob. Zilpah would have two sons as well. After three more births, Rachel would eventually become pregnant herself. She would have a son named Joseph. She would become pregnant for the second and last time. She would die from childbirth, giving birth to her son, Benjamin.

Rachel’s greatest accomplishment in her story is the birth of her sons, Joseph, and Benjamin. Joseph would be a particularly important figure later. However, like her husband and her father, Rachel was a schemer and was a victim of schemes. She was tricked by her father. She viewed her children as weapons in her struggle with her sister. The lessons of treachery and competition were passed to the next generation as Joseph would suffer at the hands of his brothers (Genesis 37:23-28). Her story is also marred with weaknesses. Her envy and competitiveness marred her relationship with both her husband and her sister. She was capable of dishonesty when she stole her father’s idols and then lied when he looked for them (Genesis 31:34-35). She failed to realize that Jacob’s devotion was not dependent on her ability to have children. From her life, we can see that loyalty must be influenced by what is true and right, not just familial bonds. And love is accepted, not earned. Her attempts to earn the unearnable is a portrait of us doing the same with God’s love. Many people believe that they must be good to receive God’s love. There is nothing we can do to earn it; it has always been there. His love has no beginning and no end. It is incredibly patient. All we need to do is respond.

Through the schemes and plots, God remained faithful. Step by step, in ways impossible for use to foresee, God was using people with their mixed motives and confused desires to reveal his grace and mercy. Genesis 30:22 says that God remembered Rachel, but he never really forgot her. The word “remembered” doesn’t mean God suddenly went “Oops! I forgot all about Rachel!” The Bible used it to express God’s love and compassion for his people. It serves as a reminder that God’s promise is never to abandon us or leave us without support or relief. He will never forsake us. Deuteronomy 31:8 says “It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” He will never forget us. Isaiah 49:15-16 says "I will never forget you. See, upon the palms of my hand I have written your name." He will always remember us. There is never a moment that God forgets us. He is present, attentive, and aware of our deepest desires and concerns even when we are certain he has forgotten us. Isaiah 41:10, one of my favorite verses, says "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

In conclusion, Rachel was a woman of loyalty and love. However, she let her envy and desire for a child strain her relationships. While the tragedy in her story is her ultimate death in childbirth, her greatest joy is that her husband loved and cherished her. Rather than dealing with a difficult situation with creativity, she behaved like a perpetual victim, responding to wrongs with more wrongs. It is a common feeling to hurt others as they have hurt us. It is human nature to retaliate but is not what God wants. First Thessalonians 5:15 says “Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.” We should do good to those we treat us badly. Love those who hurt us and God will take care of the wrongs they have done.

 Picture Credits

2. William Dyce (1806-1864) Public Domain

3. PAINTING: A BIBLE LOVE STORE BETWEEN JACOB AND RACHEL

Creator: Alex Levin

Copyright: Copyright @ Art Levin Studio, Inc.

Information extracted from IPTC Photo Metadata.

https://artlevin.com/product/yakov-and-rachel/

4. Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770) Public Domain

Canteen Dreams: a WII homefront romance

Canteen Dreams by Cara Putman is a WWII Homefront Romance and the first book in the Cornhusker Dreams series. It opens on December 6, 1941 as Audrey Stone attends a local dance in which she catches the eye of local rancher, Willard Johnson. The next day, news breaks about the Pearl Harbor attack which throws the Midwest town of North Platte, Nebraska into a state of shock. As Audrey joins the local war effort, Willard struggles with his desire to serve his country and his sense of obligation to stay on his family’s ranch. The two begin a friendship which blossoms into something more. Will Willard stay or will he enlist? What will happened with his relationship with Audrey?

Canteen Dreams is a sweet wartime love story. A quick read, it takes the reader through the months following the Pearl Harbor attack and the nation’s wartime efforts. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get invested in the characters. I found Audrey too good to be true. Willard was whiny and I thought the whole time, “Oh my god, just make a decision.” I didn’t like the flow of the story. For the first half of the book, the Johnson family seemed to be Mr. and Mrs. Johnson and their sons, Willard, and Andrew. Then suddenly, there are three sisters! Where did they come from? They were not mentioned before. If you enjoy WWII era romance, you may enjoy Canteen Dreams.

Canteen Dreams

is available paperback, eBook and audiobook

The types of moms I have experienced

Recently I was having a conversation with another mother and as we talked about our kids and their development, I noticed a change in her demeanor. I was curious what could have possibly caused this change. Later that night, I replayed the conversation in my head, and I realized that when I didn’t agree with a statement she made, she quickly changed the subject. Then I started thinking about the other moms I have encountered. Everyone has head terms like soccer moms, crunchy moms, stay-at-home moms, and working moms. Among these types, I have come across certain behaviors and personalities. After some research, I compiled a list of the few types of moms I have experienced.

1. The By The Book Mom: This mom is one who is always consulting the “experts.” The pediatrician, the parenting books, other mothers and practically anyone for advice on anything from milestones to discipline. Questioning everything about what their child is doing, should be doing, or isn’t doing. She won’t come to a decision easily. She will constantly second and third guess herself. And even after she has decided, she worries that she’s made the wrong decision. Either she is new to motherhood or not, this mom will constantly research and ask for medical advice. She’s the first to believe in old wives tales and believe stories about a friend of a friend. This mom is often a worrier to the 10^th degree who stresses about her children in every possible way from germs to healthy eating to TV. Sometimes a new mom may start out as the By The Book Mom and with a little experience, she may evolve into another type or not. Because sometimes once a worrier, always a worrier.

2. The Go With the Flow Mom: This mom is the polar opposite of the By The Book Mom. She is calm in the face of chaos. She is very attuned to her children’s needs but unfazed by seemingly “disasters.” A diaper blow out? No problem for this mom. She just cleans it up. Baby spit up on her shirt? “Oh, well,” says this mom, “it happens.” She can be called the Girl Scout Mom because she’s ready for anything (Flory). She is armed with snacks, drinks, and extra clothes just in case they are needed. And while having a schedule is important, she realizes that sometimes a schedule just isn’t going to work, and she expects the unexpected and adjusts accordingly. This mom might be so laid back that other moms think she’s a laissez-faire mom when she’s not. She just doesn’t see the point of freaking out when there’s a task to do.

3. The Martyr Mom: This mom puts herself last and lets everyone knows that she does, even when she doesn’t need to. These types of moms focus on what they don’t have instead of what they do. She will use her motherhood as a victim status. Suffered a difficult pregnancy? Infertility issues? A difficult delivery? Oh, she’ll tell you about it and may even constantly remind everyone of her issues. She wants everyone from her husband to her children to the stranger on social media to understand the sacrifices she has made to become a mother and as a mother. She may be a stay-at-home mom, or a working mom, it doesn’t matter. This mom demands attention and appreciation for her sacrifice. She may resort to guilt tripping her family, “After all I’ve done for you,” when she doesn’t get what she feels she deserves. And even if another mom has a similar experience, she will counter because her experience must be better or worse than another mother’s. Because no woman has suffered as much as she has.  

4. The Toxic Mom: The Me-First Mom: This mom is often the selfish and self-absorbed mom. She fails to see her children as individuals and their role is to fall in line. She is the perfectionist in which appearance is everything. Her children learn early is that their role is to make their mother shine and if they fail to perform, there will be hell to pay. If the public image begins to crack, she will go berserk and try to repair whatever “damage” before it becomes too apparent. She will play the comparison game (Streep, 2019) with her child. Comparing her child to her other children or any child if it achieves the same end: the child’s obedience and compliance. She might be a master at passive aggression and stonewalling. Stonewalling is a type of silent treatment. A toxic mom will pretend a child does not exist, ignoring their presence or even their statements to get that child’s compliance and obedience (Streep, 2019).

5. The Complete Mom: This mom is the best of the best. This is the mom everyone hopes to have, and few do. She is confident, emotionally balanced and sees her children as individuals and helps them achieve their own independence. She isn’t perfect herself but regardless of her other adult responsibilities, she is committed to motherhood (Psychologies, 2019). She admits her faults when she does or says something that could be consider toxic or inappropriate. This mom may also be the Guilt Free Mom as she will gladly hand off the care of her children to her husband or a babysitter, when she needs to, without a second thought. She understands the mantra that you can’t pour from an empty cup and will take time for herself in order to be a better wife and mother. Her children feel loved and understood that they can take risks, embrace change as well as have the ability and insight to appreciate other people’s perspectives (Psychologies, 2019). In my experience, the Complete Mom can be the product of another Complete Mom or she grew up with the other types and knew what patterns she did not want to repeat.

In conclusion, there are many types of moms out there. Most moms are caring, loving and hard working. While other moms see their children as their pawns and demand attention and control as they are the reason the children are here in the first place. Motherhood is about challenges and learning as you go. Some women take to motherhood like a duck takes to water while other moms it is a steep learning curve until they get the hang of it. Even some moms you encounter leave you wondering why they became moms in the first place. As a mom, I have learned not to compare myself to other moms and especially not to compare my kids to their kids. What works for one mom may not or would not work for another mom and every kid is different.

                                                                    References

Flory, Amy. (no date). 8 Types of Moms You Definitely Know. https://www.activekids.com/parenting-and-family/articles/8-types-of-moms-you-definitely-know. Retrieved May 13, 2020.

Psychologies. (January 13, 2019). The five mother types. Psychologies. https://www.psychologies.co.uk/five-mother-types. Retrieved May 13, 2020

Streep, Peg. (May 17, 2019). 8 Things That Toxic Mothers Have in Common. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/tech-support/201905/8-things-toxic-mothers-have-in-common. Retrieved May 13, 2020. 

Sympathy for the Devil: a song analysis

Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, “Sympathy for the Devil” is a song that many misinterpret. With the word, “sympathy” in the title, who can blame them? This song is one that I was always told was bad and to stay away from. But I was curious, do they really mean sympathy here? As the opening track on The Rolling Stone’s 1968 Beggars Banquet album, “Sympathy for the Devil” was originally written like a Bob Dylan folk song until Richards suggested they change the tempo to a samba (Cruickshank, 2002). The song is listed number 32 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Let us look into the song lyrics themselves as well as the meaning behind the title and the context in which the song was written.

The song opens up with the narrator introducing himself, “Please allow me to introduce myself/

I'm a man of wealth and taste/I've been around for a long, long year.” And proceeds to list the historical events he was around for: Jesus and Pontius Pilate (circa 33 CE), the Russian Revolution (1917-1923) and Anastasia (killed along with her parents and siblings on July 17, 1918), the blitzkrieg during World War II (1939-1945), and the assassinations of John F Kennedy (November 22, 1963) and Robert F. Kennedy (June 6, 1968). The song also alludes to the Hundred Years War (1337-1453) in which the narrator states “I watched with glee/While your kings and queens/Fought for ten decades.” As the narrator lists the historical atrocities he has witnessed, he teases the audience, asking for his name: “Hope you guessed my name,” “Tell me baby, what's my name, “Tell me honey, can ya guess my name” and “Tell me, sweetie, what's my name.” The narrator ironically demands some courtesy, sympathy and taste as the name of his game is confuse his audience: “But what's confusing you/Is just the nature of my game, mm yeah/Just as every cop is a criminal/And all the sinners saints/As heads is tails.” As the narrator, as the traditional devil trickster, turns to the audience and places blame of these historical events on the audience: “you're to blame.”

I think many people have a problem with the song, not for its subject matter, but for its title. “Sympathy for the Devil” invokes an unsettling feeling. This song as well as The Stones’ 1967 album, Their Satanic Majesties Request, fueled media rumors and fear among religious groups that the Stones were devil worshippers” (Cruickshank, 2002). Sympathy is defined as “feelings of pity and sorrow for someone else's misfortune” or “understanding between people; common feeling.” Why would anyone want to feel pity for Lucifer or have a common feeling with him? This is where I think the word, sympathy, is used ironically as the devil is often portrayed as the deceiver, the trickster, and the slanderer. As the word, devil, derives from the Greek word, diábolos, meaning "slanderer." To slander someone is to “make false and damaging statements about them.” When the devil places blame solely on mankind for the historical events, he is being who he is supposed to be, the deceiver, the slanderer.

To place the blame on the devil or evil for the atrocities throughout history and even today is a bit dismissive. As “Sympathy For The Devil was intended to be an analysis of the dark side of humanity; one which allows itself to be too easily swallowed up by the banality of evil, thereby helping it to accomplish the wickedness it craves. If you understand the Devil within yourself, maybe you can deal with him” (Divelti, 2019). Everyone has the capacity for good as well as evil. While most people’s goodness will far outweigh their evilness, there are people out there who act in purely evil fashion without an ounce of goodness in them. I think we all can name individuals who, generally, are perceived as evil, no matter what their motivations are thought to have been. If you look at the context in which “Sympathy for the Devil” was written, you can see that it was a dose of reality. As the philosophy of peace and love was being pushed in songs like The Beatles, “All you Need is Love” (1967) which was really “dead even before it began” as the realities of the 60s, the Vietnam War and the violence that carried forward into the 70s” (The Legends of Music, 2019) showed the peace and love isn’t easy to achieve.

In conclusion, for a long time I refused to listen to “Sympathy for the Devil” but as I listen to it and began to analyze the lyrics, you see that sympathy is used in an ironic fashion. I found a great quote from Keith Richards in which he says “’Sympathy’ is quite an uplifting song. It's just a matter of looking (the Devil) in the face […] Sympathy for the Devil is a song that says, Don't forget him. If you confront him, then he's out of a job” (Fricke, 2002).  Evil is always there. We cannot hide from evil. When we confront evil, we can deal with it. How we deal with it is another issue all together. Therefore, “Sympathy for the Devil” is not a song for devil worship, it is a song about confronting evil so it can lose its power.

References

Cruickshank, Douglas. (January 14, 2002). Sympathy for the Devil. Salon.com. https://www.salon.com/2002/01/14/sympathy/. Retrieved May 17, 2020.

Divelti, Luca (May 1, 2019). Sympathy For The Devil: the meanings of The Rolling Stones’ song. Auralcrave. https://auralcrave.com/en/2019/05/01/sympathy-for-the-devil-the-meanings-of-the-rolling-stones-song/. Retrieved June 16, 2020.

Fricke, David (September 24, 2002). Online Exclusive: Keith Richards Uncut. Rolling Stone. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/online-exclusive-keith-richards-uncut-247051/. Retrieved June 16, 2020.

The Legends of Music. (December 28, 2019). The Story behind ‘Sympathy For The Devil’ Medium. https://medium.com/@thelegendsofmusic/the-story-behind-sympathy-for-the-devil-ad1f7b70410a. Retrieved June 16, 2020.

No Place Too Far: standing firm and fighting back

No Place Too Far by Kay Bratt is the second book in the new By the Sea series. In this story, readers return to beautiful Maui as Quinn’s friend, Maggie Dalton, begins to renew her life with her son, Charlie, on the island after her stalker was sentenced to prison. Maggie begins a new job at a local vet clinic with the handsome Dr. Joe Starr and meets the eccentric staff including Juniper, the no nonsense receptionist with brightly colored hair and a nose ring. As she begins to live again and find new friends, her worst fears come to life as her stalker may have been able to find her again despite being in prison. Just as Maggie is learning to deal with this possibility, Quinn is adjusting to reuniting with her family as well as her new relationship with Liam. When a reporter threatens Quinn’s new life on the island, her only solution is to run. Has Maggie’s stalker truly found her on Maui? Will he attempt to come to the island? Will Quinn run or will she stay and fight for her new family and home?

No Place too Far is an awesome sequel to True to Me and I enjoyed following up with Quinn and her story as well as learning more about her long-time friend, Maggie. Maggie’s story with a stalker is creepy and eerie and I can only imagine the paralyzing fear that she and victims of stalking must deal with during the stalking and in the aftermath. In this digital world of email, social media and more and more of life existing through online connections, it is easy for someone to find another person and it makes it extremely hard for someone to truly hide. I enjoyed all the new characters especially Joe and Juniper. I look forward to see them along with Quinn and Maggie in book 3 and beyond in the By the Sea series. Overall, No Place Too Far is about standing firm and fighting for yourself, your loved ones, and your freedom. I highly recommend No Place Too Far!

No Place Too Far

will be available September 1, 2020

in paperback, eBook and audiobook

If you have not yet read True To Me, I highly recommend it.

True to Me is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Check out my review for True to Me

https://observationsfromasimplelife.blogspot.com/2020/01/true-to-me-adventure-of-self-discovery.html

The First Time I Said Goodbye: a mother-daughter journey to the past to renew the present

The First Time I Said Goodbye by Claire Allan is a story of loss, renewal, and forgiveness. The story opens as Annabel Jackson says goodbye to her beloved father after a long battle with cancer. She is devasted as her mother, Stella, is stoic. Stella asks Annabel to join to on a trip to her hometown of Derry, Ireland, a place she has not been to in forty years. Reluctantly, Annabel agrees, wondering why her mother wants to return to Ireland after so many years. Once there, she learns her mother has an ulterior motive for coming to Ireland and the unfinished business she must deal with now. Annabel quickly learns more about her mother than she ever knew before. As she learns about her mother as a young woman, Annabel begins questioning her own life including her relationship with her long-time boyfriend, Craig. Will she be able to see Stella as the woman she is and not just as her mother? Will she finally listen to her heart and follow the desires she has long put aside?

The First Time I Said Goodbye is a story of a mother and daughter, who in their own loss, find a way to connect in ways they never connected before. With the storyline switching between the summer of 2010 and the years of 1959-1962, we see Stella as a young woman in love who makes a fateful decision which brought her Ireland again. It was not what I expected when I picked up the book. I have read reunion stories before and thought it would be more a romance than a mother-daughter story. I enjoyed it as many children never truly see their parents as the individuals they were before children, with hopes and dreams and dealing with decisions of the past. One of my favorite moments in the story is when Stella’s mother Kathleen tells her “When Life says give up, Hope whispers ‘Try it one more time.’” This is essentially the theme of the story: to try one more time. One factor I did not like is that the story slowly builds up to a lover’s reunion only to be rushed at the end and it felt unsatisfying. However, I do recommend The First Time I Said Goodbye for its beautiful setting and the characters’ personal journeys.

The First Time I Said Goodbye

is available in paperback and eBook

Paint it Black: song of grief and depression

The Rolling Stones is among rock n roll royalty. They have been performing since 1962 with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards at the helm. While they are not my favorite rock n roll band, I do have a few favorites. One of my favorites is “Paint it Black” from their 1966 album, Aftermath. The song was released on May 7, 1966 and quickly became one of their popular songs. It was number 1 on Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart. It would The Rolling Stones third #1 hit in the US and the sixth in the UK. “Paint it Black” is listed as #176 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It has been covered numerous times by artists like U2, Dee Snider of Twisted Sister and Glenn Tipton of Judas Priest.

The lyrics meant to describe depression with color-based metaphors. The opening lines are clear, “I see a red door and I want it painted black/No colors anymore, I want them to turn black.” Color is the main imagery in this song. Black, of course, is the color of depression and darkness. The narrator wants the world to be as dark as he feels. “I wanna see it painted, painted black/Black as night, black as coal/I wanna see the sun, blotted out from the sky/I wanna see it painted, painted, painted, painted black.” The narrator talks about seeing girls in summer clothes and needed to look away. “Summer clothes” paints an image of bright yellows and other colors that might “blind” a man darkened by grief. Almost like walking outside after leaving a darkened room, it pains him to look at it. Another line “No more will my green sea go turn a deeper blue” gives no real indication what the narrator means. Possibly its how he describes her eyes and his green eyes will no longer see her deep blue ones.

The lyrics describe a fictional girl’s funeral with “a line of cars” with “with flowers and my love, both never to come back” and the extreme grief suffered by the narrator. The line, “I could not foresee this thing happening to you,” shows the unexpectedness of this young girl’s death. The narrator, so deep in his depression, has lost all hope, “I look inside myself and see my heart is black.” The line, “I turn my head until my darkness goes” claimed to be inspired by James Joyce’s Ulysses (1922) referring to a theme of desperation and desolation (Visconti, 2014). The narrator talks about fading away so “not have to face the facts” that his love is gone and describes the difficulty in accepting her death, “It's not easy facing up, when your whole world is black.” In the traditional grief cycle, after the initial shock or disbelief, people generally go through five general stages: denial, anger and bargaining, depression, and acceptance. The narrator talks about looking “hard enough into the setting sun” that maybe his love “will laugh with me before the morning comes” as he may join her in heaven.

The song describes the everyday occurrence of death and the indifference to those outside the funeral procession. “I see people turn their heads and quickly look away/Like a new born baby, it just happens every day.” To everyone else, it just another death, like birth happens every day, so does death, but the narrator is devastated by his loss. That line always gets me plays in my head if I happened to be stopped by a funeral procession. I remind myself that loved ones are grieving, and I often say a prayer for the family and friends. A prayer of comfort and peace in their loss. Even acknowledging that death happens everyday and will affect us all at multiple times in our lives, it is still difficult to deal with. In his book, The Time Keeper, Mitch Albom writes, “Man alone measures time. Man alone chimes the hour. And, because of this, man alone suffers a paralyzing fear that no other creature endures. A fear of time running out.” Despite acknowledge that death comes to us all, despite planning for its inevitability, there is never enough time with our loved ones. We always want, and wish for, more time.

In conclusion, “Paint it Black” is a song of grief and depression. A man has lost his love and he does not want to see a world filled with color when his heart and mood is dark. With the use of colors, The Rolling Stones paints imagery of pain, depression, and loss. Grief is often a lonely process as one looks on as life goes on and he or she has no desire to continue with it. Death is always around us in many forms. While we know this, some embrace it and others do all they can to avoid it, it is still a time of grief for those left behind. “Paint it Black” depicts that pain very well. For that reason, it is one of my favorite Rolling Stones song.

References

Visconti, Tony (2014). 1,001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die (4th ed.). New York, NY: Universe Publishing. p. 175 ISBN 9780789320896.

Hope Lies Ahead: follow up to Prayers for Prodigals

Hope Lies Ahead: Encouragement for Parents of Prodigals from a Family That's Been There is the follow up to James Banks’ Prayers for Prodigals. In Hope Lies Ahead, Mr. Banks writes about his journey as a parent with his prodigal son, Geoff. Geoff also contributes to the book as he writes about his side of events as well as his thoughts and feelings as he descended into drug use, his struggle to recovery and the transformation his life has taken now. Each chapter is a conversation with James providing the parental perspective and Geoff providing the prodigal perspective. Their goal for the book is to show all their faults, struggles and successes to encourage parents and prodigals who deal with the same faults, struggles and look forward to their own successes. It is also their goal to encourage churches to open their doors and arms, to become a place that people can truly be honest about their struggles, without judgement, for prayers, love, and support.

From the very beginning, Hope Lies Ahead is brutally honest. Misters Banks open their hearts and laying everything on the table to show what they went through and how they battled to achieve the recovery that live today. Not just Geoff’s recovery from drug abuse but their own relationship as father and son recovered to be in a better place than it had ever before. Geoff at one point said, “My father was so concerned with getting me to God that he forgot to maintain our relationship.” Hope Lies Ahead is a great heartfelt look into one family’s battle with addiction. One side are the parents, desperate to help their child and on the other side is the child whose addiction takes him to the very depths. Only through prayer, faith, and determination is that child alive and well today. I highly recommend Hope Lies Ahead!

Hope Lies Ahead:

Encouragement for Parents of Prodigals from a Family That's Been There

is available in paperback and eBook

The River Girl's Song: a Western story of strength and determination

The River Girl’s Song by Angela Castillo is the first book in the Texas Women of Spirit series. It is the story of Zillia Bright, a young girl on a Texas farm with her mother and stepfather. When her mother dies from childbirth and her abusive stepfather leaves, Zillia is left to run the farm and take care of her newborn brother. With the support and help from her neighbors, Zillia quickly adjusts to her new life. As she runs the farm and takes care of her brother, she fears her stepfather’s return as his family lives in town and suspicious of his “sudden” disappearance. Adding to her worries is the growing attention from two different men. And the possibility of her family back East coming for her. Will she be able to keep her new life afloat? Will her stepfather return? Will she choose one man or the other?

The River Girl’s Song is a typical prairie struggle story. A young girl who needs to grow up fast or the wildness of the West will tear her down. The love triangle that forms as she gains the attention of a local farmer and a man in town. It was a fast read. The drama was common. The romance was familiar and sweet. And while enjoyable, I do not see myself reading the other books in this series. If you like Old West romance dramas, you may enjoy The River Girl’s Song

The River Girl’s Song

is available in paperback and eBook

The Second Home: a family drama

The Second Home by Christina Clancy is a story of a family and how one summer’s events tore everything apart. The story opens with Ann Gordon, a young woman at her family’s vacation home in Cape Cod. It is 2016 and Ann’s parents have died in a car accident six months ago and she has decided to sell the house. There were too many bad memories that overshadowed the good times. Part 1 takes the reader to the summer of 2000, the Gordon family: Ed, Connie and their daughters, Ann, 16, and Poppy, 15, and their adopted son, Michael, 16, arrive for their yearly vacation in Cape Cod. The Gordon family took in Michael after his mother died suddenly and left him with nowhere to go. This is the summer which changed everything. Ann began babysitting for the very wealthy Maureen and Anthony Shaw. Poppy fell in with the surfing crowd and Michael begins a landscaping job. After the summer ends and Ann reveals a shocking secret, the family is torn apart as Michael leaves with no clue where he is going. Part 2 brings the reader forward to 2015 as Ann is dealing with the aftermath of her parents’ death, Poppy is traveling the world and there is still no word from Michael. Soon word gets out that the Gordon family house is for sale and Michael comes forward. As they fight over the house, will they confront the events of that summer and its aftermath? Will the truth be revealed? Will they be able to heal from years of secrets and lies?

The Second Home is the debut novel for Ms. Clancy and began strong. The first part was the summer everything changed as Ann, Poopy and Michael grow up beyond their years when confronted with very real world problems. The second part is where things got confusing. New characters are introduced with no real explanation as to their relationship or connection to established characters. The timeline gets wonky as narrators changes with each chapter. It was hard to understand what was the present or the past. The characters were hard to like especially Ann. In the beginning, she was the one who spoke without a filter, often hurting others as a result. Her father gave her the nickname, “Ann with a Plan,” as she acts and gets things done. And usually that would be a good quality, but in part 2 as she is dealing with the house, Michael’s reappearance, she becomes a bitch. As the action and tension builds and builds, the end was anticlimactic. I loved the story. I loved Ms. Clancy’s descriptions of Cape Cod and its residents. However, the characters were hard to get invested in. The ending was just there with an epilogue that quickly wraps it up. Overall, I enjoyed the story, but the characters fell short for me. It’s a strong start for Ms. Clancy and I would look forward to ready her future novels.

The Second Home

is available in hardcover, eBook and audiobook

Prayers for Prodigals: a 90 day of prayers for prodigal children

Prayers for Prodigals by James Banks is a 90-day prayer guide for parents to pray for their child. A prodigal is a child who has turned his back on his parents, taken from The Story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 115:11-32. Prodigals can teach parents the need for patience, forgiveness, and continual dependence on God in prayer. Mr. Banks has personal experience with dealing a prodigal child as both his children had a prodigal period in their lives. He designed each week with a theme, for instance one week is entitled “God’s Timing.”  Each week opens with a brief meditation and a personal story how Mr. Banks and his wife experienced the prayers for that coming week. Within each week is a day of a Scripture based prayer for your child. Covering the emotional and practical challenges faced by parents of prodigals, James Banks offers a guide for parents to learn to lean on God and allow His movements in their child’s life.

Prayers for Prodigals is a great tool for parents who are dealing with children who may be wandering and rejecting their parents’ help, advice, and guidance. One of my favorite weeks is Week 9 entitled “Waiting for an Answer” in which Mr. Banks reminds Christian parents that God always answers prayers with a yes, no or wait. Wait answers are often confused with no answers and parents must wait on God when we pray. He may answer yes but we may not see the result right away or even in our lifetimes. He provides examples of parents’ prayers being answers years after the parents’ have passed. I also liked that in the book as well as at the end, Mr. Banks wishes to hear from parents who have been affected by his book. Overall, Prayers for Prodigals is a great tool for parents of prodigals and even parents in general to pray for their children as they grow up to be more independent and go out in the world on their own. I highly recommend Prayers for Prodigals.

Prayers for Prodigals

is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook