From One Life to Another

FROM ONE LIFE TO ANOTHER

It was while caring for my father that I began to study books about writing. All the writing prompts and challenges taught me a lot.

Moving from the Arizona desert to Dad's small house in the pines was one challenge. The other was becoming a full time caregiver. Writing was a way of escape, as well as a creative challenge. There wasn't room to lay out craft projects or do scrap booking like in the past.

Space was cleared for a desk in a corner of the living area, but with Dad watching TV I would often go to my bedroom to write. One of my first instructive books was YOUR LIFE AS STORY by Tristine Rainer. Memoir written in a literary manner is also known as Creative Non-Fiction. It was my first venture into personal short stories.

In the summer, it was fun to sit out on the deck with another book: PEN ON FIRE by Barbara DeMarco-Barrett. It had short chapters about writing plus challenges which could be done in fifteen minutes. Nothing was polished, of course. The author just wanted to prove we could capture ideas quickly and perfect them later.

God Had A Plan
The other day I shared with a friend, "God knew what He was doing when He brought me to Prescott to care for Dad. It's a town filled with writers and opportunities for writers. I would never have thought of choosing such a place."

A couple of verses by the Psalmist covers the experience of my past few years: "The LORD is my shepherd . . . He guides me along the right paths for His name's sake" (Psalm 23:1, 3). In God's plan, He continues to give me creative inspirational ideas and scriptures to share and I continue to write.

Three years ago, my husband encouraged me to share my stories by email. The response was positive. In fact, a couple of readers sponsored my first book: REFLECTIONS: Inspirational stories from Everyday Life. I entered it in the annual Oregon Christian Writer's Contest this year. I'm happy to say it earned 274 points out of a possible 300, though it was not in the top three.

Poetry comes easy for some people, but not me. REFLECTIONS, however, has a short poem that was fun to write. I always enjoy hearing from my readers, and one recently sent this note: "I keep coming across Brainy Machine. So few words, and yet it says so much. I have a hard time remembering that I can control my thoughts, I can calm myself down, and I can focus on what's truly important if I just take the time, and discipline."

Influence is Shared from One Life to Another. 
I may not always know who reads my book or subscribes to my stories, but my life has touched yours as you've read this. Now my prayer is that your life will touch others as you encourage them to subscribe to New Day by Darlis.

Email: darjsailors@gmail.com
Website: AuthorDarlisSailors.com