Hope everyone has been doing well and staying as dry as possible. The weather in our little corner of the world has been dreary and quite WET for some time. The sun actually peeked through the last few days and boy was that a welcome sight! Winter is definitely my least favorite season!
Life has been busy…….but good. It really hit me a few weeks ago that my life is about to change pretty drastically in the next few months. Hunter turns 16 in March…….and I’ll officially lose my full-time status as taxi driver. I’ll be honest – it’s bittersweet. I’m happy for him because I know he’s ready for this next stage in life – and even though it’s been a minute…..I remember how excited I was to get my license! And even though I’m not a fan of mornings – I’ve found myself really taking advantage of these last daily drop offs……..knowing full well that I’ll miss this more than I want to admit. It might not seem like much – but those are some moments to cherish on the 10 minute car ride to and from school. I don’t even want to think about how quickly these next few years will fly by. I guess it’s just that “season”. First comes high school, then drivers license, followed too quickly by graduation and college. Oh goodness – I guess I better buckle up and just enjoy the ride (from the passenger seat no less)!
When I last posted, I blogged about my first book signing event. It was a fantastic turn out and I have been asked several times since then if I’ll be doing another book signing. I do plan on having another one at some point – I just need to work out a date and location. My thoughts are to try to do one either on a weekend or in the evening in order to give folks a chance to come outside of working hours. As soon as I get something finalized, I’ll be sure to spread the word.
Our local newspaper had a reporter at my signing to cover the event. They did an awesome article in the paper about the book and the event. Pretty cool, huh?
So a few weeks ago, I received a text from Phyliss Boatwright. Phyliss was a former staff writer for our local newspaper and she currently has a weekly radio spot on WKRX 96.7 called “Turn the Page” where she reviews books that she has read. Imagine my surprise when Phyliss wanted to ask me some questions about my book and feature if on her show! I was completely blown away!
Phyliss was kind enough to send me the audio file so I could share her review with you. I have to pinch myself every time I listen to this!!!
I have truly been blessed and completely overwhelmed at the phenomenal response I’ve gotten from my book. It still doesn’t seem “real” in many ways.
So we indulged ourselves with a long weekend away last week and spent it at our little place at Beaufort, NC. It’s always a good time to be at the beach – even in the winter!
I packed a few books to take with me because I wanted to give some to a few friends down there……but I intentionally packed a few extra “just in case” – because, well, you never know.
We made a trek to TJMaxx while we were there……that’s always a MUST for me and Hunter! I found a few things I needed and as I was in line checking out, Hunter called me and asked if I could meet him in the back of the store when I was done. I checked out and went to find Hunter and quickly found myself standing in the check-out line AGAIN with him. While we were waiting, I saw a lady several people behind us with that tell-tale “turban” on her head. Immediately I thought, “I’ll bet she’s going through chemo”. Hunter agreed with me that she had “the look” – and he immediately said “Mom, are you gonna give her a book?” Of course, I thought that would be awesome – but I was a little hesitant just because I didn’t want to insult this lady if she just liked wearing turbans!
We checked out and walked to the truck and Hunter asked AGAIN if I was going to give this lady a book. I said “YES” and he grabbed a book and we trekked back inside TJMaxx waiting for her to make her purchase.
When she finally came outside, I approached her and asked if she was going through treatment and she confirmed that, indeed, she was. I told her I was a survivor and told her that I’d like to share my book with her in hopes of encouraging her along the way. We exchanged a bit of our stories and crazy enough, we both had the same type of cancer (Invasive Ductal Carcinoma) and she was doing 10 chemo and 30 radiation treatments (I did 12 and 31). We chatted a while longer and then I hugged her and wished her all the best. I know I’ve said this 100 times before……but this “bond that is breast cancer” is a real thing. You can meet a perfect stranger in a store and leave feeling like you have a new friend.
So……yet again……God was working in the background. He gave me a nudge to pack extra books……and (thankfully) I did…..truly not knowing “why”. But honestly, I never would have imagined that I would have been giving a book to a complete stranger at TJMaxx!!
Those that know me – know that for YEARS I’ve said that when I was asking God for advice, I didn’t want him to answer in a whisper or a gentle nudge – I wanted a blinking NEON sign saying “Yes, Sonja” or “Not now, Sonja”. I wanted loud, clear answers. I’m learning, however, to listen to those faint whispers or gentle nudges.
I also need to say a huge “THANK YOU” to my publisher, Michelle Owens at Writer Book Publishing. She has been a God-send. Another one of those ways God was working in the background and I’m so thankful she was willing to work with me to turn this dream into a reality! Michelle was open and honest with me from the get go. We just kinda “clicked” on that first phone call, and the rest, as they say…….is history! She was approachable, extremely responsive and really made me feel like my project was worthy of her time. If you need a great publisher – she’s your girl! I can hook you up for sure! Check out her website below!
https://www.writerbookpublishing.com/custom-publishing1
And a huge thanks also to Andi Carlton – my artist extraordinaire who created the cover art for my book. I cannot tell you how many compliments I’ve received on that cover! I’ve also fielded lots of questions from folks wanting to know if the tattoo was real (and if they could see it) and if those boobs were really mine! Dream on, right?
Here’s wishing you all a great week! And be aware of those “gentle nudges”…..you never know what God might be doing behind the scenes!
P.S. – you can find my book, Temporary Lumps, on Amazon!
Blessings,
Sonja
Deuteronomy 4:12 New International Version (NIV)
12 Then the Lord spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice.
Temporary Lumps 