New Friends

Writing can be a lonely job, sitting at my computer all day with only my imaginary characters to talk to. That’s why I love getting out every once in a while and meeting some of my readers face-to-face. And I had a chance to do that last week.

The first event was with a group of wonderful ladies at the Grandville United Methodist Church in Grandville, Michigan. I spoke about all the changes that have taken place in women’s lives since our grandmothers’ and great-grandmothers’ generations, and the new freedoms we now have—including freedom from these!

How about it, ladies? Are any of you sorry we don’t have to wear these crazy contraptions any more to keep our nylons in place and slim our waistlines? “What are nylons?” some of you younger ladies are asking. Go ask your grandmother—or I suppose your generation will just Google it! Afterward, you can enjoy your freedom to walk around with bare legs and flip flops.

I met a second group of wonderful ladies last night when I visited with their book club, also in Grandville, Michigan, in one of their members’ home. They had all read my book, “Eve’s Daughters,” and we had a wonderful time discussing it. In writing this family saga about four generations of women, I used some of the real-life historical events from my own family tree. For instance, Louise immigrated to America from Germany at the same time that my great-grandmother did; Emma went through WWI like my grandmother; Grace studied to be a nurse during WWII like my mother; and Suzanne experienced the turbulent Vietnam War years during her college studies, like I did. The Book Club discussion was especially fun for me because my mother is visiting from New York and had a chance to join in our lively conversation.

So thank you to both groups of new friends for your warm hospitality and encouragement. Now, as I sit down at my computer once again I am reminded to “Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Cor. 15:58).