Sheryn MacMunn's Blog: Sheryn MacMunn Wrote Here - Posts Tagged "relationships"
Summer Begins
The summer is here and school is out. It's been a hectic time. One stepson graduated from high school while our youngest graduated from kindergarten. Both events really got me thinking. Not just about the passing of time but of the dreams we have when we are young and sometimes lose along the way.
If you read my author page, you know that writing a book has always been a dream. Accomplishing my dream at this stage of my life (And no, I'm not old. Well, not to people my age anyway.) has been a blessing. It has given me the ability to dream like my children are doing now. It has given me the chance to imagine a life that I don't currently have. It's not that my life is bad, mind you. But to dream that I can be a writer and that people will actually read my books is wonderful.
Writing FINDING OUT, also reminded me that hard work and perseverance can pay off. Now, I work full time and love my job. But working hard at 'work' isn't always fulfilling because success often depends on how your boss views your work.
As I listened to the speeches at the high school graduation (there were songs at the kindergarten version), I couldn't help but think of Sheila Davenport. She arrived in New York to have a fantastic life and it starts off great. But then she has to re-evaluate everything and find her way all over again. It's something many of us have to do.
All children, especially teenagers, think they have the world in their hands. Some will rise, some will fall, some will end up in the middle. Adults somehow forget that we have the world in our hands, too. Part of that is living through good and bad times. Some of it is just dealing with the bills and keeping the house clean. What I hope for all the adults out there is that you can find one thing this summer that makes you believe in a dream for you. It doesn't have to be big. It doesn't have to be something you accomplish. It just has to be a dream - and make you smile.
If you read my author page, you know that writing a book has always been a dream. Accomplishing my dream at this stage of my life (And no, I'm not old. Well, not to people my age anyway.) has been a blessing. It has given me the ability to dream like my children are doing now. It has given me the chance to imagine a life that I don't currently have. It's not that my life is bad, mind you. But to dream that I can be a writer and that people will actually read my books is wonderful.
Writing FINDING OUT, also reminded me that hard work and perseverance can pay off. Now, I work full time and love my job. But working hard at 'work' isn't always fulfilling because success often depends on how your boss views your work.
As I listened to the speeches at the high school graduation (there were songs at the kindergarten version), I couldn't help but think of Sheila Davenport. She arrived in New York to have a fantastic life and it starts off great. But then she has to re-evaluate everything and find her way all over again. It's something many of us have to do.
All children, especially teenagers, think they have the world in their hands. Some will rise, some will fall, some will end up in the middle. Adults somehow forget that we have the world in our hands, too. Part of that is living through good and bad times. Some of it is just dealing with the bills and keeping the house clean. What I hope for all the adults out there is that you can find one thing this summer that makes you believe in a dream for you. It doesn't have to be big. It doesn't have to be something you accomplish. It just has to be a dream - and make you smile.
A Wonderful Coincidence
I traveled for business last week with a nasty sinus and ear infection to Philadelphia, which is a wonderful city that I always enjoy visiting. After 3 long days with the President of the company (who is a great guy), I was waiting for the train back to CT when my phone rang. It was my 86 year old neighbor, Bunny. She had read my book and wanted to tell me how much she loved it and how the parts about Germany during WWII made her cry because they were so realistic.
I had done a lot of research on the history of WWII, and people who had hidden during WWII, to make sure the facts in the book were correct. Hearing Bunny tell me that Ruth's storyline reminded her of stories that her family shared was exhilarating. I know this will sound weird but when people tell me they cried while reading FINDING OUT, I get so happy.
The BEST part of the call is that Bunny and I made a date to have tea together, which happened today. Bunny is an elderly lady who wants company and I often wish that my Grandmothers and Ruth were alive so I could chat with them. Luckily, I don't have nutty coworkers or a bad break-up to share. We talked for two hours about her life and she was able to ask me questions about the book.
She referred to Joe as a "sin-in-law" because that's what she and her friends called a guy that lived with a girl before marriage. She also said that the character Annette was written perfectly as she had known any people that seemed to be sympathetic toward the Jews, but really supported the Nazis. Bunny shook her head and said "Cold people. You can't imagine how cold." Bunny was also so excited about one scene involving a dress (I can't say too much in case you haven't read the book) that she threw her hands in the air and dropped the book! She felt that scene was a perfect revenge.
There is so much more to say, but a massive lightening storm is underway and my lights are flickering. I will write more about my tea with Bunny and am so happy that there are more to come.
I had done a lot of research on the history of WWII, and people who had hidden during WWII, to make sure the facts in the book were correct. Hearing Bunny tell me that Ruth's storyline reminded her of stories that her family shared was exhilarating. I know this will sound weird but when people tell me they cried while reading FINDING OUT, I get so happy.
The BEST part of the call is that Bunny and I made a date to have tea together, which happened today. Bunny is an elderly lady who wants company and I often wish that my Grandmothers and Ruth were alive so I could chat with them. Luckily, I don't have nutty coworkers or a bad break-up to share. We talked for two hours about her life and she was able to ask me questions about the book.
She referred to Joe as a "sin-in-law" because that's what she and her friends called a guy that lived with a girl before marriage. She also said that the character Annette was written perfectly as she had known any people that seemed to be sympathetic toward the Jews, but really supported the Nazis. Bunny shook her head and said "Cold people. You can't imagine how cold." Bunny was also so excited about one scene involving a dress (I can't say too much in case you haven't read the book) that she threw her hands in the air and dropped the book! She felt that scene was a perfect revenge.
There is so much more to say, but a massive lightening storm is underway and my lights are flickering. I will write more about my tea with Bunny and am so happy that there are more to come.
Labor Day, Back To School, and A Deal
There are a few reasons that I love celebrating Labor Day. The first is that our family had a big barbeque every year at our house. I always get nostalgic for my family on Labor Day because that generation is now gone. My grandparents and great-aunts and -uncles always had a fun time together sharing jokes, talking and listening. This was also the time of year that Aunt Catherine, who was in her early eighties, would have her annual glass of wine. Imagine a petite elderly lady giggling like a school girl and just being silly with us kids. Those family parties gave me a respect of my elders and showed me that all people have amazing life stories that I could never imagine.
Having that respect allowed me to have great friendships with my grandmothers until their deaths and allowed me to see my co-worker Ruth, who was forty years older than me, as a person instead of ‘an old lady’. Those memories shaped the storyline where Sheila gets the help she needs from her elderly neighbor, Ruth, because Ruth had a life that most people in this generation can’t imagine so they ignore this generation. I think those people are missing a valuable resource to learn about life. I'm sure glad that I didn't miss it and I wanted to share that lesson with others through my novel.
Another reason for me to celebrate Labor Day Weekend is that FINDING OUT was a labor of love for me which was years in the making. I realized that in order to teach my daughters to live their dreams, I had to live mine. So after a few years of starts and stops, I made a commitment to finish my novel. For the past four years, I used all my spare time to write, edit, and research WWII. It was fun and exhausting because I was working full time but I did it. To share my hard work with everyone else who works hard, I am offering FINDING OUT on Amazon Kindle for $.99 this weekend. Now everyone, on any budget, can enjoy the good feelings that readers say this book gives them. Feel free to share this deal with your friends, family or book club. You can click here to take advantage of this deal.
Another reason for me to celebrate this weekend is that my kids (who I love dearly) are back to school and, let's face it, that's just such a relief for a working Mom. To celebrate Back to School I participated in two guest blogs and giveaways. In one blog, I share my best first day of school (and my Kindergarten picture) at Crazy For Books. In the second blog, I wrote about my worst first day of school going into the fourth grade at Lori's Reading Corner. Please check them out and feel free to share your best or worst day of school in a comment section here. I’ll repost some of the comments on my Facebook Fan Page at www.facebook.com/sherynmacmunn.
So now I'm off to create some memories with my family this weekend so my children one day can look back fondly on their childhood and make their lives a dream come true.
Happy Labor Day.
Having that respect allowed me to have great friendships with my grandmothers until their deaths and allowed me to see my co-worker Ruth, who was forty years older than me, as a person instead of ‘an old lady’. Those memories shaped the storyline where Sheila gets the help she needs from her elderly neighbor, Ruth, because Ruth had a life that most people in this generation can’t imagine so they ignore this generation. I think those people are missing a valuable resource to learn about life. I'm sure glad that I didn't miss it and I wanted to share that lesson with others through my novel.
Another reason for me to celebrate Labor Day Weekend is that FINDING OUT was a labor of love for me which was years in the making. I realized that in order to teach my daughters to live their dreams, I had to live mine. So after a few years of starts and stops, I made a commitment to finish my novel. For the past four years, I used all my spare time to write, edit, and research WWII. It was fun and exhausting because I was working full time but I did it. To share my hard work with everyone else who works hard, I am offering FINDING OUT on Amazon Kindle for $.99 this weekend. Now everyone, on any budget, can enjoy the good feelings that readers say this book gives them. Feel free to share this deal with your friends, family or book club. You can click here to take advantage of this deal.
Another reason for me to celebrate this weekend is that my kids (who I love dearly) are back to school and, let's face it, that's just such a relief for a working Mom. To celebrate Back to School I participated in two guest blogs and giveaways. In one blog, I share my best first day of school (and my Kindergarten picture) at Crazy For Books. In the second blog, I wrote about my worst first day of school going into the fourth grade at Lori's Reading Corner. Please check them out and feel free to share your best or worst day of school in a comment section here. I’ll repost some of the comments on my Facebook Fan Page at www.facebook.com/sherynmacmunn.
So now I'm off to create some memories with my family this weekend so my children one day can look back fondly on their childhood and make their lives a dream come true.
Happy Labor Day.
Sheryn MacMunn Wrote Here
I'll answer questions about FINDING OUT, share thoughts on my new novel, and give you a glimpse of what it's like to write a novel with a full time job, a husband (who thankfully cooks and does laundr
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