Casey Hays's Blog

Quarantinitis!

Well, March sure did come in like a lion, and she’s still roaring!

Obviously, we are living in “unprecedented times.” That’s the phrase that keeps popping up. Other things that keep popping up are sure proof that quarantinitis has kicked in! (I just made that word up.) [image error]

So what is the proof, you ask? I’ll tell you:

List 10 things you hate that most people like.
Describe me with the letter D.
Post a pic of you and your oldest child to see how many people think you look alike.
Post a pic that includes the color red.
Put a popcorn sticker by every movie on this list that you’ve seen.

…. and it goes on and on. I don’t think I’ve seen this much social media socializing since social distancing became a thing! And I’m not innocent of participating in a few of these myself. (Okay… all of them.)

What I’ve also seen is a real sense of camaraderie and hope among my fellow Facebookers. I’ve seen scriptures and prayers and stories of people recovering from this horrible virus. I’ve seen people encouraging others to stay in, which I highly recommend despite how antsy you may be feeling. Staying in can save a life.

Do me a favor and turn the television off every once in a while too. You can’t believe much of what the media is telling you. They focus only on the negative. And you most definitely can’t believe anything China is reporting. They won’t even tell their own people the truth.

What you can believe is what Jesus says about such things:

“And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for [a]all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, [b]pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.”  Matthew 24:7-8

And… he also says:

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you [a]will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”  John 16:33

Amen!

So there you have it. And what does it all mean? We will get through this. Yes, there will be sorrow, and sadly, many are not going to survive this trial, but the majority will. And honestly, while you’re trapped inside your own life, it could very well be the perfect time to get to know your maker on an intimate and personal level. I recommend this as much as I recommend the staying in thing! [image error] Because one moment with Jesus can also save a life.

Until hugs are allowed again, be kind to each other. And stay safe!

~Casey

 

Wash those hands!

Coronavirus has hit full force!

I would like to say it’s the reason I didn’t publish a Whispering Wednesday submission last week, but that’s just not the truth. I simply forgot! Oops!

Jokes about the lack of toilet paper and hand soap aside, I guess this little bug is no laughing matter. I mean, even Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have been struck in Australia. If Hollywood isn’t immune, we run-of-the-mill types better buckle our seat belts! (insert LOLOLOLOL here).  [image error]

So… should we be freaking out, or are we jumping the gun to a degree? My daughter goes to school in the Seattle, WA area where several deaths have been reported. She’s flying home on Saturday for Spring Break. . . and hopefully leaving any hint of the virus behind. She reported yesterday so many people have cancelled their flights in a panic that a group of her friends managed to get round-trip tickets to Hawaii over the weekend for $200! Wow!

In other news, many people have been demanding to be tested for COVID-19 even if they aren’t exhibiting symptoms. . . just in case. Frankly, that seems a waste of tests, in my humble opinion, as many of these people are testing negative and have never developed symptoms. As of the last reports, medical professionals are halting this practice. If you’re symptomatic, you can have a test. Otherwise, don’t assume you’re going to get the virus.

As for myself, I’ve never had a flu shot, and I’ve never had any of the flus we’ve been privy too: swine, bird, H1N1, and the list goes on. I don’t know if it’s better to get the shot or not; I just know that those who do usually get the flu. I’m never sick. So either I’m never going to get sick because I’ve never introduced a flu vaccine into my system, or one of these days, [image error]I’m going to get slammed with every kind out there all at once. (Knock on wood!)

The good thing is this isn’t the first virus scare, and it won’t be the last. Even if you catch it, the likelihood of survival for most is pretty good. Of course, I’m not an extreme worrier, so that only holds so much weight. I entrust myself and my family to the One who’s truly in control of whether I live or die, [image error]which keeps me from panicking. We did, however, buy one package of toilet paper this week at the local Wal-mart. I heard this morning the city has run out. So I guess it’s a good thing we were in need of some.

In the mean time, wash those hands! Don’t touch your face, sanitize often, sneeze into your elbow and all that jazz. Let’s make America virus free again! (I couldn’t resist).

[image error] Until next time…

 

Vaccinations are still important!

I received a disturbing phone call from my daughter this week. One of the students at her very small Bible school had fallen ill, had a seizure in the night, and was hospitalized with a brain virus. At this time, he is not fully breathing on his own, and needless to say, the students, of which there are only 17, are troubled and very worried for their friend. Because at a school that small, friends become family.

Turns out it’s meningitis, and once the doctors diagnosed the strain, they treated all the students at the school with antibiotics as a precaution, including those who had previously been vaccinated.

Now, I’m not here to bash anyone who has chosen not to vaccinate their children. I know it’s a personal decision. But my personal choice was to vaccinate regularly because I felt it was my duty. When a preventative inoculation that can hold a disease at bay for an entire population is discovered, it seems a grand idea to make sure our children receive it for the good of us all. That’s just my personal opinion.

When each of my kids turned eighteen and planned to head off to college, I marched them straight to the doctor to get their panel of shots, including the meningitis vaccination. Because meningitis is one of the leading viruses among college students and very contagious, and I knew that. If my daughter had not been vaccinated, she could be the one lying in that hospital bed right now. 

So if you do nothing else, parents, I urge you to make sure your college bound students are vaccinated for meningitis BEFORE you send them off. It’s just smart parenting.

How did we end up here?

Empty Nesters.

That’s what they call us after our babies have flown the coop. And even though the transition is not quite as detrimental as pushing a baby bird over the edge, it can sting just as hard when you hit that metaphorical cement.

This is where my husband and I find ourselves these days. Baby #1 is about to graduate from UNM with a degree in business administration, and Baby #2? Well, at eighteen, she shocked us with the news that she’d met the love of her life up at Bible school in Washington State, and they have plans to marry at the end of this year. And so… we look at each other over the expanse of the small end table that sits between his recliner and mine and think, “How in the world did this happen?”

When my youngest left home last year, I was lost for a couple of weeks. It’s quite a slap in the face to realize your role as a mom has drastically changed. You realize they’ll always need you, but not in the same way. My husband had his own moment of reflection. His baby girl was all grown up, and it was a shock to both of our systems.

I had a vision of how my life would play out. It’s probably similar to a million other girls’ ideas of life and love. I’d grow up, get married to the most handsome man in the world, of course, get our first dog together, then a degree, a good paying job, a mortgage, pop out a couple of kids—a boy, a girl—and we would live in perpetual happiness, frozen in time just like that.

Right.

Don’t get me wrong, growing old together was also a part of the plan. It’s one of the oldest clichés in the Book of Love, after all. But once you actually find the first gray hair, the ugly new wrinkle, the hints of your grown-up selves in your children’s faces? That’s when you have to face the fact that this “growing old together” is for real.

Two things tend you happen once you reach empty nester status: 1) you grow apart because the only thing keeping you together was the kids, or 2) you grow closer.

We all want the latter, I’m sure, and there is a simple way to prepare for it. You see, when a couple marries, they become the family. People get that wrong all of the time. They think family begins once the first baby comes. Not true. Children are merely an extension of what the two of you have already begun. And if you can wrap your mind around this, once the children are gone, the family stands strong. If you’re in the same boat as we are, I hope this has been your experience.

I can only speak to the upcoming generation now. For all of you younger married couples just beginning your lives together, listen up. Even after the children enter the picture, date. Once a week, once a month, as often as you can, don’t ever stop dating. Get a sitter or drop the kids off with Grandma for the night, but whatever it takes, make time to cultivate the family you started with just two people. It’s a conscientious choice to keep your love and commitment to each other alive, and I guarantee, you will never regret it.

Now I look at my husband across the expanse of that end table in a completely different light. I’m reminded that through all of the years of raising our children, of times when money was tight or we were sick or angry or tired, we never forgot to nurture our relationship or revisit the promises we made to each other at the altar. We started something beautiful twenty-eight years ago, and we have the rest of our lives to finish it—together.

Cheers to our fellow empty nesters. Here’s to hoping your nest is still intact.

Sisters’ Weekend! A tribute.

My very first friend was my younger sister. It’s not a stretch to say that this is a truth for those of us with siblings. Think about how much we have in common, firstly, one or both parents. We are exposed to the same relatives, same environment, same culture, same foods. Certainly, the growing up years can nurture or taint these first relationships, and if you’re lucky, they will survive the sibling rivalry and turn into lifelong friendships. That’s what I got.

I’ve been blessed with four younger sisters, and I’m close to each of them in different ways. We all have distinctly different personalities, likes and dislikes, and different life experiences as adults, but our commonalities outweigh it all.  I recently got to spend a wonderful getaway weekend with two of my sisters. We had the time of our lives, and the girls’ trip caused me to contemplate each one of my sisters. They may not agree with my assessment, but this is how I see them:

[image error]Sister number 1: I’m probably closest to her simply because we are the closest in age. We also share both parents, live 30 minutes away from each other, and our own children are close. We have similar stories and experiences because of this. She is blunt, outspoken, and has a very dry sense of humor to the point that she’s not always aware of how funny she is. She’s very routine, loves to sleep, and you’ll find her playing a game on her phone–a lot. She is the most beautiful of all of us. We kid about the “pretty sister” all the time, and she’s very humble about it, but it’s true. She’s overcome some serious mental health issues in her lifetime, and she’s become a stronger wife, mother and person because of it.

[image error]Sister number 2:  She and I are similar in many ways, which has caused us to butt heads over the years and often left Sister No. 1 acting as the mediator. We are both stubborn, opinionated, set in our ways, and passionate, and because of these qualities, we are equally pulled apart and drawn together. She is the funniest of all my sisters; she literally could be a stand up comedian. My stomach hurts from laughing after spending an hour with her. She knows most or all of the lyrics to every piece of music ever written, whether a new song or an oldie, a theme song for a television show, or a commercial. She also has the biggest, most giving heart of anyone I know. She’s had some recent hardships that have caused her to rearrange life as she knew it, namely, losing her husband to cancer, and I admire her strength more than ever.

[image error]Sister number 3: She is my darling sister, the one for which I feel the most protective. We share the same father, so aside from a short, year-long stint in which I decided living with Dad looked greener, we were not raised together. She was the oldest of three–my youngest sister and my baby brother–and her childhood life was not easy. She also experienced an ugly divorce. But those challenges spurred her determination to get an education and make a better life for herself and her son. She has overcome so much adversity, and she is happy and healthy and the kindest soul. I am very proud of her.

[image error]Sister number 4: Baby sister is a doll. She’s a little firecracker, red-headed and all. She too struggled through childhood right behind Sister number 3, but for me, she has always represented peace. She gets a little nervous when she feels uncomfortable, but she seems so steady. Like she was able to slide past her childhood with only a few bruises. I think Sister number 3 had a lot to do with that. She was a shield for the younger two. Sister number 4 is silly and giggly and sweet as pie. She’s proved to be a wonderful wife and mom to her daughter, and knowing her husband’s family took her in as their own and have loved her for all of these years is very comforting.

[image error] [image error]

So there you have it. This is what a sisters’ weekend does to my heart. I can’t express how much I love these girls, and my brother too. I’m grateful to have had the chance to walk this life with them for so many years, and I look forward to thousands upon thousands of more right on into eternity!

Yes, we get snow days in New Mexico.

[image error]Today, I am blessed with a snow day.

It all began yesterday at 11:45 a.m. when I received an email from the “higher ups.” By the time I had a chance to check out the weather, it had dumped a good amount of snow, unbeknownst to me, and it was still falling. . . hard. Sadly, I don’t have a window in my office, which means I miss a lot of the outside world during the day apparently. None the less, they were closing the courthouse, and we were all going home. Woot! And because temperatures are still pretty cold today with no chance of melting off the few inches we received, I got to sleep in late, and. . . I’m still in my pajamas sipping on a nice cup of morning coffee.

For those of you who don’t know this, I live in New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment. I did a little research on how we got that nickname. It was due to the scenic beauty and rich history discovered by the first Spanish explorers to hit our state. I also learned that the name didn’t become official until 1999, the year my son turned two. How did I not know this? I don’t have the best memory, but it seems like we’ve always been known as the Land of Enchantment. Go figure.

At any rate, many people have real misconceptions about New Mexico, one being that the sun always shines and temperatures never drop below 60, even in the winter. While it is true that our state is fairly mild compared to others, it does still get cold enough to snow from time to time. In fact, most years, February is our coldest month. And New Mexico is the home to at least seven well-known ski resorts. I’m sure I’m forgetting one or two, but ski season is in full force around here. Note the picture of my family at Ski Santa Fe two weeks ago.

My point? New Mexico, like every other state, contains a variety of terrains. We have the desert plains of eastern New Mexico where I live, and yes the wind does blow up to 70 miles an hour in the spring. I’ve nearly lost a car door twice! We also have the mountains and forests of Ruidoso, the mesas of northern New Mexico, the caverns of Carlsbad, and White Sands–a huge gypsum formation. In other words, a gigantic, hilly beach with no ocean. But take a couple of sleds and let the fun begin!

This break down of the beauty of our state tempts me to sit back and think. I take it for granted a lot. Compared to other places with their skyscrapers or beaches or fast living, my home seems pretty boring. I mean, you can travel for fifty miles in nearly every direction and see nothing but sandy hills littered with cactus and plateaus. Not a single building; sometimes not another vehicle for up to an hour. Just spacious skies, a horizon that never seems to end, sunsets to die for, and tons of alone time. Oh, wow. I guess those first explorers had it right.

So today, as I enjoy the rare but fresh powder piled up on my front lawn, I will ponder the scenic beauty and terrain that the Land of Enchantment offers. Today, I will not take it for granted.

Boom! Just kidding…

So we had quite an interesting day at work yesterday thanks to an unconfirmed bomb threat. Anyone else ever experienced this? Story of my life.

I’ve worked for the State going on 24 years now, as a school teacher and at my current state job, and I can honestly say I’ve been through at least 16 false threats during that time span. Anonymous phone calls, notes left under doors, suspicious objects found in the bushes–the threat itself comes in various packages. What we do with that information afterwards is what really matters.

Obviously, you have to take every threat seriously, because the first time you don’t, well, you know how that goes. My current place of employment does an excellent job of evacuating quickly. We have a plan, and that’s great–except for a few years ago. That was the one time they forgot about my department completely. I was happily working at my desk when another coworker called to ask where we had been evacuated to because she didn’t see me. Good thing that  was a false alarm too, or we might have been fried. At any rate, it caused us to tighten the plan.

When I worked for the schools, they always evacuated us to the gym. We spent 4 grueling hours in there once while the bomb squad did their sweep of the grounds. Four hours trapped in a stuffy gym with 2000 teenagers who have absolutely nothing to do? You can imagine how awful that was. And the thought that kept niggling at the back of my mind: “I sure hope they did a sweep of this gym before they crammed us in here.” Because someone who is serious about planting a bomb and doing some damage would likely do his homework. The gym. That’s the first place I’d rig.

Yesterday, my coworker and I spent the hour at a business across the street roiling over the fact that neither one of us thought to grab our purses or keys so that we could at least make a breakfast run during all the excitement. Between us, we had only my phone with a quickly depleting battery, and I had not had my morning coffee yet. The dragon was growling. Honestly, we thought nothing of the fact that someone had once again threatened to blow us to smithereens. Not cool, I know. But it’s easy to become complacent when threat after threat over the last twenty-four years have all been unfounded.

We survived the ordeal with no burn marks and got to go back to work an hour later. But guaranteed, there will be another bomb threat–probably sometime this year. We will be evacuated. We will grumble about the inconvenience of another false alarm. But today, after it’s said and done, I’m mindful of the fact that not every threat is fake, and one day, I could be faced with the real deal. Any of us could. “That would never happen to us,” is not a cliche too many can cling to anymore. It does happen, and through our shock, we have to pick up pieces we never saw falling and wrap our minds around scenes from a horror movie.

My point? Always have a plan and practice it often. Then, even if the zombies never come, the earthquake never hits, the bullets never fly, and complacency sets in, the plan will be intact and automatic. Like I said, threats come in all shapes and sizes. Be ready even when the zombie turns out to be a homeless man with a dirt-streaked face and missing teeth.

 

Is the word ‘fetus’ in the Bible?

If you haven’t heard of the recent changes to New York’s abortion laws which now allow the termination of a growing fetus right up to the moment of delivery, then you’ve likely been living on a deserted island with no wi-fi. To be honest, I sometimes wish that’s exactly where I was when I hear news like this. It’s tragically barbaric. It also reminds me very profoundly that this world is not my home.

I avoid watching the news on purpose a lot. But at least once a month, I binge on it, updating myself on everything that’s been going on out there. Inevitably, there’s rarely anything good happening. I watch and learn, and I grow sad or angry or shocked.

I’m broken over this latest news. And sadly, my State will likely be the next one to jump on this bandwagon. We’re very progressive like that.

I say all of that to bring you to the real point of today’s blog: the word “fetus.”

This word is thrown around a lot, but I’m not certain everyone knows its origin. I didn’t. I also didn’t know if God had ever used it in his Word. Newsflash: He didn’t.

I looked up the word in several sources; the conclusion was the same in each. I will share two with you here:

Merriam-Webster’s definition: 

: an unborn or unhatched vertebrate especially after attaining the basic structural plan of its kind

specifically : a developing human from usually two months after conception to birth— compare EMBRYO sense 1b

First Known Use of fetus

14th century, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for fetus

Middle English, from Latin, act of bearing young, offspring; akin to Latin fetus newly delivered, fruitful — more at FEMININE

———————————————————————————————————————————-

The Online Etymology Dictionary

late 14c., “the young while in the womb or egg” (tending to mean vaguely the embryo in the later stage of development), from Latin fetus (often, incorrectly, foetus) “the bearing or hatching of young, a bringing forth, pregnancy, childbearing, offspring,” from suffixed form of PIE root *dhe(i)- “to suck.”

In Latin, fetus sometimes was transferred figuratively to the newborn creature itself, or used in a sense of “offspring, brood” (as in Horace’s “Germania quos horrida parturit Fetus”), but this was not the basic meaning. It also was used of plants, in the sense of “fruit, produce, shoot,” and figuratively as “growth, production.” The spelling foetus is sometimes attempted as a learned Latinism, but it is not historic.

————————————————————————————————————————————-

The first thing you should note is that the word “fetus” did not originate until the late 14th century, which would be the end of the 1300s.  It was a Latin man-made word. Thus, those inspired by God to write the Bible would not have used this word. It didn’t exist. Still, by this definition, the originators of the word intended it to describe a life in the womb.

So what word was used in the Bible to describe an unborn child?

You may or may not be surprised to learn that the same word is used for both an unborn child, a newborn, an infant, and a toddler. You see, God makes no distinction.

Spiros Zodhiates is likely the most famous Greek etymologist of his day. He has compiled a full study of EVERY single word in the Bible as it was first written in its original language: Hebrew for the Old Testament and Greek for the New Testament. If you have yourself a Bible with commentary from this man in the margins, you’ve got a true gem. I have used his study tools for years. This definition of the word “babe” or “baby” comes from his book, The Complete Word Study Dictionary. See screenshot.

[image error]

The Lord uses the Greek word, bréphos, to define both a baby in the womb before birth and an infant afterwards. It is the word used to describe John the Baptist while he’s still in the womb (Luke 1:41, 44). It is the same word used to describe baby Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes after birth (Luke 2:12, 16).

Aside from this, the most interesting piece of information I discovered came from the book of Genesis: 25:22. Rebekah is pregnant with twins, Jacob and Esau, and as siblings do, already they are jostling with each other… in her womb. The word used for babies in this verse is the Hebrew word ben (ref. 1121), which occurs over 5000 times in the Old Testament. It’s definition is: Although the most basic meaning and general translation is son, the direct male offspring of human parents (Gen. 4-25; 27:32, Isa. 49:15), it is more generally a relational term because of its variety of applications. This word can express an adopted child (Ex. 2:10), children in general, male and female (Gen 3:16; 21:7; Ex. 21:5); descendants, such as grandsons (Josh. 22:24, 25, 27; 2 Kgs. 10:30), etc…

So the “fetuses” in Rebekah’s womb are called ben, human children. Interesting.

In conclusion, it’s very simple. God acknowledges human life in the womb. Before conception, there is merely a sperm and an egg. After conception, there is life. As far as I can comprehend, this is God’s ONLY plan for creating life. I’m going to accept his definition of it.

Thanks for reading,

Casey

“As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.” Eccl. 11:5

 

 

 

Pre-order SCORCH SONG, Book 2 in the Firebloods series!

If you loved Firebloods, get ready for the next adventure in the series! Scorch Song, Book 2 releases May 27, 2018, but you can pre-order today! Don’t wait!

 

 

 

FirebloodsbyCasey HaysGenre:YA Paranormal Rom...

Firebloods

by

Casey Hays

Genre:

YA Paranormal Romance



326

pages








Jude

Gallagher thought she was crazy.

It all started when the boy next door made her hear music—inside her

head. All the time.

It

was torture.

She

didn’t think things could get worse. But then one hot summer, her

best friend Kane O’Reilly decides to tell her how he really feels

about her. Music inside her head? That’s nothing compared what

happens next.

Things

only turn stranger when she and her lab partner Frankie Melmack begin

a project to prove the existence of the Vatra u Krvi—a race of

people tied to the mythical Phoenix. Add in a neglectful mother and a

magic ring, and the insanity that defines Jude’s life is pretty

well complete.

Heat

surges across the Nevada desert, and the best and worst parts of Jude

Gallagher’s life collide as myth meets reality. In the middle of

the chaos, she begins to hear more than just music. And she has to

wonder…

Maybe…

just maybe… she really is crazy after all.

Goodreads

* Amazon













Casey

Hays developed a love for young adult fiction while teaching high

school English literature. She writes fantasy sci-fi and

dystopian–all with a twist of romance. She is best known for The

Arrow’s Flight Series (Breeder,

The Archer, Master),

a YA Christian dystopian, which includes The

Scent of Lilac,

an Arrow’s Flight Novella nominated for a RONE award for Best

Novella of 2016, and A

Heart of Flesh (the

first NA in the series). Her short story “Edge of a Promise”

is featured in the collaborative anthology PREP

FOR DOOM.

Currently, she is working on two more novellas for Arrow’s Flight as

well as the Firebloods

series based on the legend of the Phoenix. Look for book 2, Scorch

Song,

this spring.

Website

* Newsletter *

Blog * Facebook

* Fan Club

* Twitter



Pinterest

* Instagram

* Bookbub *

Amazon

* Goodreads









Follow

the tour HERE

for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!




a Rafflecopter giveaway



https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js