Lydia Howe's Blog, page 13

A Beautiful Light

The sunrise yesterday morning was gorgeous as the plane took off. Mist weaved across the earth and sunbeams broke through clouds, illuminating the world world all around us. It was delightful and satisfying to watch it as we flew higher and higher and eventually the beautiful rays unfurled and the everything was aglow. 
One of my favorite verses is Proverbs 4:18: But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, That shines brighter and brighter until the full day. It's a reminder each day as I see the sun rising that  I serve a God who not only creates beautiful sunrises, but He also has the power to turn my life into a luminous masterpiece that brings Him glory. 
On my own, my life is nothing. Even if I reached the absolute heights of the human equivalent of success, my achievements all burn up in the end. It's so easy to get sidetracked, to focus on the daily and earthly instead of the eternal and spiritual. Then reminders come and I reset my priorities and mindset. See, my life isn't my own, I've been bought with a price. That means my life has infinitely more potential and I have the ability to impact far more people than even I can dream of. 

 Isaiah 30:21 says,Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." I want every step of my life to be guided by God; I want to walk in His light and mirror that light in my own life. When people see me, I want my life to be a reflector that directs them to a a Light that is so bright that we can't even handle His glow.

Life is exceedingly short and fleeting when compared to eternity, yet at times it seems so tiresomely long and impossibly hard. No matter what happens though, life isn't a complete mystery, it isn't hopeless, it isn't impossible. Because do you know what? We can know what the outcome is at the end.

You see, God, the creator of sunrises, of galaxies, of you and me... He's the victor. No one can stand against Him and win. The Bible tells us that weeping may endure for the night, but joy comes in the morning. I serve an all-powerful, omniscient God who isn't bound by time, by gravity, by human limitations. And in that, I rejoice.

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The destination for this week's Around the World post is: Montserrat.

In the Field of Grace By Tessa Afshar: Book Review

In the Field of GraceBy Tessa Afshar 
Find it on:  Amazon Goodreads  
Third-Person Two (?) Points of ViewFiction290 Pages
About the Book (Backcover Blurb):
Destitute, grief-stricken, and unwanted by the people of God, Ruth arrives in Israel with nothing to recommend her but Naomi's, love. Her loftiest hope is to provide enough food to save Naomi and herself from starvation.

But God has other plans for her life. While everyone considers Ruth an outcast, she is astounded to find one of the most honored men of Judah showing her favor.  Long since a widower and determined to stay that way, Boaz is irresistibly drawn to the foreign woman with the haunted eyes. He tells himself he is only being kind to his Cousin Naomi's chosen daughter when he goes out of his way to protect her from harm, but his heart knows better.

Based on the biblical account of Ruth, In the Field of Grace is the story of a love that ultimately changes the course of Israel's destiny and the future of the whole world.

Why I Choose this Book: 
The first Bible Study I attend as a little girl was hosted by my older sister and we studied Ruth. Ever since then I've found her story to be fascinating and somewhat mind-bloggling. When I saw the chance to review a biblical fiction book about Ruth, I was pretty excited.
What I Thought About this Book:
Ah, Ruth! This book portrayed familiar characters in unfamiliar ways, and really helped them to come alive. Although the author obviously took liberties and added huge sections to the short account in the Bible, I found the book to be happily (as far as I remember) above reproach when it came to the actual scriptural part of the story.  
Although the writing wasn't as tight as I thought it could have been, I found the descriptions to be lovely and really could imagine the time period and what all was happening. I could see the fields and almost feel the dust and heat. I could imagine the hurt and longing. The book did a good job at coming to life for me and helped me think thoughts about the account in the Bible that I hadn't really had before. 
The account of Ruth has always been somewhat confusing to me, probably since I don't fully understand what the culture was like back then. It's amazing to me how people lived their lives and conducted business and just went about day after day. This book spurred on a bunch of random thoughts regarding life back then and life now and how different, and similar, life is the world 'round, even centuries apart. 
I enjoyed the story a fair amount, and the first half of the book a lot. Toward the end I felt my interest waning a good bit and wished that the book would have ended sooner than it actually did, that alone was enough to take the book down a notch or so in my estimate. 
Conclusion:
There was obviously romance since this is about Ruth. Overall though, I really felt like the romance was handled carefully and didn't come across wrong. There were a few scenes that I didn't appreciate, but other than that I thought the book was good. 
And, as I mentioned earlier: I enjoyed the first half of the book more than the second and think it dragged two much at the end. 
Rating: 
I'm giving In Fields of Grace four out of five stars, seven out of ten. *I received this book for free from Moody Press in exchange for an honest review*

Around the World in Fifty-Two Weeks Week Nineteen: Bosnia and Herzegovina

And... Yay! Here we are with this week's installment of our fictitious story, Around the World in Fifty-Two Weeks . I hope y'all enjoy. 

Around the World in Fifty-Two WeeksWeek Nineteen: Bosnia and Herzegovina
I could barely contain my excitement. Although many people think of war and destruction when they hear the name “Bosnia” I’m overwhelmed with memories of stories I heard as a child. Some of my earliest memories of that have to do with my grandparents are of picking them up at the airport when I was five or six and then sitting spellbound as they told me tale after tale about a beautiful country far across the ocean.  My grandparents had lived in Bosnia for two years to help provide care and a home for mothers and young children who had been misplaced by the war that plagued their country for so long. My grandparents not only grew to love the people, but also their culture and food. There were many days when I would go to my grandparent’s after school and spend the evening in the kitchen cooking with my grandma or sitting on my grandpa’s lap as he told me wonderful stories and together we’d eat chocolate melted on long loaves of French bread.  To have the chance to actually travel to Bosnia and Herzegovina and see it for real was amazing. The first thing I did when I found out about going was call my grandparents and tell them the news. They were beyond thrilled and right away began telling me about places I should visit and different foods I should try. I took a lot of notes during our phone call and then downloaded a guide book onto my phone before boarding the plane for an all-night flight. When I wasn’t sleeping I researched the sights that I’d dreamed of for so long and made up a game plan, not wanting to waste any of the precious week I had to spend in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 
I flew into Sarajevo which is one of Europe’s cheapest (and in my mind, most beautiful) capitals. The first thing I did was find a place to eat… Not only was I extremely hungry, but I also couldn’t wait to try their food. As can be expected the fare was somewhat different from what I’d grown up eating at my grandparent’s, but also startling familiar in some aspects. They have a large selection of organic food and serve a range of dishes that are contrived from several different cultures, including Ottoman, Balkan, and Austro-Hungarian.  It was a slow time at the restaurant where I chose to eat and after the chef heard who I was and that I was interested in finding out as much as possible about the country, he came out and joined me after my meal. We sat together and talked for nearly an hour, him in surprisingly fluent English, and me, taking page after page of notes and barely needing to ask questions because he was so through.  “The residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina greatly enjoy healthy and tasty foods.” Chef Sead kissed his fingers in French fashion when he said the word “tasty.” “We often serve meat, indeed it is the main ingredient of some of our most popular dishes such as burek and grah.”  When I questioned what burek was, I was met with a horrified expression and Chef Sead created a stir by calling loudly to one of the kitchen workers who emerged several minutes later carrying a plate of food.  On the plate was a pastry and as soon as Chef Sead started to describe it to me, I gasped. “You remember it then?” the chef asked.  “Yes.” I felt a smile spilling over my face. “I used to make this with my grandma.” A borek is a baked filled pastry made with phyllo, which is a very thin, flaky dough. It’s very common in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is eaten for any meal in the day. It’s generally meat-filled and then rolled into a spiral and cut into sections when served. It’s often sprinkled with sesame seeds and is delicious - bursting with flavor. It’s a savory dish and when baked correctly comes out nearly ready to melt in your mouth.  “What are some of your commonly used ingredients?” I asked after eating some of the scrumptious borek and thanking him quite profusely for it.   “Ah, we use a large variety of fresh foods such as tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, cabbage, mushrooms, spinach…” His voice trailed off. “We’re also known for our bakeries which offer a mouth-watering selection of salty and sweet rolls. They’re all quite fresh and taste almost too good to be true.”  I laughed at his descriptions, “Do you mind if I quote you outright in my blog, Chef Sead?”  “Of course not, you’ll mention my restaurant, too, no?”  I laughed again, “Right, right.” I was so thankful for his time and his restaurant was delightful. I would be happy if I could drive some customers to his little place. So far I was feeling very welcomed into the country, a fact that was due in a large part to Chef Sead. “Would you tell me a bit about what food I can expect when I leave this city?”  “Ah, along the roads you will quite often see restaurants offering lamp on a spit. It’s wonderful, just wonderful… But of course nothing like what you will find here in my humble restaurant.” He grinned at me then continued, “Soup and salad are common dishes in our country. One of our most common soups has a Turkish origin and is made of dehydrated dough that is then cooked in tomato soup.” He waved a hand in front of his face at my confused look, “Yes, yes, it sounds interesting but you’ll like it. You need to eat it for at least one meal before you leave, alright?” When I nodded he went on, “You’ll be served bread no matter what else you order. We Bosnians greatly enjoy our bread.”  We continued talking until it was time for him to begin preparations for dinner and then he let me snap a few pictures and get the logistical information that I’d need to talk about his restaurant than I was on my way, along with a paper bag full of fresh pastries, compliments from his staff. 

The week I spent in Bosnia and Herzegovina was nearly magical. I hiked, went rafting and swimming by gorgeous waterfalls, and walked and drove through breath-taking old forests. I walked through castles, stood under old clock towers, ran my hands along ancient arches, and listened to the patter of feet on idyllic cobblestone streets. 
There was so much to do in the country that it made me wish, not for the first time, that I could come back and do the country a second week during the year. Perhaps I would one day come back and bring my grandparents with me.  

Author Disillusionment & Delight

It was nearly midnight several days ago and the world was dark around me. My thoughts had started out excited: How long would it be until I could reasonably hope to have a completed version of When Life Hands You Lymes in my hands? What could I do to promote the book? Would the book give the hope I had always dreamed of? 
Before long though, my happy expectations faded as I waded deep in the overwhelming swamp of It's not good enough. Suddenly a deluge of issues flooded into my brain and next thing I knew I was wondering how in the world WLHYL was ever going to work out. The ending scene was good, but what about those last few chapters? Did they wrap everything up? Or, oh my goodness, wait a second: I never fully closed that issue. Or fleshed out that sub-plot fully enough. Or explained in a reasonable way why she had overcome that problem. 
I prayed. I worried. I tossed and turned in bed. Finally I pulled my phone over and opened a copy of my book. I skipped toward the end and settled down to read. As the words came into focus and I inundated myself in the story again, I felt hope rising up in me. Some of the sentences that I'd written recently and hadn't even remembered described the feeling I was going for so perfectly that I felt like gasping. In a way, this book had become part of me, and the emotions trickled onto the page without me being fully conscious of what I wrote. 

The hope that I'd fall asleep and escape my nightmare didn't happen, so at last I propelled my weary body off the mattress and half tripped over to the windows where I opened the curtains. {From WLHYL}

"My dreams have crashed down around me and my world stopped spinning for a time." I leaned forward "Yet I've found that the world is full of music, whether I can play it or not." At that moment though my words felt fake. I couldn't hear life's music, only an awful, crushing silence. {From WLHYL}

Tiny waves of peace lapped at my toes. Yes, the book still had issues. Yes, it was scary thinking of other people going through it and finding mistakes. Yes, I had a lot of work to look forward to with it... Yet in a way this is just the beginning. Although I'd been crafting WLHYL for almost 30 months, it's still just a baby. And babies need to grow.
I keep having to remind myself that life is full of corrections, and that's a good thing. Just because WLHYL has a river of issues that need cleared up, that doesn't mean it doesn't also have an ocean of possibilities waiting to be discovered. 
Instead of being cut adrift by the tide of uncertainty and possible disillusionment, I'm choosing to delight in the possibilities and learn and grow and take each step at a time and dance to the tune of some unknown melody. In reality, God has it all under control, and even though I still have quite the road ahead of me, with Him all things are possible. So I'm gonna throughly enjoy this journey and I'm grateful for y'all who are along for the ride with me. 

Soon their music filled the room with a thousand different memories that swirled around me in a kaleidoscope of colors and hues that danced in perfect harmony with each other. {From WLHYL}

Senses

It's a brilliant green world I get to look out at as I sit at my desk this morning. There are at least a dozen different shades, starting out at a pale, watery-green that almost looks yellow and ending with the deep darkness of shaded green nestled in the woods. The rolling variations remind me of the blue-green waves of the ocean that rippled back and forth, constantly in motion, ever changing. 
The wind gently stirs the branches back and forth in front of me, distracting me and taking this post far longer to write than normal. The only sound other than the clacking of my keyboard is that of birds trilling and chirping and when I listen closely I can hear the murmuring of the creek across the hay field. 
It's days like this that remind me of how wonderful my life is and how many blessings I have had poured on me. This morning I spent resting because I hadn't been feeling the best - possibly some little bug I picked up while traveling. Yet despite that, I have a feeling of complete contentment as I breath in the world around me. 
I have so much to be thankful for. 

I can see. The world around me is vibrant, filled with colors, shades, and shapes I can only begin to describe. The flickering of a flame, the letters in the title of a favorite book, birds swooping their way across nearly-ready-to-be-mown hay fields. I see the unique patterns on each piece of the hardwood floor beneath me. The longitude and latitude lines on the globe. The little nicks in the wall, the droplets of water in my cup, the curtains rustling in the wind. Shadows dance, animals frolic, steam rises, clouds sail across the sky, and flowers bloom. 
I can hear. Each day I awaken to the sound of the world waking up along with me: birds singing, people stirring, incests humming, the creek bubbling. I hear the slapping sound of my feet on the muddy road. The thwack, thwack, thwack, of the screen door as it hits the frame and bounces back. The low rumble of vehicles as they pass by. The excited chatter of children as they rush to tell me about their day, the sizzle of supper cooking, the chime of technology. I hear the clatter of dishes being done, the chewing sound of my little critters eating, the woosh of a page being turned. 
I can feel. The smooth keyboard as I type, the heat coming off the candle next to me, the gentle breeze of a mid-May day. I rub my fingers along cool metal, dried drops of wax, textured toys, nearly-worn-out clothing. I dig my hands into the coarse fur of my golden retriever, feel her wet nose burying into me, vibrate as she shakes with joy at me being home. I fingers run along beads, feeling their smoothness, rocks, feeling their sharp points, books, their thin pages frail and yet strong. 
I can taste. Each drop of spring-water I drink is delicious, a gift from deep in the earth. The lip balm I uses has a berry-flavor, the real berries I eat are bursting with taste and memories of years gone by. The greens I savor are tangy. The quinoa and butter melt together in a mild flavor, the salt I shake on everything is strong and vibrant, like welcoming my tastebuds to a dance. The air even has it's on particular flavor, a flavor filled with life and the great-out-doors, and adventures just waiting to happen. 
This is my life, and I am so very thankful for it. 

Good-Bye and Hello

Hey, hey, hey! I know it's been quiet on here folks, and I totally skipped doing the "Around the World" post on Friday, but there were even better things going on last week and I didn't want to break my concentration by changing tracks. 
See, one of my unofficial goals during my time in Mexico was to get When Life Hands You Lymes sent out to beta readers. That's a lot more involved than it sounds, because I was revamping the plot in some major ways and adding in a new and rather prominent character. So, I pretty much needed some extra eyes even before sending it out to beta readers. During the first part of the trip I made the major changes, then sent it two friends who have been helping a lot with the project. They quickly read through it and told me what worked and what didn't... Then I settled down and dug in. 

After a couple of weeks with a lot of work and then a loonnnggg Friday (including waking up and working for a couple of hours in the middle of the night), I finally got the book sent out, just barely before midnight. I was quite happy to say the least. 
Saturday I was basically too tired to do anything besides packing since the last few days had been filled up with editing and doing an unofficial marathon. It was a restful day, and although I thought about trying to write the "Around the World" post, my brain was far too tired to give it due consideration. Oh, and the swing finally gave way and broke while I was blissfully swinging. I'm just thankful it lasted as long as it did - it was pretty old. 

Sunday night I enjoyed one last glorious sunset as I jogged along the beach, listening to Chariots of Fire and feeling the water lap at my feet. After finishing up with packing I tried to go to sleep since our 2:30 a.m. departure time would be arriving quickly. Sadly though, all my mind could do was zoom over all the problems I as just now beginning to see with When Life Hands You Lymes and wonder how in the world I had sent it out already. 
At last I gave up on sleeping and got the computer out so I could finish a few things before leaving. I'd also decided to have Monday be an "eat anything I want" day, so I very excitedly ate a piece of custard (or something?) pie that was delicious. I'd pretty much been wanting one for the last couple of weeks, so it was a really fun treat to start the day on. 

I watched the sunrise from the plane window, and the man I was sitting next to graciously let me reach across to snap this picture. It was absolutely gorgeous and made me happy since I'd watched most of the sunrises from the beach during the last few weeks.

Several of our layovers I spent rushing through the airport dragging my luggage along and typing out confusing texts to my cousin who was giving me great advice about why I really didn't need to freak out about WLHYL. ("This is normal." "It's not the cure to cancer." "No lives are at stake.")


The drive home from the airport was spent bemoaning the fact that I was still awake (the only sleep I got in a 36 hour time period was about an hour and twenty minutes of fitful dozing divided between two planes), and gasping at the beauty of where I live. 
The ocean is fantastically amazing, no doubt about it. The changing blues and rolling waves and rippling sand is a feast for the eyes and I enjoyed it so very throughly when I was gone. But there's something so wonderfully fantastic about being home and seeing my beauty, what I've grown up with, what plays around my childhood memories, what is engrained into me, that is more satisfying than any traveling experience has ever been. 

And now I'm home (for a few days at least), and there's a world full of grass just awaiting to be cut by this happy little girl, so I'll say good bye for now. I hope y'all are having a marvelous Tuesday. 

Beta Reading for "When Life Hands You Lymes"

I used to wonder just how in the world writers pulled it off when they talked about changing a significant plot point or setting or even adding in a character when they were already several drafts into the book.

Then it happened to me. When Life Hands You Lymes was somewhere around the 10th draft when the combination of the agreeing voices of WLHYL's beta readers and a bunch of brainstorming on my part somehow produced a quite important secondary character. What happened next was a mad scrabble to integrate said-chracter into the story. That meant adding scenes in some places and changing scenes in others. There were a lot of sentences previously assigned to others that I tweaked and gave to the new character. I created a backstory. A personality. A future. (And, I just realized I totally failed to give her any physical descriptions... So that will be my next task.)


During this last month when I've been in Mexico I've done a lot of work on When Life Hands You Lymes and am excitedly nearing the the end of the current draft I'm working on. That means it's nearly time to send WLHYL out to beta readers again. 
Beta readers have helped me an incredible amount with the book. It's amazing and quite needed to have extra eyes and brains to see problems and and give important feedback. I've found it's best when I have a variety of beta readers because sometimes I don't agree with what one reader says, but if several say the same thing, then it's easy to acknowledge that the problem is most likely with my view point, not theirs.  


And, speaking of beta readers... I thought I'd offer the chance to y'all to jump on the beta reading bandwagon if it sounds like an interesting adventure to you. (Cause beta reading totally qualifies as an adventure.) Here's a quick look at what beta reading is comprised of:

*I send you an email with an attachment of WLHYL (which is right under 90,000 words).
*You read the story and provide feedback via email, or by leaving notes on the actual WLHYL document.

It's that simple. The kind of feedback I'll be looking for is:

*Is the story interesting and does it flow?
*Are there any problems with the plot?
*Are the characters consistent and relatable?
*What could I do to make the book better?
*Anything else you feel inclined to say about the book.

That's it for today, folks! If you are interested in beta reading, you can email me at: aidylewoh@gmail.com and I'll do my best to answer any questions you might have. I'm really hoping to send the book out to beta readers on Saturday, although I can obviously send it afterward as well. 

A Childhood Dream

I've been fascinated with marathons since I first found out what they were, and I've known for a long time thanks to Patch the Pirate's Mount Zion Marathon audio adventure. My sister and I listened to that story so many times that I can still quote about half of it. (Once when I was seven I got in trouble for quoting a sentence to the wrong person at the wrong time. Ooops.)

The main character in the story is Christian, the adopted son of the King of Mount Zion. Christian has been training to run in the olympic marathon and his goal is to win it to bring his Father glory. Obviously the story is a parallel of the christian life, a concept I don't think I quite grasped as a child.
Throughout the adventure, a marathon is pretty much portrayed as the most physically exerting activity in the world. I was in awe when I first realized that normal people were actually able to run marathons. And my dream of running one was born.


As I've mentioned on here, this last February I started training for a marathon that's taking place in October. Last week I broke all previous records I had with walking and managed to get 26.2 miles in over the span of two days. I was thrilled. Of course that just made me itch to do a marathon length in one day. I mean, if I could do it in two days, how hard could it be to do it in only one? 
Well, today I found out. 
Our time in Mexico is fast drawing to a close, so I decided today might be my last day to get a really long walk/jog in. Last night I planned to go to bed early (although it was probably around 11 when I got to sleep), and set my alarm for 4:39. After confusedly awakening this morning I remembered what was going on and hastened to get ready for the day, including some stretches since I hadn't stretched well after my last long walk/run and had felt it for several days. 
It was 5:10 when I started walking. Since it was still dark out I ran on the little curving and breaking sidewalk behind the house where there are outside lights. It's only 93 steps from one side to the other, so I went back and forth a lot. After a little over four miles it was pretty light, so I took my shoes off and headed down to beach. 
The first 9 miles included a lot of jogging. Then my legs began aching and the next four miles were a little slower, although I was still fairly pleased with my progress. My original goal was to do 26.2 miles in one day, not all at once. After thinking about it though, I figured Why break it up? and so I didn't.
Several of my siblings kindly left water bottles for me to pick up (since I was going back and forth on the beach, this was rather easy). And, my little bro even brought me a banana and peanut butter per request, since I hadn't eaten anything before starting. By that time I was at around mile 16 and my legs were really tired. I couldn't help but be amused as I walked down the beach with a container of peanut butter and knife in one hand and a banana in the other. The people here are probably wondering about the strange habits I exhibit. 
About this time it was beginning to get fairly hot and my feet were aching, so I wanted to put shoes on, so I headed toward the house. Last week my sister had dared me to walk a mile in the house, just going around and around. Now I'm the kind of person who totally ignores dangerous dares, but a harmless one? Well, lets just say that altogether I ended up walking around the table and living room furniture hundreds, if not thousands, of times as I wracked up 6 or 7 miles inside. It was also nice because I was needing some distraction so I downloaded an audio book and listened to that for a while. 
I had fun shaking my head at my reflection in the windows as I walked outside for the final bit. And when I say "walk," I really mean "limped pitifully." It was quite laughable. Before today I've never done more than 10 or possibly 11 miles at once, and 16 in one day. I'll leave it up to y'alls imagination  to picture just how slow, limpy, and dragging those final miles ended up being.  
Then, victory! 7 hours, 58 minutes, and 47 seconds after I started, I finished the 26.2 miles. Yay! Except for a few stretches during the last couple of hours I basically didn't stop at all the whole time. It was an amazing experience. I'm very much looking forward to cutting down my time between now and next time I do a 26.2 mile day. But, of course before that happens I have to regain use of my aching limbs... 

The Brain Jumper

It's easy for me to get inspired and find new ideas, if I'm feeling a bit dry though, there are three things that I've discovered that will almost always help my mind jump into action and push me into brainstorming or problem-solving mode. And those three things are:
1) Walking 2) Cutting grass and3) Swinging
Obviously y'all know all about my walking habits if you've been reading Noveltea for very long. I really enjoy walking and it's so helpful. There's a quote that goes something like "If I had four hours to cut down a tree I'd spend the first two hours sharpening the axe." (A saying attributed to Abraham Lincoln.) I'm pretty sure that if I had four hours to write a story I'd spend the first hour walking. 
This is the 8th year that I've been cutting grass and it's literally one of my favorite things about summer. I normally start as soon in the spring as I can and continue as late in the autumn as is reasonable. (For instance, I cut the grass for the last time in November of last year and in March for the first time this year.) Cutting grass is amazing because I'm not only getting work done, but my brain is also on super-fast speed, helping me figure out all sorts of things. I take tons of notes while cutting grass. 
Photo credits: Logan HoweAnd then there's swinging. If you haven't swung recently you should really give it a try. I've swung a lot in my lifetime. I've worn through at least two swing chains, one plastic/metal swing seat, and one rope/board swing. (It's actually pretty cool when a swing breaks, because swinging feels like flying and then all of a sudden I really am flying. Until I land with a thud, of course.) Oh, and that's not counting the porch swing... But we won't go there today. 
One of the first things I saw when we arrived at this house was that they had a swing in the yard. "Look, Lydia! It's a swing!" Almost immediately I had about half of the family point it out to me. It's beautiful. And it has an even more beautiful view. And I've swung on it so much during the last three weeks that I'm actually rather shocked that the rope hasn't worn through. I'm used to a chain swing instead of a rope swing, so I've gotten a blister or two and I'm working up some callouses, but it's so worth it. 
Next time you happen to see a swing set, you should really try it out and see how inspiring and motivating it is. 
* * *In addition to the tip about swinging, I also have a really cool website to tell you all about. It's called "Don Howe Success" and it's something my dad has put together. Each weekday Dada posts a 2 or 3 minute video where he talks about success and how to live life well. You can sign up so that the videos are delivered to you each day via email. It's completely free and there's no catch... He does it because "To whom much has been given, much will be required." He's got a wealth of information and I highly encourage y'all to watch at least some of the Golden Nuggets, as his videos are called. 

20 Things We'd Tell Our Twenty-Something Selves By Kelli & Peter Worrall: Book Review

20 Things We'd Tell Our Twenty-Something SelvesBy Kelli & Peter Worrall 
Find it on:  Amazon Goodreads  
First-Person Two Points of ViewNon-Fiction256 Pages

About the Book (Backcover Blurb):
Are you making your twenties count?Despite what many think, our twenties aren’t that dead space between youth and real life. Done right, they can be among our most important years.In 20 Things We’d Tell Our Twentysomething Selves, professors Peter and Kelli Worrall look back on the good, bad, and miserable to give you the best of what they’ve learned, like: • Dig deeper than your doubt • Foster good habits • Take risks • Adjust your expectations • Press into painWith humility, warmth, and brilliant storytelling, Peter and Kelli invite you not only into their wisdom, but into their very lives, sharing about marriage, faith, drawn-out adoptions, dark nights of the soul, and the God who’s in it all.But 20 Things is more than a list of advice; it’s a book that can change your life. Let the trend of your twenties be sowing wisdom, and who knows what the rest of life will bring? Includes action steps, discussion questions, and ideas for further reading at the end of each chapter.
Why I Choose this Book: 
I'm in my twenties and I want to live each day of my life to the best of my ability. Enough said. 
What I Thought About this Book:
Wow. I really liked this book. It was so chocked full of amazing advice given in a really loving, friendly, and easy to understand way. The book is written by a husband and wife team and I greatly enjoyed the way they pulled it off - I = have no clue how people can co-author a book like they did.
Each one of the points was so spot-on and helpful and Biblically based which was really refreshing. They told stories from their on lives, opening up to the hurt and problems they'd gone through and how they'd learned from their own issues and received healing, and how other people can, too. 
I was reading several different books at once, but I can't remember anything inappropriate in this book, nor does anything come to mind that I disagreed with. (Surprise, surprise! I may have missed something though.) 
Overall I'm very thankful I read this book and I really want to re-read it already. It's challenging and insightful and encouraging all at once. I'm also eager to look into the recommended reading that they had at the end of each chapter. Normally I don't like sections like that, but in this book I found them unique and interesting. 
Conclusion:
 In reality I think this book is one that very much transcends age. I would have found it extremely helpful in my teens and thing it would be quite beneficial to people older than their twenties, too.  

Rating: 
I'm giving 20 Things We'd Tell Our Twenty-Something Selves Five stars   out of five, and ten out of ten. I highly recommend it to anyone thirteen and older. 
*I received this book for free from Moody Press in exchange for an honest review*