September 2010

Thank you readers!
September 22, 2010 | 0 comments

This is Francine's daughter, Shannon.  As you may know, my mom is on a book tour right now.  She asked me to give a great big "Thank You!!!" to all of her readers, because Her Daughter's Dream is a New York Times Best Seller!!! She couldn't have done this without you.

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Her Daughter's Dream
September 13, 2010 | 0 comments

Tomorrow is a big day for me.  The second half of Marta’s Legacy – Her Daughter’s Dream -- will be released and the rest of the family saga will be told through the eyes of Hildemara’s daughter, Carolyn, and Carolyn's daughter, May Flower Dawn.  Marta, of course, is still a central influence in the continuing story.  Rick and I will be heading east for a book tour that will begin in Birmingham, Alabama and end with a family visit in North Carolina.  (I’ve never met these relatives, and can hardly wait!)

It took three years of hard work to write this family saga, and I enjoyed the journey.  Though fictional characters, Marta and Hildemara bear a strong resemblance to my grandma and mom.  Carolyn and May Flower Dawn are fully themselves, though I’ve woven snippets of my life and what I observed in my daughter’s generation. 

I hope you will love all four women and find valuable lessons from their lives.

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Living by Lists
September 6, 2010 | 0 comments

It occurred to me last night that I am living by lists; grocery lists, errand lists, a bucket list.  Good grief, I start on New Year’s Eve and lay out a plan for the upcoming year, God willing I live through it.  I even have categories.  I even keep a list of the books I read and from what category – fiction, non-fiction. 

This all started when someone talked about having “a program”.  It wasn’t necessary to adhere to it exactly, but to have it in order to save myself from hurry and indecision.  You see, there was a time in my life when I didn’t have lists.  I just jumped from one thing to another like a grasshopper.  “Let’s try this!  Oh, let’s try that!  Oh, what’s that over there?  Looks interesting!” 

It was fun, but made everyone around me dizzy. 

Then I started wondering if this modus operandi had put me in handcuffs. 

Do you ever feel guilty when you don’t complete your “to do”...

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Moving On
September 1, 2010 | 0 comments

I’ve been reorganizing our storage room filled with shelves of books and family records.  I found a small notebook and recognized my mother’s distinctive handwriting.  It’s a record of trips she and Dad took from 1976 to 1978; motels, restaurants (rated), how many miles they drove.

Two of our children and both of my brother’s children were born during those years.  During that same time, Grandma settled in Merced with my aunt.  Mom and Dad made numerous trips from Brookings, Oregon to the East Bay Area, Central Valley and Southern California.  They drove thousands of miles to keep in touch with those they loved.  They drove and drove. Between trips, Mom also wrote volumes of letters.

They weren’t the first to move away and miss the family they left behind.

Grandma set out from Switzerland.  Grandpa set out from Germany.  Rick’s grandmother came from Sweden through Ellis Island and across country by train to work in San Diego...

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