Friday, November 25, 2011

New Chapters

Chapters in many of my favorite books end with cliffhangers.

The police kick down the door and rush in.
She opens the mailbox to find, not the bills she expected, but a note from him!
The pirates tie the blindfold over his eyes and push him onto the plank, as the cabin boy throws off his mask and shouts, "Not so fast!"

End of chapter.
I'm supposed to put down the book and go clean my room.

But in my life, chapters don't end with cliffhangers, they begin with them.

My parents decide we will be moving to Morocco right after my 16th birthday.
The doctors grab my newborn baby and rush out of the room.
My husband calls from jail in tears to ask me to bail him out.

And a new chapter begins.

New chapters often look dire at the beginning. As Louis L'Amour once said, "An adventure is just something you wish wasn't happening to you." And as my mom used to say about the U-Haul motto, An Adventure in Moving, "Who wants their move to be an adventure? I want our moves to be as unadventurous and straight forward as possible!"

This from someone who once bought a mini-van from a mail-order catalog, had it delivered to a dock in Amsterdam, and drove with her husband and 6 kids through Europe to Morocco to set up house.

Very unadventurous. ;)

Today I find myself, once again, at a chapter opening.

I open an innocent-looking email to find a copy of the employment termination notice for my ex-husband.

I have no idea what this new chapter will bring. Pirates and damsels in distress? Or resourceful maids and happy endings?

Let the chapter begin.

6 comments:

Cindy Watson said...

Happy endings! I know happy endings are waiting for you...I just don't know how many chapters you have to get to before the happy part starts!! Praying!!

JaNae said...

I think of your family often. I love that I can still peek into high-lights (and low-lights!) of your life! You are a magnificent writer...I only wish it wasn't always true for you! Can't wait to read your fiction (and thereby know your dreams are coming true!) I will pray for you tonight.

Barbara said...

You are one of the most resourceful maids I know. Damsel in distress? Only for a minute or two, then on with the business at hand. Guess I'm thinking 'what took them (work) so long?'. You guys will weather this cliffhanger too. Looking back it will be just a small bump. :)

Rebecca =) said...

Thank you, Cindy, JaNae and Barbara. My friends make my life. =)

Timothy Hallinan said...

Hi, Rebecca --

I discovered your site by accident, following Google links on Paul Valery's line about poems being abandoned. What a wonderful discovery.

I'm a novelist, too, although I write mysteries and thrillers. Having read your blog, I'd love to read one of your novels.

Boy, can you write. And the line from Louis Lamour is sensational.

Timothy Hallinan

Rebecca =) said...

Timothy,
Thank you for dropping in, and for leaving a note to let me know you were here!

My books are at publishers, under consideration. When I can point you to one on Amazon I will be sure to let you- and the rest of the world- know.

And thank you for the compliment! I'd love to read your books!

=)