Out with the old...

Somehow, I'm not sure I like that statement. Out with the old seems to imply that the old simply isn't worth keeping. And since I'm getting older every day, it isn't very smart for me to be so eager to usher out the outdated. In light of this, I decided that this year I wasn't going to make any New Year's resolutions. Instead, I'm going to give an accounting of the things that made the last twelve months meaningful and I'm going to strive toward making even more memories as I venture into this new year. Some of the things that made my list were:

• Attending the Beth Moore Living Proof Conference this summer.
  



• Taking my daughter to a Kari Jobe and KJ-52 concert.
  



• Taking my mother to see Joel Osteen in Cincinnati.
  



• Buying the entire Harry Potter movie collection and watching it as often as possible.
  



• Seeing movies like African Cats, Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer, Kung Fu Panda II, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid II with my daughter.
  



• Going to COSI to see the Dinosaur exhibit and movie and to the Boonshoft Museum so my daughter could see the big constellation display for the first time.
  



• Taking my daughter to the circus for the first time and riding an elephant with her.
  



• Finishing my fifth Rona Shively story, Now You See Me.
  



• Leading my first Bible Study at church.
  



• Having the opportunity to work with a wonderful children’s theater company in Yellow Springs in my very first job as an Executive Director for a non-profit.
  



• Starting a degree program (finally) in Religion at Liberty University.

I had a great year in spite of ending up unemployed and I plan to have an even better year this year. But in order to ensure that I suffer no disappointments, I'm making absolutely no big plans. This is a new thing for me. Usually, I'm sitting there on New Year's Eve with my tablet and my pen in hand, writing up a list of things I need to do. Somewhere around April, I misplace the tablet and from that point on it's all downhill. Of course there are things I plan to do, but nothing along the lines of setting unrealistic expectations for myself and then feeling badly because I don't hit the mark. I've adopted the Rona Shiveliest of attitudes this year and will now be removing this pressure from my life. At least, until I get so frazzled by not having a plan that I have to buckle down and write myself out a big "to do" list.

I hope everyone had a great New Year's and that the next twelve months are full of peace and prosperity for you and yours. If you do find yourself making resolutions, resolve to read all of my Rona Shively books this year. You can get them all for just $50! Proceeds benefit Higher Ground Ministries for women's empowerment.

Until next time....




Subscribe to Benston Blogs by EmailAdd to: Technorati Digg del.icio.us Yahoo BlinkList Spurl reddit Furl

Reflections on 2008

2008 has been a challenging year for many of us, but I wanted to take a few moments to talk about some things that made this year a good year for me in spite of a couple of big disappointments.

Early in the year, I came up with my Tea & Mystery speaking series and was fortunate enough to share the presentation with several libraries in Ohio and one all the way up in Waterville, NY. These events have been lots of fun and I'm looking forward to doing many more in the coming months. I already have two scheduled for February, so remember to get in touch if you'd like to schedule one, too! More information about the presentation is available on my website.

After a fairly rough summer, I finally finished working on my third Rona Shively story, Keeping the Faith. It is the first full-length novel in the series and I'm anxious to get it in the hands of my readers. I've already started writing the fourth Rona Shively story and am getting really excited about the changes readers will see in Rona as she tries to figure out how to handle a very sensitive situation involving one of her longtime friends. There will be more info on this one later, but in the meantime you can read excerpts from all three Rona Shively stories at the website.

Another major change for me involved a new job as an elementary school librarian. I have to say that the first couple of months on the job were a little scary. I wasn't sure I'd made the right decision at first, but by the time Christmas break rolled around I had changed my mind. I'm in this for the long haul. I love the kids, love the school and aside from writing, can't think of a job that suits me better than this one. I'm very fortunate to have this opportunity to work with the kids and introduce them to all of the great things that books and reading have to offer.

With these things in mind, I'm heading into 2009 a bit more enthusiastically than I would have thought possible just six months ago. I've gotten lots of good feedback this year on my writing and marketing efforts. I've met lots of great people through social networking and through the speaking events I've presented. And, I've gotten lots of great ideas for some new stories. I'm very optimistic for many reasons and I'm hoping that I can maintain that optimism no matter how things go over the course of the year.

Best wishes to everyone for a wonderful New Year!

Until next time...



Subscribe to Benston Blogs by Email

Add to: | Technorati | Digg | del.icio.us | Yahoo | BlinkList | Spurl | reddit | Furl |