My husband and I returned mid-week from a wonderful week in northwest Indiana. It was good to be back home.
We celebrated the marriage of our son and his new wife along with family, old and new. Special congratulations and blessings to Dan and Leslie! Later, we visited with more family and old friends. Their warmth and generosity made my heart full.
During the week, I was a visiting author at Edison Elementary and Lincoln Elementary schools in Hammond, and a guest author for the Beta Delta Chapter of DKG Society. My praises go out to the teachers and parents who plan these events and encourage their students to read and to write their own stories. I could tell that they had been talking about writing. Questions from adults and the students’ interest and questions fed my soul.
Another highlight of the week was to attend a meeting with my Indiana critique group at the Michigan City Library. We continue to meet via Skype every other month, but there’s nothing like getting together as a group. Karen and I have conspired together about writing for children for many years. When we finally met Peggy and Mary Ann at an Indiana SCBWI conference in Brown County, we decided that traveling an hour or more to get together was worth the drive. Later we were joined by Katie and Fred, and sometimes Judy. We go quite a long way back now, sharing our stories, poetry and articles, our good news, marketing tips and conference notes, and our lives. As always, I got helpful comments on the writing that I brought along. The group’s experience, insight and dedication was food for my mind.
We’re making ties here in Missouri, too. We have family and grandchildren nearby, good for my heart. I’ve met librarians and booksellers and am slowly making contact with teachers and schools, which feeds my soul. And I’ve met some wonderful, dedicated children’s writers, feeding my mind.
And it’s good to be back home.