Looking for New Opportunities

Life is all about timing and the present opportunity you are facing.  Most times you don't know what new opportunities will come your way and some times you work hard toward creating your own opportunities.  Either way, what you do with those opportunities when they come around is what's most important.  Do you let them pass?  Do you seize them straight away?  Do you ponder them?  Do you throw them aside?  Or do you appreciate them?

What kind of opportunities am I talking about?  All kinds...personal, professional, spiritual, etc.  It's what makes life interesting.  What we decide to do with the opportunities that come are way can shape our futures, determine our path, and/or change our lives forever.  Not all opportunities are completely life changing, but some can be.  Yes, we make decisions all throughout a typical day, but those aren't the opportunities I'm talking about.  The ones that provide a job interview or job acceptance, the ones that move you to go on another date with someone, the ones that take you out of your box and into a new light...the ones that allow you to grow and discover new things about yourself.  

How do you approach opportunities?  Fearfully?  Excitingly?  Ready to pounce?  Depends on the opportunity I'm sure, but either way they come and they go.  It's up to us to decide whether we're ready to take it on or let it pass.  Sometimes it takes more courage and foresight to let an opportunity pass.

Whatever opportunity comes your way this week, embrace it, sit with it for awhile and then make the best decision for you!  May you have many blessings and much confidence in the decisions you make today and everyday!!

Book Festival Post-Mortem

How did my 1st book festival go?  Well.  Slow. But, educational!  For my first book festival, I wanted to start off small to see how it went and then go from there.  There were around 65 authors at this book festival, so a lot of experience and perspective to tap into throughout the day.  The whole experience went well...no issues or problems...and everyone was extremely friendly so that helped too!  But, it was slow going...meaning, not a lot of foot traffic or attendees showing up which made for a long day at times.  So, that was pretty disappointing not only for me but for all the other authors that spent their time and money to participate in the event.  And, I believe a few of the authors made that clear to the organizers....so, not sure I'd go back to this particular event, but I did meet a lot of great people there!  And, they provided some great insight into what has worked for them, what events they have attended or plan to attend, and how they've engaged with their target audiences.  So, it was very informative and educational in that respect.  It was nice to get to know so many other local authors and hear their stories into the publishing world.

So, now I know what to look for in a book festival, what will suit and attract my target audience, and where I should spend some promotional time in the future.  Now, I just need to pick and choose wisely which events to spend my time and money.  I've got a pretty good idea so stay tuned!

And finally, thanks to my mom for going with me and sticking it out with me all day!  It definitely helped the day move along a little quicker with her by my side plus she's a social butterfly and talked to a lot of the authors, too!  I think she got as much insight out of the day from talking with other authors as I did!  So, it was a worthwhile first book festival experience and I'm grateful for the opportunity.

Hoping you have a blessed week ahead full of new experiences!

Don't Forget....

Don't forget to come see me this Saturday, April 9th from 9-4 pm at the Patterson-Appleton Center for Visual Arts in Denton, TX if you are in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area!!

I'm looking forward to participating in my first book festival and hopefully it won't be my last.  If there is a book festival near you, please let me know and I'll look into it.  I'd love to get out and meet you, as well as, other authors this year.  I wish I could make it to all the larger book festivals out there, but I'll probably have to pick and choose based on timing, travel and other expense costs for each festival.

Check back on Sunday and I'll give you the lowdown on how my first book festival went.  Until then, blessings for the end of your week!

1st Book Festival!!

If you are in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, come by and see me next Saturday, April 9th from 9-4 pm at the Patterson-Appleton Center for Visual Arts in Denton, TX for the North Texas Book Festival!!

It's my 1st book festival so I'm excited to participate and meet other local authors....as well as, meet you and hopefully some of my local friends, too!  So, come on out with your friends and/or family to support your local authors!

I look forward to seeing you next Saturday at the North Texas Book Festival!!!

Blessings for a wonderful 1st full week of April!!

Spring is Here!

Spring has sprung and my allergies have been horrible the past two days (so sorry for missing yesterday's post)!  They've said it's going to be a bad allergy season mainly due to the light winter and no hard freezes...which also means more bugs!  Two of my least favorite things about spring.  So, hopefully I can get through this allergy season in one piece before the summer heat starts to bake us up!

How do you handle allergies?  I never had them growing up.  I acquired them in my 20's after moving out to California for a year.  I know many people have symptoms much worse than mine, but man are they are pain!

Although, I can't complain too much as the weather is absolutely spectacular outside right now!  Enjoying little moments of splendor goes a long way!  So, take it all in...allergies included...and enjoy the joys of springtime!  Trees blooming, flowers growing, gardens sprouting, baseball bats smacking and lawns turning green.  

Spring is here.  April is here.  So, it's time to bloom again...for all of us!  Enjoy this last day of March and many blessings to you as April begins!

Happy Easter!

To all those around the world that celebrate Easter...Happy Easter to you and yours!!  I hope you've had a wonderful day celebrating Jesus' resurrection and of course, all those Easter eggs!  

As holidays go it's fun for the kiddos to wake up in the morning to candy-filled Easter baskets, go Easter egg hunting, and share in yummy food with family and friends.  But, the real reason for all the holiday cheer is God's sacrifice for us...he died to save us from our sins and to provide us mercy, grace and love all the days of our lives.  He shed his blood for us and we must be eternally grateful for that in how we live our lives, how we serve others and in the message/intention of all of our actions.  We must serve with God's love in our hearts each and every day.  The world needs MORE LOVE (now more than ever)!!!

He has RISEN!!  Hallelujah!!!

Grateful blessings to you on this very special Easter Sunday!! 

Wind Blown

It's been crazy windy here the past few days!  Whipping and whirling around and whistling down my chimney.  When people question your faith in God or in something you can't see they always use the metaphor of "you can't see air or the wind but you know it's there."  On windy days like these you definitely think you can see the wind, but you really just see the effect of or results of the wind...blown down garbage cans, branches moving wildly, or water rippling in a pond.  And, you can definitely feel it on super windy days...sometimes it's the only relief on a hot, sunny day.

Some people's faith is stronger than others, just as the wind is on certain days.  But, if you believe in your faith you know it's there all the time.  Faith comes to the forefront when life tests us, challenges us, breaks us and rebuilds us.  If your faith is deep and constant you know it's there at your deepest hour or your most vulnerable moment.  You know it's there when you feel broken or you've hit rock bottom, but you still see a shred of light ahead...you have a glimpse of hope to hang onto...or you find the thread of strength you didn't think you had to move past that moment and move on.  It's easier to find when life is going well but then sometimes we take it for granted.  Faith is uniquely individual for everyone and the way you express it is also unique to you...how you feel about it, how it makes you feel, what it represents to you and in your life, and ultimately how you express it day in and day out.

As we're mid-way through Holy week and God's resurrection, may we renew our own faith, grow in it and share it with those around us!  May blessings surround you this week as we lead up to Easter Sunday!!