Faith, Family, Stories

Join me each month for an engaging exploration of family stories, where we delve into the rich tapestry of personal experiences that shape our lives. Together, we’ll bring character descriptions to life, discovering the nuances that make each individual unique. Our discussions will also touch on the art of poetry, allowing us to appreciate the beauty of language and expression. Additionally, we’ll dive into thought-provoking Bible study questions, fostering a community of inquiry and reflection. Whether you’re seeking inspiration or connection, this blog promises to stimulate, entertain, and touch your heart.

Living the Dream

February 18, 2025

finally! after all these kids grew up!

I grew up writing: writing journals, writing to pen pals (over 30 at one time and in 4 countries), writing song lyrics, writing news paper articles for my local club, writing poetry and stories and well you get the picture. I wrote as much as I sang and that was basically all the time.

At 15 I was in charge of the club news letter and learned to format and communicate with the printer who made my work come to life in real pages. I spent six months in charge and hated giving it up. I covered interviews, reports on local events, what the club calendar looked like, and facts and stories of interest. I loved every minute of creating, editing, and publishing. I just knew I was going to be a writer.

Fast forward to high school and my parents didn't see me being a writer, or a music major, or a poet. So I went to a vo-tech and became a dental assistant. Huh? Yeah. Not my dream. In my senior year I realized I really hated being an assistant and started talking about writing again. Encouraged by my English teacher, I had a talk with my parents about college and wanting to write. Again I was discouraged from this path and was somewhat pushed into considering nursing school. I applied to exactly one school that only accepted 12 girls a year. I didn't count on being accepted. However, I was. My English teacher, Ms. Alvarado, was so disappointed in me. She said I was wasting a gift. I felt I had let her down. Family had more sway on me though, and off to nursing school I went.

I lasted less than three months. Not by flunking out or doing something stupid. No, I contracted a severe case of Infectious mononucleosis. The school sent me home and I missed the first of my clinicals. Since I couldn't make up clinicals I couldn't return to that class, but they offered to save me a spot in the next year's class. I declined. I realized how much I did not want to be a nurse.

I continued to write privately, but the dream was buried. I moved from job to job and relationship to relationship for a couple of years. Then I was set up on a blind date and that became the end of my single life. Five months after our first date (February 9, 1980), I became Mrs. Richard Collins (July 26, 1980).

I had four children in seven years and decided to quit having babies at that point. My writing consisted of letters to my children, journals, and poetry for my own personal creative outlet. I don't think I ever discussed my desire to write with Richard. I think I believed the opportunity had slipped by me. I made up limericks for each of my kiddos names and songs of worship that no one but Jesus and sometimes my children heard. I was busy between raising children, actively participating in church activities, Moms groups, eventually homeschooling, and all the popular things for homemaking in the 1980's, such as once a month cooking, Martha Stewart entertaining, learning to quilt, and cross stitch, and stencil. I was also hosting a lot. Hosting foreign college students as their point of contact and including them in local events, church, holidays, and so on. We also connected with friends at church who were a distance from their families and included them as often as possible in holidays.

In the 1990's I started to believe I had cut off the childbearing days too soon and started talking to my husband about adopting a child. We pursued this and was given the privilege of becoming Daddy and Mommy to our youngest son. It was tough in business in the nineties. Rich owns an auto parts store and garage. He's an amazing mechanic with many customers who trust his expertise. But that season and for about 10 years after we saw small garage after small garage retire or go out of business because of the big changes in the industry with computers and environmental laws, the need for expensive equipment, and computers to find the parts replacing our big catalogs. We pinched pennies and continued to raise our family. During that ten years, that urge for one more child begin to push my heart again. But in my mid forties with children getting married I really didn't want a baby. We adopted an amazing, beautiful twelve year old girl to complete our family. I still wasn't thinking about writing books or articles. My life was wonderfully full to overwhelming most of the time. Although I attended classes in a small Bible school and wrote a story about the woman at the well in the late nineties.

In 2007 I signed up to attend International Seminary through satellite classes at a local church. I began to find my passion for writing once more during this time. Research papers were required each year and in the last year 10 papers were required. I usually had to cut so much out of my papers because they were way too long. However, my pastor/teacher came to me during the second year and asked me if I'd ever considered writing a book. Um, yes as a matter of fact, I used to dream about that very thing. He told me he could see me sitting in a little cafe in Italy doing research for my next best seller. I laughed and said I'll name that and claim it! It was the seed that would develop into desire and hope and my first book.

I went into my stories and old papers to get some inspiration and found that story I'd written in Bible school ten years before. I decided I could build on this and give her a name and a background. I began writing and sharing it in 2009 and finally self published the first edition in 2014. I never promoted it much as I felt it was incomplete and not edited well. After a friend read it she offered to edit it. She wasn't a professional editor but had the skills. Sandy gave me the platform to jump from to bring this edition to life. Now I am in the middle of writing our first adoption story, the second book in the series for women in the gospel, I've started two others and have research and notes for one more, and an outline for both our second adoption story and the story of losing our daughter to brain cancer and what our family faced that year. I don't know how many of these stories will find publication or even a full writing. I'm excited to see what tomorrow brings. Dreams sometimes take awhile to achieve and it may seem like they're lost, buried, or changed along the way. All I know is I hope Ms. Alvarado knows somehow that I heeded her advice eventually and desire of my heart is being fulfilled after a lifetime of blessings.