Advice From Fellow Authors About Life
About five years ago the Christian writing community lost a novelist named Diann Hunt to cancer. She bravely wrote about her struggle in her last years, and I followed her on Facebook. In her last few months (she passed away in late November) she gave advice freely, not just on writing, but on life and the things that matter. I’ll never forget reading her words when she said, “Stop whatever you are doing right now and look out your window.” I was reading Facebook, so I looked away from my computer to my window and saw the most dazzling sight. It was autumn and the sun was striking the gold leaves outside my window at such an angle that they actually glowed. It was an amazing sight and I would have missed it if Diann hadn’t told me to look.
Another author, Liz Curtis Higgs, can always be depended on to shine God’s light and encouragement into our lives. She is also a cancer patient, but doing well right now. My goodness she has 30 appearances scheduled this fall! She was speaking at conference I attended recently and she was talking about humor. She said there is plenty to write about. “Just look out the window!” She’s right. Life gives us plenty to write about if we will just look. It also gives us plenty to reflect on. When Liz said that, and repeated it a few more times, I was instantly taken back to that day I did look because of what Diann advised. I could have missed it. I could be missing plenty right now. So might you.
Beauty All Around
We get so busy, don’t we? We forget. All it takes is a moment to refresh ourselves and to remember that there is a Creator who is constantly creating beauty whether we remember to look or not.
So, look out your window (or look up from your phone) and tell me what you see right now.
