I can’t remember when you first showed up, but I remember you’ve been part of us for a long, long time. I can’t remember when I first felt your presence but I do remember how you stubbornly refused to leave, always there, persistent and determined to break us. I can’t remember when I gave up, but I do remember wanting you gone, afraid once installed between us, you’ll be the one to win.
Loneliness. I hated you. I hated you with my whole being. I hated how you snuck between us, making yourself comfortable and at home. I hated what you brought between us: the cold, the silence and the pain. I hated how you stretched, lingered and took over. I hated how you gained the space between us, bringing us on the verge of no tomorrow.
Loneliness. So often I wanted to scream at you, punch and throw you out of the house. So often I wanted to tell the world your name and what you’d done to us. Make you feel ashamed for your ruthlessness. Make you leave. Make you pack your cold, silence and pain and make you disappear.
Somewhere between yesterday and tomorrow I lost the battle. I gave up. I let you win. Loneliness, I hope you’re happy now.
Broken and empty. Lost and wounded, that’s what I am, that’s how I feel. But amidst the darkness veiling my soul, somewhere very deep and where you, Loneliness, couldn’t reach, there’s the tiniest ray of light giving me reason to keep going: hope. Hope that one day I’ll be whole again. Hope that one day I’ll emerge stronger than ever and ready to love again.
Goodbyes are hard, but not this time, at least not with you, my dear Loneliness. You’ve been part of my life, part of us for a long, long time, but no more. It’s time we part ways, for good. Do not come back. Do not try to reconcile, it’s all futile. I’m actually not saying goodbye. I’m saying: good riddance.
I know, I know, you think I got that wrong and it’s Me Before You, but, I am not wrong.
Let me explain: a few days ago Patrick, my son and I were walking the dog and were talking about what should I do now that he is done with college. I told him I feel like all that rush, all that forward moving we went through for the past 12 years of public education came to a halt. Ever since I gave birth to him I’ve been focusing on him, making him my # 1 priority. His education, his wellbeing, his manners, his foundation, all of that has been my work, my goal nothing and no one could ever stop me from reaching it. I had a path and each step brought me closer and closer to the finish line, which we crossed together the minute he held his diploma.
I kept telling him that now he is done with school and I am done worrying (or so I keep telling myself). He is on his path and I am on mine. He will soon start working and will continue chasing his dreams while I need to figure out what to do with my life, my focus, my time. What to fill it with, which direction should I go, what to do. (You can call it a crisis, but I won’t, because I don’t want to jinx it and make it sound even more dramatic than it is. But it is dramatic and anyone who went through what I am going now, will tell you it is a life-altering time in any parent’s life whose child/ren finish their education).
I kept talking while he kept listening. (That’s one of the things I love the most when I spent time with Patrick; he is a great listener). Eventually we turned a corner and I finally stopped talking, waiting for him to say something. And he did, saying, “It’s actually quite simple, Mom. You need to go back to you before me. You before you had me. Find that 24 yr. old woman and see what she’d like to do. Focus on her, help her find her dreams.”
I know his words will remain engraved in my mind for a long time, maybe forever (with my brain’s will) and, while I do not want to be 24 yr. old again, I’d like to rekindle with my old self and see what treasures I’ve buried…you before me: where are you?
This is part three to my open letter and last one. The first letter was an overview of your sixteen years as a student, the second one a ride down memory lane starting with elementary school and ending with college, and now this one is about how it all started… the first seed that was planted and how it grew over the years into this steady and strong foundation you begin your next chapter with, your career.
Every parent wants the best for their child/ren. Every parent dreams their kid/s will become incredibly successful, tackle hurdles and reach peaks, do better than they ever did. Have a better life than they ever had.
My dream for you was to finish college. Find a field that would excite you, something to be passionate about, and love getting up every morning for it. Something that would put money in your pocket to live a comfortable life and fulfill whatever dreams you have. Provide you with means to support a family when time comes. For as long as I remember I thought you’d become a … doctor or architect (I know, completely different fields but, that’s how I saw you). Your caring nature, your love of people and the attention to detail in everything you built with lego made me believe that’s where you’ll end up, in the medical field or constructions. How wrong I was!
Sometime in middle school your essay on “Why is putting all your eggs in one basket a bad idea” won an award and there would be some sort of ceremony at school. It was also about the same time you began playing Gaia, the only online game we allowed you to be on (30 minutes a day if you did your chores, remember?). You were making millions and enjoyed buying/selling your goods. Later on, in high school, you took a business class, ending up qualifying for state in D.E.C.A. competition. When time came for you to decide which college to apply for, you wanted W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.
So, here we are years later with you about to hear the bell ring for the last time. Next week you’ll have final exams. May 11th is the ceremony for your graduation, closing the student chapter of your life. Starting in June you begin working as area manager at Amazon. To map it all out it looks like this:
I don’t think there are enough words to tell you how proud I am of you. How my heart just melts at the sight of you and bursts open looking at who you became. I always knew you have potential and I never doubted you. I have no regrets about what we did while you were in school. How we pushed you to study and to get better grades. How we checked your homework, and how we kept a vigilant eye over your education, your friends and your behavior. Because the results are shown here and now, with you finding your calling.
I have no idea what the future holds or where life will take you. How many roadblocks will be thrown your way. How many struggles you’ll fight. But what I do know is that I have no worries that you will thrive and you will be just fine. Your tool box is filled with everything Dad and I tried to instill in you, morals and values, every tool you’ll need to succeed.
Have a smooth sailing, Patrick!
With never ending love,
Mom
P.S: A memento from our last lunch at Memorial Union, eating taco salad from Qdoba and talking about everything and anything, as we did for the last four years…
Remember when I took you across Bucharest, on a beautiful September morning, for your first day of school? The bouquets of flowers, the loud kids and their parents, the gray and white building called Liceul Aurel Vlahuta that was your home for 1st and 2nd grade? Remember the wooden bench and the black board, Frau and the twins who became your best friends?
Remember when we moved to the States and the second day after our arrival, Grandma and Aunt Cathy took us to Manitas Elementary School to enroll you in 3rd grade, barely speaking any English? Remember how brave you were every morning, backpack slanted on your shoulder and off you went? Miss Hebert, who could’ve won Teacher of The Year Award, and Miss Calleros who we both hated for a whole year in 5th grade?
Remember when you started middle school at Pueblo, and how much you struggled with math, but thanks to Mrs. Segerson you actually started to like it? Remember the bullies and how we talked every night about how to handle them? Remember how you had a crush on girls I won’t name here, but how we laughed reading Calvin and Hobbes?
Remember starting high school at Corona del Sol, your first day afraid seniors will play pranks on you as they did with all freshmen? Remember the friends you made and the people you avoided? Remember the cafeteria and the disgusting pizza you ate? Remember your first car and your first kiss and your first heartbreak? Remember Miss Glick and her daring to-read-list?
Remember your first day at Arizona State University, our coffee run that morning before first class in W. P Carey International School of Business? Remember my pestering you to stay on top of your homework, asking endless questions and checking your grades? Remember our lunches?
Remember when I told you it will get better, nothing lasts forever and you will get there? Well, dear Patty Cakes, you are there. You are at the end of your student life and about to start your career.
Make the best out of it and don’t let anyone or anything stop you from success. May this new chapter be what you want it to be, nothing more, nothing less!
It’s been a long time coming and now that it is so close, emotions and memories run wild like spiffed toreadors chased by a herd of bulls … tumultuous and raw overwhelming my heart.
Sixteen years of homework, studying, successes and failures, tests and grades, friends and bullies, good teachers and not so good ones, semesters and breaks, all coming to an end. Sixteen years of early mornings, sleepovers and drop offs. Sixteen years of classes, projects and subjects, one by one plating a seed of knowledge and another piece of puzzle in the map of your life. Sixteen years of hopes, anxieties, concerns and perseverance, always pushing forward no matter the obstacle, no matter how hard.
Sixteen years since you entered through the doors of public education for the first time, coming to an end on Thursday when the bell will ring for the last time in your life as a student. A chapter will close and another one will start. A door will close and others will open. Through all of it we loved you, taught you to the best of your abilities and saw you become a strong, healthy and responsible individual. Couldn’t been prouder of your achievements!
Thank you for being the kid you were and for the man you became, Pat! Thank you for allowing us to stand by you through all of it, good and bad, and for never giving up, always chasing after your dreams. The key of your future is in your hands now, enjoy the ride!
What does one do with a matchmaking cat named Romeo?
Spirited and beautiful, Jillian Parker is one of Marietta’s newest business owners. Still, her mother worries about Jillian’s bare ring finger. So in order to give her mother something else to fuss over, Jillian adopts a cat named Romeo. He turns out to be anything but a docile lap cat.
One snowy night, Romeo makes a break for it. With Jillian right on his heels, they have a near miss with a passing pickup driven by Avery Wainwright, one of Jillian’s closest friends. A rodeo accident has the sexy cowboy returning home to recuperate, and he’s not happy about it.
So when Avery finds himself lassoed into the Bachelor Bake-Off, he turns to the one person who has always helped him out—Jillian. But will teaching him to take chances outside of the show ring have them both discovering that their feelings for each other run much deeper than they ever imagined?
EXCERPT
Spotting Suzanna, her business partner and best friend, already inside, Jillian grabbed the brass door handle and opened the door to Tangled Charms. “That man can be so frustrating.”
Suzanna glanced up from where she was arranging baked goods and fresh brewed coffee on a small table with a white tablecloth. “Good morning to you too. I’m guessing you didn’t have such a good weekend.”
“My weekend was fine until I ran into him.”
Suzanna tucked a lock of her short dark hair behind her ear. “I take it Glenn was in town again.”
“Glenn? Why would you think that?”
Suzanna’s eyes widened. “I just thought…well, you were going on and…never mind. Who are you talking about?”
“Avery.”
“Oh.” Suzanna’s pink glossy lips stayed in that ‘O’ shape as though she were surprised by this news. She held out her hand for Jillian’s container of muffins.
Jillian relinquished the baked goods. “You mean you didn’t hear that he arrived home last night? I didn’t think anything happened around this town without everyone knowing.”
“Yeah, I heard, but I didn’t know you two had run into each other.” Suzanna placed the muffin container off to the side of the table.
“We ran into each other all right. He practically ran me over.”
Suzanna’s brows rose. “Really? I can’t wait to hear this.”
“Hear what?”
Suzanna frowned at her. “You know, whatever he’s done now to get you all fired up.”
“He didn’t do anything.” Suddenly she regretted bringing up the subject. She’d promised herself that she wouldn’t let him get under her skin. “It’s nothing.”
“It sure sounded like something.” Suzanna stared at her as though trying to read her mind. “Come on. Spill. It’s me. We’ve told each other everything since we were kids.”
Author Jennifer Faye
Award-winning author, Jennifer Faye pens fun, heartwarming contemporary romances with rugged cowboys, sexy billionaires and enchanting royalty. Internationally published with books translated into nine languages. She is a two-time winner of the RT Book Reviews Reviewers’ Choice Award, the CataRomance Reviewers’ Choice Award, named a TOP PICK author, and been nominated for numerous other awards.
Now living her dream, she resides with her very patient husband, amazing daughter (the other remarkable daughter is off chasing her own dreams) and two spoiled cats. When she’s not plotting out her next romance, you can find her curled up with a mug of tea and a book.
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
I’m really excited about today because it marks the beginning of my virtual book tour for my latest novel titled Me Tarzan–You Jane.
The tour is organized by Giselle @Xpresso Book Tours and runs Monday, February 13 through Friday, February 17. The tour will find me all over the world, in several places every day (isn’t the virtual world a wonderful place, allowing us to travel wherever we want from the comfort of our own home?). Please stop by any of those blogs to see what other bloggers thought about my book, interviews, guest posts, excerpts, you name it.
I’m also going to have a giveaway at the end of the tour consisting of 1 (one) 7″ Fire Tablet (U.S only) or a $50.00 Amazon gift card (international entry). Interested and ready for fun? Enter this giveaway by clicking on the link below!
As a kid I feared dogs and loved cats. I lost count how many times I got in trouble (to be read: butt too tender to sit on) for hiding cats under my bed or feed them milk from my own bowl. Let’s not go there, but go back to dogs because as I grew older, dogs no longer scared me, and I totally swapped camps: dogs rock!
I know people love their pets and think of them as family members, so no one would think of me as crazy when I say Bella, my pooch is my daughter, right? She has two birthdays: one when her mommy gave birth to her–April 22, and one when she became mine–August 8, and we’ve been together ever since, 14 years to be exact. A white fur ball with black button nose and coffee-bean eyes, a goofy personality and stubbornness galore, that’s my Bella, queen of the house, owner of the backyard and our hearts.
I have so many stories about her from the time she was a puppy chewing all shoes left unattended, to playing hide-and-seek, to learning tricks only if rewarded with popcorn, to falling in the pool, to hating being groomed, to eating dirt and the list can go on, but I will stop here. For a while I feared I won’t remember all the things she’d done, worried that once her time was up, time will dust her memories as it does will all our lives. Luckily I found a solution and added her to the “characters list” in my novel A World Apart; for as long as there will be books Bella will live on, not only touching my heart but that of anyone reading my book.
I don’t think there is possible to love Bella more than I already do nor imagine a world without her, although I know her time with us will eventually come to an end. My biggest consolation is that I gave her a great life, took care of her, protected her, but above all: I loved her. Happy Dog Day, Bella!
Chelsee Taylor has been in love with her boyfriend, Max, since they started kindergarten together. She has no idea that high school graduation will be the last perfect day of her life. After a tragic car accident, she refuses to accept Max’s death because she can still feel his presence. No one believes her and she is completely alone. But all of that changes the moment she meets Blake Andersen. It’s not just that he believes her . . . or even just that he’s so understanding . . . but why is Max’s presence so strong when she’s with Blake?
Eternal Mercury is two intertwined books in one. Book one follows Chelsee’s bittersweet journey and book two uncovers Blake’s story of redemption. In the end, it is Max who will inspire them both to trust fate, live life, and finish well.
Praise for Eternal Mercury
“Overall, this novel made me really think about how life can change so completely in the blink of an eye. It was an amazing, life altering story.”
“I loved this book. It made me laugh and cry but most of all it made me feel like there is always hope in this world.”
“I could not put this down. What an amazing story of love, tragedy, strength, triumph, and family.”
Guest Post: Eternal Mercury, Organ Donation, and Cellular Memory
When I first realized that I wanted to write a book, I knew that I wanted it to be different. Shortly after I began brainstorming for that unique idea, a car-crash scene on a mountain highway started playing in my head. Not only was I looking for a unique story idea, but I was also looking for a positive message. I began to wonder if, instead of something scary like a ghost, could something good be left after someone died? The answer became clear to me: organ donation. What could be more beautiful than that? And what could be more romantic than true love that could survive the boundaries of death? To my surprise, the idea turned out to be more realistic than I expected. Through research I discovered the phenomenon of cellular memory. Cellular memory is when people who receive transplants take on traits of people whose organs they receive. It’s rare, but when it does happen, it can come in the form of food cravings, changes in musical taste or hobbies, and sometimes even glimpses at other things about the donor.
Although the level of cellular memory I portrayed in Eternal Mercury is fictional, the need for organs definitely isn’t. It’s hard to think about death, and the common misconceptions about organ donation don’t help. But by understanding the facts and then making your decision known, you just might be able to bring something good out of the bad. That part of Eternal Mercury isn’t based on fiction.
Here are the facts:
Over 100,000 people, including kids, are in need of transplants. Over 20 of them die waiting each day.
One person can save up to seven lives by donating their heart, liver, kidneys, lungs, pancreas, and small intestine. That same person can improve the lives of many others through the donation of tissues such corneas, skin, veins, tendons, ligaments, and bones.
You won’t receive less medical care if you decide to become a donor. Doctors and nurses make every possible effort to save their patients’ lives and will not even consider organ donation unless a person dies.
Income, social status, and race are not factors in deciding who receives organ transplants. You’ll be helping people who need it the most and your family will not be charged for the procedure.
Most major religions support organ donation. I’m not sure that there could be a more loving or selfless gift, but don’t be afraid to check with your spiritual advisor.
Almost anyone can be an organ donor. Age and/or medical history don’t necessarily disqualify you.
The most important thing you can do is let your family know whether or not you want to be an organ donor. No matter what you decide, telling your family will save them from the pain of trying to guess your wishes at a time when that’s the last thing they need. And if the choice is right for you, to let someone else continue on when you’ve reached the end down here, don’t think about what it means for you; instead think of the incredible gratitude you’d feel if someone did it for you or someone you love.
Author Elaine Pinter
Elaine Pinter lives in Boise, Idaho with her husband and son. When she’s not hanging out with them, she’s jotting down ideas for her next novel in the tattered notebook she carries everywhere.
Her writing journey began in June of 2012 when a reading spree set off an unexpected chain of events. After poring over the pages, her own ideas began to appear and she found herself glued to her laptop after her family went to bed every evening. The late nights continued until her first two YA romance novels, Eternal Mercury and Between the Starlight, were published.
She’s one of those hopeless romantics who believes love always wins and that the best stories are the ones that drag you through the tears and reward you with a smile when all the pieces fit together perfectly in the end.
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
I don’t think I’ve ever been as excited about my own birthdays as I am about Patrick’s (or Patty Cakes as some of you know I call my son).
Today my beautiful son turns 21 and this birthday of his is no exception. I find myself overwhelmed by a mixture of emotions. In other words, I’m a mess. I remember my water breaking middle of the night and being rushed to the hospital, so so anxious to finally meet him (actually her as the doctor told me throughout my entire pregnancy–that I’ll have a baby girl. Talk about shock and amazement at once seeing that was no baby girl, but a baby boy). For two days my baby had no name since we were prepared for a girl, but eventually we settled on Johann Patrick.
And Patrick it was. Years passed by and Patrick grew up to be this incredible, smart, kind, loving, handsome, caring, generous, loyal, friendly, hard worker individual, but above all: my son. I don’t know if you can totally understand how proud I am about this kid; how amazed I am about what he had achieved so far, and how at peace I am knowing everything he’d done in his short life will take him to a bright future, of that I have no doubt.
I look at Patrick and wonder how did I get so lucky to be his mom? How did I get so lucky to see him draw his first breath, hear his first cry and word, see his first smile, first step, first day at school? How did I get so lucky to hold his hand, and feel his hugs–the kind of hugs that needed me to kneel so he can reach for me, then later leveled until they transformed in bear hugs and required me to stand on my toes and him to bow? How did I get so lucky to share his love, pains and dreams, his quests and goals?
I do not know the answer to any of these questions. But what I do know is that when I held him for the first time I promised him I’ll be there, loving and supporting him to the best of my abilities, that I would do everything in my power to raise him properly and offer him all I could. I hope I’ve kept my promise so far and will continue to for as long as I draw breath.
Author Jennifer Faye
Blast Giveaway
LOVE. WITHOUT YOU 