"These is My Words"

Last night was book club. I haven't attended the last few months, using Elliott as my excuse, but last night I made it and I am so happy that I did. The book we read for March was, These is My Words written by Nancy Turner. The book is a fictional journal of a young woman living in Territorial Arizona between 1880-1900. I really enjoyed the book, and it's journalistic first person narrative. It was a fast read and many times I couldn't put it down because of all the excitement. From a historical perspective, I think it was pretty accurate, too. It had a wild west/dances with wolves vibe to it, but was also very motherly and sincere at the same time.

Thanks to all the girls for such a great discussion. I came away with more thoughts than I showed up with and want to share a few:

• 
  
  Be brave, bold and speak your mind. Consequences can sometimes be rough, but in the end, your character, morality, and quality of life (and that of your family) are more important in the long run.
  


• 
  
  Be happy. In the book, Sarah had some really rough times in her life with the loss of her father, brother, mother (mentally), her first husband, a child, and the love of her life. With all that loss, she stayed true to herself and her family, and always managed to see the good in people and her surroundings, no matter how hard it was. Reality is sometimes harsh, but things really do work out for the best, even if the best isn't what you want at the time. This was a great lesson for me. I tend to wait for the worst and be pleasantly surprised with how things work out. I really need to work on being happy and seeing the best in life, especially because my life really is so good and I am so lucky.
  


• 
  
  Love. I'm not sure I believe in "soul mates", even though Kip did find La-Fawn-Duh, but I know that I do believe in being happy and having someone to be happy with. I am pretty good at taking certain people in my life for granted (Ross) and forget to realize how great they are at taking care of me and that without certain people, life would suck, be much less entertaining and enjoyable, and I wouldn't be the best person I can and want to be.

This really was a great book and if anyone is looking for a good read, I recommend this one. Too bad there isn't a Reading Rainbow for adults. That would rock! I don't know that LeVar Burton would be the right host for such a program, but maybe someone else.