A Challenge Met

Yes, I met the challenge of finishing quilts. I did six of them in February and March. I could have done another one, but I was just too tired!

I hope to do at least six this quarter, maybe more, but at this time of year I also have to garden. I have to make dresses for little girls, and I really should write something. Still, even if you don't get done as much as you want to, a finished quilt is an accomplishment. Growing enough flowers to make a nice bouquet gives a person a sense of satisfaction, even if you had to have help -- the kind of help that you can't influence. Sewing up dresses for little girls likewise warms the heart.

The real hard work is writing a book. I have rarely met a person who doesn't want to write -- something! I tell myself wonderful stories, but when the words hit the paper, they fall short of what I really want to convey. There are words that are so illusive that they defy hitting the paper -- or the computer screen -- with the same impact that the thought that formed them had promised.

I've had eleven books published, and I'm proud of all of them. But even years later, I find something -- a feeling, a bit of more extensive research, a revelation -- that would have improved the project so much had it come in a more timely manner. I can't let the sure knowledge that the book I want to work on now will be better if I put it off until next year. No, I have to write it now.

It's not that I hear "time's winged chariot" bearing down on me. It's just that -- well, the heroine and the hero are challenging me to get their story DONE! They want me to write it now.

But first I have to get groceries. . . .