Do you remember your first date? How about your last date?
I don’t think it matters whether you are the dater or the datee. I’m pretty sure the emotions are similar. There is anxiety, anticipation, maybe a little bit of trepidation. Will I make a good impression? A bad impression? What will we talk about? How much will I learn about my date? Will it be an enjoyable experience? Will I chalk it up as a learning lesson? Will I look forward to another connection or one is done and enough?
Those are some of the thoughts that have crossed my mind after announcing Friday’s (Virtual) Evening with Author Joe Siccardi. The first thing that popped into my mind was being stood up for my first real date. But then I remembered other dates, ones that actually materialized. I remembered having all those questions race through my mind. I also remembered sighing a sigh of relief after dropping my date off.
In the solitude of the car, I could assess my version of success or disappointment. I would re-live the night (or day). I would re-evaluate my words — what I said right, what I said wrong, how guarded my conversation was, how much I learned about my date, how much I shared with my partner for the evening. So Friday night and Saturday I will definitely be looking inward.
To recap, A (Virtual) Evening with Author Joe Siccardi will include a short overview about my journey, the writing/publishing process, an introduction of my three books,– Heaven Shining Through, My Name Is Sam … and Heaven Is Still Shining Through, and Wisdom From a Father … one dad’s thoughts on life — with ample Q & A time. And I do have some new and exciting news to share! It is scheduled Friday (July 31) at 7 p.m. (ET) as a Facebook Live presentation.
This isn’t totally new for me — except for the virtual part. I am most comfortable with small, intimate groups — five to 10 people — in a living room, but I’ve addressed bigger audiences at libraries and cafes. I like the smaller venues, though, because I feel a closer connection with the guests. I can interact with them more, answer probing questions they want to ask rather than inquiries I think they want answered. And I have launched all three of my books with Facebook Live feeds.
Thus far, I have five commits, however there are an additional 64 interested, so … it’s anybody’s guess how many will actually tune in either live or later. My book launches reached nearly 200 visitors. Guests at this event literally are from around the world and include family, friends, followers, and names I don’t recognize.
During the broadcast, I will attempt to follow comments, but I’m not sure I will be able to comment in real time. I don’t multitask very well.
I do hope you stop by Friday. I do hope you have some questions. Send them in and I’ll address them during the broadcast or as a follow-up.
THOUGHT TO REMEMBER: Where you are matters; but where you will be matters more. Where you start matters; but where you will end matters more.
What would you do if a crisis sours your life?
When asked a second time, Job surrendered. Humbling himself, he said he was indeed sorry for rambling beyond what he knew. He admitted he had known God only by reputation, but now he knew God from personal experience.
Jesus put before them another parable: The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches. — Matthew 13:31-32 (NRSV)
Prayer: Loving God, bring us to the day when all people have their place in your commonwealth of love. Amen.
Approach the throne room and respond with faith and not fear, knowing the promises of God and His mighty hand will hold us through any situation! Sometimes, all it takes is just one prayer to change everything. Something extraordinary happens when two or more agree together in prayer.
Janel spent a few days in the hospital with severe abdominal pain. No real conclusion, but she has an appointment with a specialist in September. Share good thoughts and lots of prayer.
Joyce is fighting and struggling with leukemia and all/every prayer is needed!
aJerome asks for prayers for his right foot wound and toe fungus.
We come to You, Lord, because prayer is the least yet the greatest thing we can do for each other. When two or more are gathered in Your name, we confidently know You are with us. What better company can we have? You reign and we trust You! We may be broken and battered but know You heal and quiet the soul. You are the source for all that happens in our lives. We thank You for the progress being made. We thank You for the many blessings we have received this week. Some we unfortunately didn’t notice. Nonetheless, those blessings are ever-present in our lives. We thank You for healing. We thank You for slowing us down. We thank You for providing us our daily needs — no more and no less. We thank You for being with us, listening to us, walking with us on this journey. We thank You for the support of our family and friends … for seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary — sunrises, sunsets, flowers, kids laughing, adventures, good news amid the bad news. We know we can come to You with our concerns and they will be heard. Through Christ all things are possible. We lift up those family members and friends who are battling various physical, emotional, financial, career or spiritual issues and ask not for Your guidance and healing (although that would be welcomed) but to keep reminding us we are not alone in our battles. Specifically we lift up Janel, Andrew, Abby, Gail, Brenda, Margie, Annie, Joyce, Victoria, Bryce, Geska, Arielle, Lynnette, Sandhya, Brijlani, Jerome, Bruno, Gracie, Ron, Al, Eileen, Rosie, Martha, Emily, Ashley, and all those needing Your healing and guiding touch. We pray for the families of all those You have called home. We grieve … You celebrate. We pray for obedience to Your Will so Your “Son” Light shines through us through the power of the Spirit. And we come to You through the confidence of the words taught by Your Son Jesus. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
It’s where our group of writers [okay most of them, often we have Saturday and Sunday stragglers, myself included] gather to write unscripted for five minutes on a specific word prompt. Our prompt is diligently supplied by Kate Motaung. After we post, we link up on the community site at 
When I was young, I played sunup to sundown, studied hard, and enjoyed myself. I learned there was a time for everything. Now that I am (considerably) older, I don’t play as in play time, but I keep myself busy — learning, marveling, and generally enjoying my more sedentary lifestyle.
When I was young, I learned about the fragility of life. As I got older, I felt that fragility up close and personal. It taught me how to appreciate the moment — not yesterday (although those are memories I cherish) and certainly not tomorrow. Right now. This day. This hour. This minute.
This is the day that the 
The romantic side of me dates back a few decades when Karen and I would cuddle up with a good chick flick. We called it our Saturday dinner and date night, courtesy of Netflix before streaming. She would generally pick out the weekend movie and await the little red packet to arrive sometime during the week. Occasionally, she would let me pick out the movie with the caveat, action is okay but mindless mayhem isn’t. We never had to worry about horror or the supernatural because neither was in our respective genre tastes.
Fantasy. Sweet fantasy. Besides, in addition to the gushy romance, a number of storylines center on two of my favorite things — food {from cupcakes to restaurants} and writing {book stores, book tours, writer’s block}. That, of course, brought me down another rabbit hole. As I scanned all Hallmark has to offer, it struck me how many I have already watched — more than half, well more than half. In fact, I would be pretty scared if I hadn’t taken a nine month hiatus while I was on the road.
Getting the Message
Sure enough, pretty soon a snow plow came by, and she started to follow it. She followed the plow for about 45 minutes. Finally the driver of the truck got out and asked her what she was doing. And she explained her dad had told her if she ever got stuck in a snow storm, to follow a plow.
So today I thought I would include some opening lines. Some will be familiar; others not. I want you to decide {yes, this is an assignment} whether the quick snippet leads you to ask “what’s next” or “who cares.” There are no right answers and feel free to share an opener that caught your attention … or just plain turned you off.
“Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.” — Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita
The Light 