An unintended sabbatical.

Four weeks ago began as a normal day. My husband brought me coffee in bed and then took our two Dachshunds, Larry and Lucy, outside, after which he proceeded to get ready for work, kissed me good-bye and left. The dogs got back in bed with me after their breakfast and burrowed down under the blankets, as Doxie's do, while I got up and got ready for the day. 
It was eleven o'clock that Monday morning when I noticed Lucy standing by our back door, wild-eyed and appearing to be choking. By the time I got to her and picked her up I realized she wasn't breathing. She was gone in less than three minutes.
Four weeks later my stomach still clinches and I tear up when I think of those last moments and my complete inability to help her. So, this is my belated "Ode to Lucy". 
She was a long-haired Dachshund, black and tan, and only eight years old when we lost her. When she became part of our family we already had a short-haired black & tan at home named Bob.  Ken and I had tickets to a charity auction that was being held a few weeks before Christmas. The minute we arrived at the event we noticed someone walking around the ballroom with a ten week old Doxie puppy, appropriately wrapped in a big red chenille blanket dressed in a red sweater, making sure everyone saw her. I overheard my husband, Ken, telling someone, "We have one like that at home and they are a wonderful pet. The last auction we were at one went for nine hundred dollars." That was a huge compliment to Bob because Ken has warmed up to our dogs slowly, finally allowing Bob to sleep with us. Of course, we petted and admired her, and I jokingly told him, "You'll be done with your Christmas shopping if you buy me that puppy." 
Later, when the live auction was beginning, I took a seat with some women and Ken stood across the room with a group of men. When they brought Lucy out the woman next to me asked "Isn't that your husband bidding on the puppy?"  I think I said, "Surely not." before turning  to look. But, amazingly, there he was with his card in the air. The auctioneer announced, "Two fifty, do I hear two seventy five?" Someone else bid. "Three hundred, do I hear three hundred?" Ken's hand shot up again. "Three hundred, do I hear three fifty." He badgered the crowd for awhile more, but the bidding had stopped, probably due to everyone else at the auction having enough common sense to not want to train a puppy during the winter months. 
Ken kept looking around the room, clearly wondering if anyone else was going to bid. But, the auctioneer called out, "SOLD to the man over there!", pointing at Ken. A moment later I was handed my new puppy who came with free vet visits for six months, a crate, and her red blanket. We drove home in semi-shock, neither of us given to that kind of spontaneity very often. I still believe Ken was trying to win points with me by bidding feeling pretty safe because he thought the bidding war would go to $900 like it did the last auction we attended. He could also be fairly confident that even I would not want to spend that much for a dog. So, we both got a surprise!
Lucy was the gift that went on giving. She was fluffy, with spaniel like ears and a sweet face, and without coaxing she would flounce and dance whenever she wanted attention. She loved her treats and she loved me. All she wanted in her Doxie life was to be as close to me as possible, thereby often becoming shut in our bedroom because she would sneak in after me and I wouldn't realize she was there, leaving her inside when I left the room and shut the door behind me. 
I miss her. 
I have tried to write this several times and couldn't get past the first paragraph. Two autumns ago we had to put down our Bob because of back problems and last August I was with my daughter when she put down her Doxie, Arthur.  After Bob died we got a puppy , a black & tan  we named Larry. We got him partly because we didn't want Lucy to be alone it was obvious she had withdrawn and was depressed. Poor little Larry has had the huge responsibility of helping me through this. I wonder how much worse it would be without this peppy and persistent buddy here with me who insists that I stop moping and give him attention.
Somehow it would be wrong to not eulogize our special girl. And, most of you will understand because you have had such a love, also. I have come out of my blue funk enough to not dwell on those last few minutes, but instead think about my twirling, dancing princess dog that was my best Christmas present ever. I thank God for the eight wonderful years she was ours.

Some thoughts on my book IMPLOSION...Free today

My book IMPLOSION is written in the genre of the Left Behind books by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, only put in today's timeline. By definition Implosion is "the deliberate undermining of the foundation of a structure causing it to cave inward". The headlines are coming to life before our eyes warning us of a long-planned and predicted ending. The characters are rich and the book is compelling. By the end of my writing I felt as if I was moving away from good friends, I so loved each of them. If you click on the images of the book they will take you to Amazon for the Kindle download - it is also available in paperback. An FYI if you don't own a Kindle...you do not have to own one to have a Kindle account. I read my Kindle downloads on my iPhone and my laptop.) 
The book is current, prophetic, and a warning for Christ's Body to "be ready"...for anything. I have learned that writing something that smacks of prophetic is a bit like walking the plank, but it's too late now. And, each day, when I listen to the news, I am aware that the timeline of what we each consider freedom to be is changing. 
You will both laugh and cry, be angry, inspired, edified, and provoked...hopefully, some of the time at the edge of your seat wondering what happens next. 
My first editor sucked so I got a couple of deserved reviews for that, although I defend myself to those who ask me why I didn't catch it by saying that while I am a writer, God made editors for the likes of me who must have some form of grammatical dyslexia. And, there are a couple of people who were angry at the very deliberate weaving of the prophetic into the book  My bio, synopsis, and the other reviews all praise the book for its message, so take that into account reading them (I have to wonder why they would read it based on that which nullify's their comments). I do not make any attempt to hide that I write Christian fiction.*
The best gift you can give any author is to review their book. And, if you are a member of Goodreads, please do it there, also. 
Optimist that I am the bright side of the last election (for me) is that it gave IMPLOSION a longer shelf life. We are rapidly being herded and propelled toward a less free and more regulated future. Whatever belief system one holds, that is a certainty!

*Note disclaimer!