The Day I Gave My Book to My Husband
A glorious day has arrived at our house: the first box of You Can Do This has arrived. I could have hugged the UPS driver, had he not driven off on his little merry way to deliver other happiness all over the world. There is just nothing like seeing the first glimpse, the first tangible truth of what has only existed in my mind, heart, and hard drive.
Can I just tell you this? I am completely in love with this little gem of a book. Completely in love.
I opened it, I started reading, and I couldn’t put it down. And that’s a crazy out-of-body situation, when you are reading your own words and you still get swept up in the story.
I absolutely could not wait to give one to Peter. This particular stock of books is exclusively reserved for promotion and early release to the Launch Team (see more about this in a moment), but I do think it’s fair to say he’s kind of the President of My Fan Club.
I mean, yes, I’m super excited to get one into the hands of all of you, but my heart was leaping over the moment when I could show him what I’ve been doing all these weeks, months, and hours of silence at my computer screen, with varying degrees of accessibility and silence and questioning my confidence. I couldn’t wait.
But Peter left town on Friday, and the books arrived an hour after he left. Because of course. In his absence, I was left to single parenting, a skill in which I’m severely out of practice. Exhaustion hit on Saturday evening, so I ordered a pizza. Because when you reach the end of your rope, God’s grace is sufficient and Dominos delivers.
But then my boys were arguing over who wouldn’t have to pour drinks for the other, and in their eagerness to not-serve, they shook the two-liter of Sprite and it sprayed all over the dining table, my laptop, and the open boxes of my brand new books.
You guys. I lost my mind. Just, all of it. If you think you wouldn’t have lost yourself in that scene, then you win all the parenting medals. I surrender.
By the grace of God, there were dry towels and salvaged books and healing and apologies. We all lived to see another day, and for some of us, it was questionable there for a moment.
Peter came home, as he always does, and once we got past the mess of re-entry, when everyone wanted to hug him and love him and fall all over him, I finally had my moment with him. And I put a book in his hands.
He held it in his hands, and he said to me, with so much tenderness, “I think you’ve never given a book to a husband before…”
I cried. Because no, I haven’t. Robb was gone before that dream came true.
And then he said, “You know, the last time I read a book by this author, I fell in love with her.”
And I cried again. Because he does this to me. And because my heart was so raw from the fact that the books were born, and he was home, and my heart was full and spilling out my eyes.
Last night, he settled in to read. And I think I did a really good job giving him just a few inches of space, not making him read out loud to me so that I would know exactly what he was thinking, what made him laugh, what he liked or didn’t like. See, I’ve never given a book to a husband before. Turns out, I may be something of a high maintenance wife in that situation.
A couple of chapters in, he looked up from his chair beside the fire, and he said, “Honey, this book is so clever. I love how you’ve introduced Confidence as a being, as someone to know and meet and hold on to. There are so many things in here that I can tell you’ve been waiting to say. I love how you write, I’m learning so much about you, so much about the heart of a woman.”
And there you have it. Everything else, from this moment forward, will be icing on the cake. I got what I needed.
My husband loves my new book.
* * *
Before I go, I have two business items for you:
First, I am so excited to tell you that You Can Do This is on sale right now on Amazon! (Originally $14.99, it’s on sale now for the randomly-discounted price of $8.56. Kind of an odd total, but who are we to complain about such things, right?) Click on over, and you can pre-order this book at nearly half price, soon to show up in your mailbox or your Kindle on Book Day. I promise you, that will be a good day.
Second, I get to start recruiting soon for the You Can Do This Launch Team! Stay tuned for news, applications, contests, and give-aways as we put together the task force who will create the buzz, talk it up, and help this book make a splash.
I cannot-cannot-cannot wait to share this book with you.
And I love you already for wanting to read it.
Brittany Hamolia says:
Just purchased! Cannot wait to experience your gained insight and hopeful messages!
Carroll Lee says:
So very proud of you Tricia. Can’t wait to receive my copy. Rob has done a great job promoting your new book. I would love for you to come for one of the choir/orchestra shows and speak to us Before we perform. So many of the CFCArts members follow you and we all admire and love Rob. May God continue to bless you, Peter and the boys.
Terri Oxner Sharp says:
I am so excited for you, Tricia! I just pre-ordered my copy!