Please Don’t Forget ‘And.’
The title of my book is And Life Comes Back.
It gets tossed around under other titles and word groupings right now, as we are all learning her name, as we are all waiting for her debut.
“What’s it called? Life Goes On? Life Happens? Life Comes Back?”
But she has a name, and it’s important. Especially that first word: And.
‘And’ is an easy word to forget, because it doesn’t seem very important in the context of a whole vocabulary. It’s easy to lop it right off, thinking it’s an extra syllable.
But actually, ‘And’ says, This isn’t the beginning of the sentence. Something happened before this, and it matters too.
He was in my life for twelve years. He made great stroganoff, and he had a perfect algorithm for baking and serving Nestle Tollhouse Pull-Apart Cookies to their optimal prime. He made me laugh. He loved me well. We have two sons. He died in my arms. And Life Comes Back.
I lived through two years of hell, two years of winter. And Life Comes Back.
I’ve fought depression that can’t be described. And Life Comes Back.
I’ve been through the deepest valley. And Life Comes Back.
When you start reading the book, you’re not at the begining of the story. That’s not where it all began. That’s not where I started. But a whole lot happened that’s just too hard to talk about, write about, and you really actually don’t want to know the truth of it. And Life Comes Back.
So, please, I speak not as an author, a grammarian, a fanatic, or a wordsmith, but as the girl who’s living the story.
Please remember that first word.
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menbuildingbridges says:
The pain, loss and depression I understand Tricia. Thank you for being brave enough to share your story. Writing has helped me work through it. Sharing this kind of writing is literally baring your soul. You have your parents’ gifts and then some. Thank you for blessing us. I’m looking forward to reading your book. Congratulations. You really do inspire, just like your parents. Glad the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree.
libby dale says:
Hey Tricia, I understand…..Prior to your father’s arrival at LFS I had a boss who occasionally mispronounced the names of the children I worked with. One day when I corrected her, she exclaimed, “Oh libby, what does it matter?” I replied, “It matters a lot April!” (pronouncing her name with a short “a” instead of the long “a” sound at the beginning of her name. She never again asked, “What does it matter?” & actively attempted to use the correct pronunciation when naming a child I cared about. I understand….
Patty Kline says:
I will, Tricia. I will remember it.
Denise says:
. . . And got it. I will not forget the significance of a seemingly insignificant word.
Char Waibel says:
I actually looked it up when I made my last comment so that I could refer to it correctly. ‘And’ I placed it in my memory for future use. 🙂
Katy Kloosterman says:
Continuing to pray for you and the boys as you live out “and”. May you feel Christ’s peace warmly surround you and lift you up in the coming season. Blessings to you and yours. Looking forward to reading “And Life Comes Back”
Erma Archer says:
I have a copy on order at my library now. Can’t wait to read it. I heard you speak last year at the Westhill Ladies Retreat in Cleveland.
Laura Wilkins says:
So, so poignant…can’t wait to read it Tricia…