"We're getting married this summer."
I don't know why, but this overhear reminded me of two of the victims in the Boston Marathon Bombing. I suppose it is because I have been doing a lot of research for my fundraiser to support the Boston One Fund. Through it I have learned of Patrick Downes and Jessica Kensky, newleyweds in Boston who both lost a limb in the bombing. Finding out about them touched me for two reasons, one, because Jessica is the name of my main character in BETTING JESSICA and two, because my entire second story, UNTANGLING THE KNOT, is about a wedding. Both of these books were set in Boston, so this couple feels very connected to my writing. As many of you know already, I decided to donate all of my profits from the sale of both books to the Boston One Fund during this first week of May. My birthday is May 15th, so the best present my friends and fans could give me would be the chance to support victims such as Patrick and Jess in their long road to recovery. At amazon you can give either book as a gift to a friend (or for yourself if you haven't yet read them). Here's a brief blurb about each story along with purchase links. You can also link here for a sneak peak at Untangling the Knot. The fundraiser is active now. Thanks so much for your support., Deanne BETTING JESSICA - http://amzn.com/B005YF05CO (NOTE: This is an updated version, revised and re-released November 11, 2012) Hung over and tired, twenty-four year old Jessica finds she has made a crazy bet to get a date with her favorite celebrity, Ian Drake. Of course the bet would be unthinkable except for the small problem that she made it with her enemy, Erik. She decides to use the bet as a way to prove to herself and others that when she sets her mind to something she can truly accomplish it. And, although things don't go exactly as planned, Jessica learns alot about motivation, determintation, and love... not to mention making bets. UNTANGLING THE KNOT - http://amzn.com/B00BFMJX5K “I did what?” Twenty-eight-year-old Gabriella Bessu is St. Therese’s meticulous wedding ceremony coordinator. So the fact that she has mistakenly registered her newest couple for an annulment, rather than a wedding, sends her Catholic guilt into overdrive. But who can blame her? The groom is gorgeous and his two kids tug at Gabriella’s heart in a way that overcomes all her best intentions. Before long, she’s in over her head, fixing her mixed-up plans and helping the children and dad come to terms with their haunting grief for the mother and wife they lost years earlier. Can Gabriella untangle her own fears and accept the messy life that God has handed them?
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“I’ll call the new minister and make sure he can do your wedding.” Life is full of changes. And, because of this, the most important character trait we are trying to teach our daughter is resiliency. However, what is it about weddings that take this to a whole new level? If Murphy’s Law is that things that can go wrong, will go wrong… then the wedding addendum must be, ‘and it will happen two days before the ceremony.’ Take my wedding. Our florist completely changed her price quote on us two weeks before the wedding. We fired her, but try finding a good florist with that little notice? And the day after I drove up to Seattle to do a test run of my hair style, the salon called me to tell me the hairdresser had quit and moved to a new salon. Resiliency brought me through these hiccups. But, when we lost our third priest just days before the wedding date, I had to question what God was trying to tell us. With 8 months to go, our first priest was moved to a new parish. I was disappointed but knew we would be fine. The second priest we had arranged then had a retreat that he (and all the other Jesuits in the area) had to attend during our wedding date. This was much more concerning as it felt like we were out of time and options. Finally, the church found a non-Jesuit priest to marry us. I breathed a sigh of relief, until just three days before the wedding our thirst priest was called to Rome for a special meeting with the Pope. Now really… what are the chances? Of course the message was all about faith and control (two things with which I struggle). I had to hand it over, knowing that if they got a new priest it would be someone who neither knew us nor probably cared much. I turned out to be very much wrong. The new priest arranged to meet us for lunch the very next day. He spent some time getting to know us…and then had the humor to help execute a very funny joke on my husband during the ceremony rehearsal (we switched the readings to one my husband knew we didn’t want… If you’d like to find out which reading which readings we switched you can read my new book, UNTANGLING THE KNOT, due out on Feb. 13th:>) No matter how we might try, weddings, like married life, are messy. Things don’t always go as planned and everything is up for change. But, as I learned during my own mishaps, sometimes it is in these moments that we experience the true meaning of love and God. |
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June 2020
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