October, schmoctober

Really - October ends Saturday. We Fall Back, too (woo-hoo for an extra hour of sleep!) - of course that's after we've donned costumes (BTW - are your kids dressing up? dogs? what will they be?), Harvest Fest-ed & gorged on candy. And in an effort to get into the "scariness" that is this month, my 4 faithful readers (thank you, Tracey and Tracey , Martha Ann & Angie!!) (OH! And Emily - she just found my blog - yeah!!) know that I've been trying to read scary books. I feel like such a failure - I only finished 2 re-reads of Stephen King books. As an addendum, let me say that I realize now that scary books are no longer my thing. I don't like reading with all of the lights on or being afraid to peek out the windows (what manner of thing might be looking back at me??). And so, like a cookie, I'm done. I'm getting ready to start November reading with a thankful heart - I want to be reminded of all that is good. Rita and Sean suggested a book for me - Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers ... the blurb says:

Sold into prostitution in childhood, Angel is a bitter woman
who trusts no man. But when God tells Michael Hosea to marry her,
she learns to love---until fear overwhelms her and she returns to her

former life. Can she be redeemed? A skillful retelling of the biblical story of Gomer and Hosea

Since the thing I have to be most thankful about is in fact the redeeming love Christ has for me, I think this is a fitting way to start a month in which we will spend most of our time preparing for thanksgiving - for friends and families who love us when we are not at our very best, for jobs, for homes, for having not just enough to eat but too much to eat, for healthy children and healthcare when they are not ... our list of "thankfuls" is a long one.

So, enjoy the last 2 days of October. Dress up. Eat candy. Say, "Boo!". And if one or two of you want to join me in my reading or suggest books that fit my Thanksgiving theme, send them on!