I have learned a couple of things in New Zealand. Afternoon tea has nothing to do with tea. Ditto morning tea. I'm a tea drinker so this is good to know. But, more importantly, I've learned that inspiration is inter - well, intereverything. My cousin and I are traveling together and we have been chronically lost in time and space. Our first planned tour was no different but, once we boarded the right shuttle, we enjoyed the stops along the way as our driver picked up ot

Like the book itself, the book tour for "Hey God? Yes, Charles." has its humorous moments. I recently had a couple of hard day's driving to get to an interview. When I arrived at my hotel the second day, I was beat, I had work to do, and I was ready for my room. But maybe I'd started traveling a little too early that morning because, upon presenting myself at the front desk, the clerk pleasantly informed me that, not only was my room not ready, the housekeeping staff was at l

I got sidetracked with my last blog. I started out intending to share with you a quote I’d seen that sorta stopped me in my tracks. But first I was curious about its origin and that search led me to Elbert Hubbard. Then I got all emotional about his death and love and love and death on the RMS Lusitania and if you read that blog you know why and I had to share that story with you first. But now here’s the quote, and it has nothing to do with sinking ships or maybe it does.

Elbert Hubbard was an American writer and philosopher, publisher and artist, born in 1856. He was maybe a bit of a rascal and maybe he enjoyed it. His life with his second wife included evolving political beliefs and meetings described as sites for radicals, freethinkers, reformers, and suffragists. Fascinating guy and what an interesting time to be alive. But of course I headed for the love story. He once wrote of the Titanic disaster, and in particular the story of Ida S

Readers have shared so many wonderful responses after reading "Hey, God? Yes, Charles." The many different ways our story has resonated - and I hope helped - is truly amazing. One of my favorites is when you tell me it is a love story :) Happy Valentine's Day.

I attended a memorial service last week. Tragic car accident. Young mother. Daughter. Her mother and I met professionally before we became friends. My friend has been so interested in the story of “Hey, God? Yes, Charles.” from the time she found out about it. She’s been supportive and encouraging. I’ve shared the story with her and some of the stories behind the story. We’ve laughed together and we’ve teared up as we’ve talked about the journey of grief and healing and rec

For any media to invite a conversation about “Hey, God? Yes, Charles.” is a big deal to me. I don’t take it for granted and I do my best to tell our story as honestly and directly as I can. If I’m invited to their studio for our interview, I also do my best to arrive on time or early. So my routine, once I’m in the city, is to find my hotel first, but then use my car’s navigation system to GPS my destination from the parking lot and make a dry run before I ever check into

I just acquired a different car. It has a different cruise control system. It took a couple of outings for me to realize that my car was automatically adjusting to life in the fast lane. If the car in front of me dropped below my set speed, so did I. Automatically. I didn’t have to do a thing. It was such an easier way to drive. So…something bigger than I am controls things better than I do. Huh.

Weather. Temperature swings. High winds that can take your hat off. Low pressures. Snow. Rain. Grief. Feeling swings. High winds of loss that can virtually blow you off the emotional map. Low, low moments. Feeling paralyzed, frozen, and cold. Or achingly uncomfortable when life-giving rain is just a miserable downpour because your puddle stomping buddy is gone. You could take yourself to a better forecast because surely somewhere the sun is shining. Or maybe you ju