We watched “Unsinkable Molly Brown” yesterday. John Brown was a genius in the west, with the ability to find gold or silver any time he needed more money. Molly grew up poverty stricken with a desire for more. No matter how much John gave her, she couldn’t find happiness, until after surviving the sinking of the Titanic.

I have friends and family who struggle with happiness and joy. Some cannot be happy with a million dollars and a fancy car. They are always, like Molly, searching for something more. Other friends have little, they live in small houses or apartments on tight budgets and find joy in their families and their friends and their God.

Which are you? Do you always need more or can you find joy in the life you have?

I don’t mean to suggest that because we are happy we don’t want or need to make our lives better. I’m happy with what we have, and it isn’t a mansion or a million dollars. But I’d love for my book business to grow much more rapidly. I wouldn’t turn down additional sales. We all want to make our lives better.

In my next book, Abandoned Hope — that is still awaiting a cover, Daphne is happy to be with her papa as a trader, until he is abducted in Nod. Daphne had to find a way to find her own joy. Not with money, not with things, but inside her.

From Abandoned Hope:

Daphne sorted through the bundles of goods her papa had already prepared to take with them on their return journey to Bashan. The silk fabrics and copper bowls and pans would be welcomed in the small villages and larger towns they passed through on their journey home. However, they were common here in Nod. Certainly not worth a gold.
What was she going to do to rescue Papa? How would she ever come up with fifty golds?
The door to the small barn stood open, allowing warm sunlight to fill the small space. As long as the breeze did not become a wind, she would leave it open. She returned to her sorting, submerged in her fears for her papa.
A shadow blocked the sun, chilling her. Daphne turned expecting to see Joyanna. Instead David entered. His hair stood out across his head and his rumpled clothing looked like he had slept in it.
“Do you have news for me?” she asked.
David crossed the space between them. “No, and yes. Kenji will not take trade goods in exchange for the fifty golds. He is determined to take the coin or the important thing, nothing else.”
“Then Papa is without hope, for we have not fifty coins in our pockets or in our baggage and he cannot have my book.” Daphne glanced at the stack of bundles she had not yet searched through. “Most of what is here will be welcomed in small towns on the way home. But of no use to acquire gold coins.”
“Can you sell it all back in the market? Surely, it will bring you some coins.” David turned to look at the items in the open bundle.
“Perhaps a few. Nothing is so rare or unusual that people here will want it back. They will not give me the fifty gold coins I need to save Papa.” Her hands flew out to flutter toward all the bundles. “And if I could sell them all to set Papa free, how would we get home with nothing to trade along the way? There are still bundles I have not gone through. Perhaps …”
“Let me help. Perhaps I can find something you would otherwise overlook.”
Daphne sighed. “If you wish. I fear for Papa.”
“And you should.” The frown on David’s face sent a chill down her spine.
(Abandoned Hope, to be published soon)

What about you? Where do you find your happiness? What are you working on now to improve your life?

A Short Questionnaire:

1. Are you a reader who loves my books?
2. Are you also a writer, or someone who has thought about writing?
3. Would you be interested in support or help from a published author?

I would love to hear from you.

Happy Reading,

Angelique