Friends, we’ve exchanged thoughts in this space on lots of heavy topics in the past few months: Hope when the odds are against you and my most frightening 40 minutes and the nature of grief.
Tough times are common to us all, and sharing them not only helps us feel less alone but also suggests new perspectives. Scripture teaches us to weep with those who weep and mourn with those who mourn.
But it also reminds us in Romans 12:15 to be happy with those who are happy, and I have happy news to share today!
When a child is on the way, you might glimpse the shape of a nose or a curve of a chin on an ultrasound, but it’s not until the baby’s born that you can finally share a photo. The long months of writing a book are often compared to labor, but with one crucial difference: You get to see what your book baby will look like months before she actually arrives!
I’m excited to give you, my beloved online community, a sneak peek at the face of my second literary child. Her nickname is LISY - short for Life is Sweet, Y'all.
But first, the back story.
In May of last year, I signed a contract with Tyndale House Publishers to write a gift devotional. The idea for LISY bubbled up like an Appalachian spring from a blogpost I wrote about a doughnut shop in Asheville, of all things, called “Need Some Sweet Therapy for Stressful Times?”
The gifted (no pun intended) Senior Director of Tyndale’s Gift and Specialty line happened to see the post and reached out to me with an idea for an inspirational gift book in Tyndale's Living Expressions Collection.
What a wonderful, laughter-filled collaboration we’ve had along the path to publication in March of 2022!
While both contain 52 Bible-based life lessons, Life is Sweet, Y’all is intended for a broader readership than my first book, This Life We Share. Rather than essays of 800-1000 words, LISY will have brief selections of 150 words paired with scripture and whimsical, mid-century design. I’ve written it in the voice of a straight-talking’ southern mama like the ones I hear all around me here in the Smokies.
Special features include household tips, quotable quips, and vintage recipes for dishes used by generations of country cooks. And along with the instructions for whipping up confections like Sweetie Potato Pie, Nana’s BaNana Bread and Gimme-Some-Sugar cookies, I’m offering up a side of sass!
I can’t wait to share these little bits of southern-fried wit and wisdom with you.
Here’s a brief sample:
F is for Family
You know the old saying about family: You can’t live with ‘em, and you can’t live without ‘em. We all have a few loose branches on our family tree along with an impressive collection of nuts. Maybe you have kids who are like a matched set of dueling pistols, or you’ve got a brother-in-law who can’t weigh facts because he’s got a scale full of opinions already.
But as ornery and cantankerous as family members can be, they’re ours. If the most important commandments in Scripture are to love God and our neighbor, it’s good to remember that our neighbor is as near as the man or woman, boy or girl who happens to be under your roof.
And if someday your family tree branches off in different directions? You still share the same deep roots.
“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Ephesians 5:21
Taken from Life is Sweet, Y’all, by Maggie Wallem Rowe. Copyright © 2022. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. All rights reserved.
And as promised, here’s your sneak peek of LISY’s cheerful little face!
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