Once Upon a Time: Discovering Our Forever After Story

  What about your own life? Are there symbols that play into your story? For me, there are several. One is a hospital door I was told to go through when I was visiting my terminally ill cousin. It said ABSOLUTELY NO ADMITTANCE. At first I was confused, but as I pushed open that door it became a symbol of how I would choose to walk through life. Life is too short. I decided I’d no longer live my life cowering, afraid I would fail if I even tried to write and sell a novel. Instead, I would boldly walk through the most impossible doors.

  Another symbol in my life is the cameo. If you’ve met me in person or seen photos of me, most likely I was wearing a cameo. They are exquisite works of art, but they are so much more. The cameo is made out of a stone or a seashell that has two planes of different colors. The top layer is carved away, leaving an image in a color that contrasts with the base color. Some of the finest sculptors have carved in this style. It’s a metaphor, a symbol, for my life—painstakingly carving away all the bits and pieces that don’t belong until the real design begins to show. In many ways, this is what God has done for me, chipping away the pieces that distract from the woman He longs for me to be, so bit by bit I am shaped into His image.

  For me, the book is another symbol. From the moment that first book was placed in my hands at a young age, I knew: one day I would write stories like this. Writing is my joy, my passion. The book itself is a symbol of that passion and of the power of story. I often find myself absently stroking a book’s cover in my hands as I speak. It’s a symbol that is threaded throughout my life.

  My box of family recipes is another symbol in my life. These recipes are about so much more than mere sustenance. My recipe box represents what has connected my family through the generations. It is comfort. When times are rough or when I need to cocoon, I cook. It is service—something I do as a gift for those I love. It is a creative outlet. I relish finding new recipes and tweaking old ones, but nothing beats those recipes handed down in our family. So many of our family get-togethers centered around food. That box represents the large family gatherings of my childhood, with aunts and cousins sharing recipes. And it continues in the celebrations we now have with kids and grandchildren.

  ARTIFACTS

  Archeologists understand the importance of our treasures. They study ancient cultures by discovering and studying physical evidence—whether treasures or tools, graves or dwellings, temples or humble caves. Those who study history and culture spend their lives uncovering treasures of bygone societies. The Minoan society of Ancient Greece would have been completely forgotten if not for the artifacts they left behind. The Minoan people, whose language to this day cannot be interpreted, left behind symbols of who they were and how they lived, giving us a window into their everyday lives and an opportunity to understand their culture.

  Have you ever watched the PBS television program Antiques Roadshow? It’s fascinating to watch history unwind through a collection of letters or paintings. My husband is an avid Civil War historian, so our favorite segments are the ones that include a whole collection of artifacts, say, a Civil War canteen, a regimental flag, a rifle, a letter with the signature of one of the storied Civil War heroes, and daguerreotypes of the ancestor who originally owned the items. We’re always fascinated to hear the expert tell how the collection can be authenticated as he works through each piece, comparing dates and stories. What to some would look like a box of old stuff ends up being valued as a priceless, museum-worthy treasure that tells part of the story of a dark time in our nation’s history. This story is told not through a written journal, but through a box of treasures.

  Take a look through your family treasures. What do they tell you? How about your own artifacts? Do you save movie ticket stubs? An old corsage? What do these treasures represent? What do they mean to you? As you dig through your own keepsakes, even more of your story will emerge.

  LETTERS

  There is nothing a writer or historian likes better than a stack of old letters or a journal. As I mentioned earlier, I wrote an entire book, Between Friends, using letters between the two friends, diary entries, and newspaper clippings. No dialogue. No descriptions. No scenes. Yet my readers tell me the story came alive for them, and many consider it my best book to date.

  In our own lives, saved letters give us another viewpoint. Have you ever come across letters between your parents? What an eyeopener those would be—to see Mom and Dad as a couple in love instead of as our parents. Or letters penned by famous people? The following are excerpts from a very long letter written by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1812 to an unidentified “Immortal Beloved”:

  My angel, my all, my own self—only a few words today, and that too with pencil (with yours)—only till tomorrow is my lodging definitely fixed. What abominable waste of time in such things—why this deep grief, where necessity speaks?

  Can our love persist otherwise than through sacrifices, than by not demanding everything? Canst thou change it, that thou are not entirely mine, I not entirely thine? Oh, God, look into beautiful Nature and compose your mind to the inevitable. Love demands everything and is quite right, so it is for me with you, for you with me—only you forget so easily, that I must live for you and for me—were we quite united, you would notice this painful feeling as little as I should . . .

  What longing in tears for you—You—my Life—my All—farewell. Oh, go on loving me—never doubt the faithfullest heart

  Of your beloved

  L

  Ever thine.

  Ever mine.

  Ever ours.1

  Doesn’t that resonate with the Beethoven we know from his music? We learn more about his passions from his letter. And the ending . . . “Ever thine. Ever mine. Ever ours.” How beautiful. Letters can offer a richer, deeper look into our stories.

  LISTS

  Another treasure often used to help tell a story is the simple list. My book Twenty Wishes starts with a list. Anne Marie finds herself alone as a recent widow with no children and no idea what she is to do next. Along with some friends, she decides to make a list of twenty wishes. Although she owns a successful bookstore, she is unhappy and depressed, so the very first thing on her list is “find one good thing about life.”

  She goes on to list other wishes, like learning to knit, finding something good to do for others, and, somehow, falling in love again. The list is the centerpiece of the story.

  I’m a list person, so writing Twenty Wishes came naturally to me. In my nonfiction book God’s Guest List, I tell about the list I made of thirty people I wanted to meet before I die. That list was such fun to create, but God had other plans. He let me know that He would graciously allow me to meet many of the people on my list, but that He also had a list of people He wanted me to meet. I needed to be on the lookout for those people He’d bring into my life without warning. I’m still working on that list.

  As you tell your own story, don’t forget the power of lists. One of my friends keeps a prayer journal in which she records her Bible reading and her prayer. She says it has become the most powerful tool in her life. Just looking over the lists of things for which she has prayed and then seeing the answers to those prayers has deepened her walk with God and helped her see the whole story. She says that by the time the answers have come, if she hadn’t written down the original prayers, she might not have seen the connection.

  JOURNALS

  I’ve often used a diary in my books to reveal something about the character, as in the book Susannah’s Garden. As Susannah’s mother begins slipping away from her, Susannah finds her diary and learns something about her mother that she never knew.

  Susannah stared at the diary, afraid she might learn things about her parents she’d rather not know—and yet she was intensely curious. It wasn’t hers to read, she reminded herself. This was her mother’s private property . . .

  Susannah frowned. Her mother had wanted to be a nurse? This was news to her. In all her years of growing up, Susannah couldn’t recollect one word about her mother having—or
wanting—a career . . .2

  By now you know that I value a journal for telling my story. My many journals are among my own treasures. I began journaling years ago, and there is a whole library of journals that tell the story of my life. When I take time to go back and read over them—to reflect on my life—I’m always surprised at how much I had forgotten and how much I learn by rereading them. They are not something I’d want to share with anyone else, since I write honestly and without holding anything back, but as I tell the story of my life, they are the raw material from which I work.

  Whether you use artifacts, symbols, journals, lists, or whatever treasures are part of your life, these elements are an important part of the telling. Just as I use them when creating a story, you can use them as you piece together your own story. They are tools that recall and tell the story of your own life and open doors to understanding who you are and your life’s purpose.

  Storytelling Prompt

  Make a list of important artifacts from your life—letters, treasures, books, mementos, photographs, and so on. Tell about one of those and what it represents.

  The Scrapbook of Our Lives

  Scrapbooking—the art of preserving photographs, documents, and mementos in order to tell family or personal history—has seen a rebirth in recent years. There are whole stores dedicated to the craft, and scrapbookers are creating some beautiful works of art as well as capturing family memories.

  Scrapbooks originally rose to popularity in the fifteenth century, in a form they then called the “commonplace book.” Later, especially during the Regency era, the “friendship album” took its place. And in Victorian times, the scrapbook came into its own when women pressed flowers and decorated the pages with their specimens, adding watercolor drawings and even locks of hair from friends and romantic interests.

  Now that scrapbooking is again being practiced, many are finding it the perfect way to tell their stories and satisfy their creative spirits. Here are three suggestions for your scrapbooks:

  1. Don’t forget to add favorite Bible verses, bringing your spiritual heritage into your art.

  2. Scrapbook with family members, so you’ll be not only telling your story through your craft, but also creating memories at the same time.

  3. Find ways to incorporate written stories along with the visual images. Too many photograph albums and scrapbooks don’t tell the story in and of themselves—they need the creator to explain the photos. It renders them mute when the creator is no longer available.

  Nine

  HE PICKED UP THE SWORD . . .

  God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.

  —HEBREWS 6:10

  In nearly every story there is a mission that must be accepted or a journey that must be begun. Some of the stories we like best are the ones in which there is a reluctant hero who has a mission thrust upon him.

  One of the parables Jesus told has just such a mission, with three different kinds of heroes. Here’s the story as he told it from Matthew 25: 14–30:

  Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

  After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. “Master,” he said, “you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.” His master replied, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”

  The man with two bags of gold also came. “Master,” he said, “you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.”

  His master replied, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”

  Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. “Master,” he said, “I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.”

  His master replied, “You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

  “So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

  The first two servants embraced the mission with enthusiasm. They must have seen it as a great opportunity. We don’t have any details of what went on during the time the master was on his journey. Chances are there were many ups and down for our first two heroes. I’m guessing there were plenty of times when they worried over the risks they had taken. We know from the story that this master was a tough man. But in the end they accepted the mission, took the risk, and succeeded. Not only was the master happy with them, but he promised them even greater opportunities.

  The third servant was the reluctant hero. In the end, because he refused the mission out of fear, he became an antihero. As he stood before the master holding the original bag of gold, probably caked with dirt, he admitted that he had been afraid to accept the mission. And because of his fear, there were consequences.

  OUR TALENTS

  In the parable above, called the Parable of the Talents, the version I’ve quoted calls the money the owner entrusts his servants with “bags of gold.” In other versions, they are referred to as “talents.” The talent, or talanton, was a variable denomination of coin, depending on the metal used.

  You’ll often hear a pastor or teacher talk about how much a talent is worth in today’s value, but that is an impossible comparison, because the talent represents different denominations. The talents in this story may have been gold, silver, or copper—the original text did not specify. For that reason they could have been equal to as much as twenty years’ wages.

  Several biblical scholars think Jesus chose a nonspecific coinage on purpose because if we try to attach a specific value to these bags of treasure, we narrow the scope of the parable.

  In modern English we use the word talent to refer to the skills and mental powers God has entrusted to us. I find that an interesting application of the parable. The Lord has entrusted all of us with different levels of skills, of talent, but He expects us to use these talents and return them with increase, rather than bury them.

  As each of us begins to tell our story we need to explore the mission that has been set before us. I know I was given the gift of storytelling. How do I know? Because when I am telling a story there is such joy in the work. And because He has blessed the work of my hands. It reminds me of what the famous Chariots of Fire runner, Eric Liddell, said: “I believe God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.” I could say the same thing about writing. When I write, I feel God’s pleasure. I feel joy, incredible happiness, and I know this is one reason He created me.

  IS IT EVER TOO LATE?

  What happens if we reach our fifties, or even our sixties or seventies, and have not yet found our mission? Is it too late? Absolutely not! I know you’ve heard of Grandma Moses, who did not even start painting until the age of 76, when arthritis made her beloved em
broidery impossible. By the time she died at age 101, she had created more than a thousand paintings.

  I’ll bet you didn’t realize that Julia Child didn’t begin her cooking career until after she turned 50 and wrote Mastering the Art of French Cooking with two of her Cordon Bleu classmates. She became the first important television chef, and many more have followed in her footsteps. Julia continued writing books and teaching the world to cook until her death at age 91.

  Or take another writer, Laura Ingalls Wilder. She didn’t write Little House on the Prairie until she was retirement age. In all, she wrote eight novels in that series, the last published as she turned 76. Her books have remained continuously in print and are considered classics of children’s literature.

  So the answer to the question “Is it ever too late?” is no. As you begin to see God’s hand in your story, you’re going to find the clues to your mission. Hopefully you picked up the sword long ago, but if not, never fear; it’s never too late.

  DOES A MISSION HAVE TO BE BIG?

  In books and in movies we love to hear about ordinary people doing extraordinary things, but in real life we’re often called to do small things over and over. My friend was telling me about the woman in her church who is the wedding coordinator. She’s held the volunteer job for twenty or thirty years. Theirs is a beautiful, historic church, one in which many a bride has walked down the aisle. Do you know why the woman continues to perform this time-consuming, often nerve-racking job? She says that it is a way to welcome strangers into the fellowship of the church—to make them feel like it is their home. She’s been extraordinarily successful at it, too. Many of the young couples that get married in that church come back and make it their own church home.