be still my heart

There! I just sent my nonfiction book proposal off to an unsuspecting agent at a major Christian literary agency. I felt a momentary pang of anxiety just before I hit "send"...

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...and then, I let out a huge sigh of relief. Done.

You may have had a similar experience even if you're not a writer. Perhaps you remember what it felt like when the school bus door closed behind your kindergartner on the first day of school.

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You worried about her. Was she safe? Would she get to her destination? How would she get along there?

Or, you may have felt a surge of self-doubt when you submitted your resume for that job you've always wanted.

Or, perhaps it happened when the doctor called you back in to go over your test results.

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As well as we prepare for things, as important as they are to us, they slip so easily out of our control. And that can be scary.

I picture my proposal arriving in the agent's in-box today and moldering there for an indefinite period of time. It could be months. Years, actually. During that period of time misgivings will haunt me. Until I know for certain what her response is I will obsess over it. If she rejects it, I'll have to go through the same process again and again. If she accepts it, I'll have deadlines and edits to face. All of it part of the journey.

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So...if you're sending you children off to school this month, or off to college, I hope it goes well for them--that they like their teachers, make new friends, and enjoy learning. I hope you get called in to interview for the job you want, or need. I hope your doctor has good news for you. Then you, too, can breathe a sigh of relief.

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Remember: Uncertainty and expectation sow the seeds of hope that only you can keep alive.

Now that my book proposal has gone in, I hope I can catch up on the laundry. I hope to get in an afternoon nap, and to make plans for the weekend. I hope my book is safe.

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"It doesn't hurt to be optimistic."

~Lucimar Santos de Lima~

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I hope you have an optimistic week!

jan