Cathy C. Hall Writes

“There never seems to be enough time to do the things you want to do, once you find them.”

Remember that song “Time in a Bottle” by Jim Croce? It was back in…well, never you mind when it was back in. The point is, Jim Croce makes a good point. I’m always finding something…a blog, a book, a contest, a conference, even an idea that I’d like to follow, read, create, attend or write about. But finding the time for them all is not as easy.

That’s why I like when Cynthia Leitich Smith runs her “Cynsational News and Giveaways” posts. There’s just so much packed into those posts, but it’s easy to skim, looking for the bits and pieces you want to keep. Take her latest newsy post here. Looking for a new agent? Interested in book giveaways? How about a retreat? Or how royalties work?

You’ll find all that and more in just that one post. Of course, you can follow her blog every day. She has tons of wonderful writers, guesting posts and giving their expertise.

But then, you’d have to find a lot more time in your bottle.

So we’re driving home from church, and it being Easter Sunday, the all-grown-up Junior Halls were sitting in the back seat.

Now, it’s not easy to get out of the parking lot on a regular Sunday, but for Easter, it’s a real test of patience and Christian love. We waited…and waited…and waited. Suddenly, Juniorette Hall piped up from the back seat.

“What are you doing, John?”

“Do you mind?” he asked. “I’m reading our (wonderful and scathingly brilliant) mom’s story in this book.”

He was holding my copy of Flashlight Memories. I brought it along a week or so ago on an out-of-town trip (and read the stories). Somehow, it had migrated to the back seat and out of my mind. All I can say is thank goodness for (inquisitive) Junior Halls sitting in the back seat.

Flashlight Memories is such a delightful book! The (incredibly industrious) folks over at Silver Boomer Books gathered a ton of (charming) stories related to favorite reading memories, especially from those childhood days when the love of reading first takes root. I wrote about my favoritest little Golden Book, “A Pickle for a Nickel” by Lillian Moore. I sigh every time I think of that funny, little storybook.

And now, here’s where you can order your own copy of Flashlight Memories and here’s where you can read about the authors published therein (bet you’ll recognize a couple names!).

So, that’s the end of that story (never let it be said that the all-grown-up Junior Halls are good for nothing).