Lost My Crown

Yes, I lost my crown.

No, not that one.








It was the one in my mouth. One on a back molar. I was just innocently eating a piece of brownie when I bit down on something hard. Pulling the piece from my mouth I realized it was a gold crown. My first thought was that it had to belong to someone else. I didn't feel it come off - my tooth didn't hurt (thank you Lord), and it just seemed to appear from nowhere.

I went to clean off the crown and brush my teeth and sure enough it was mine. Now at this point, I'm just glad I hadn't swallowed it, but then the questions started.

Why did this happen?
What do I do now?
How can I fix this?
How can I keep it from happening again?
Will this hurt?
Will it cost a lot of money?
Will this cause a lot of down time?

I realized that these were the same questions I always tend to ask whenever bad things happen. I always tend to want to over analyze a situation, figure out all the details, come up with quick fixes--when the best thing I can do is simply take the problem to someone who knows what they're doing.

So - in this situation - I called the dentist. He asked me a couple of questions. Then he preceded to tell me I could either get some Vaseline or Fixadent and put the crown back on myself - then see him on Monday for a permanent fix. OR If I didn't want to try that, I could just leave it off and be careful of chewing anything on that side and see him Monday. I opted for the latter. Why?

I've come to learn just how much I can mess up a situation by trying to take charge of something when I know nothing about it. Looking at that crown, I honestly couldn't tell which way it would even fit back on. What if I put it on backwards and then I couldn't get it off? What if I put it on and then it popped off again in my sleep and I swallowed it? Now, I'm sure some of you are very skilled and could have just put the silly thing back in place, but I had seen too many times when I boldly stormed the gates of life--unqualified--unprepared--and completely out of my element.

How many times could I have avoided complications to bad situations and hard times, if I would just take the problem to the One who knows what He's doing? God never demands I fix my life or take care of tragedies on my own. Often, however, He gives me free choice. You can take this action on your own.... OR You can wait on me.

I chose to wait for the dentist and I don't regret it. I'm still learning to wait on God. I wish it were a lesson I learned with ease or that I always go into without a second thought, but it's not. I am hopeful, however, that in time and with practice, it will come more naturally.

So now the crown is back on - in time for Thanksgiving - and I'm ever so thankful for the fact that everything is back as it should be. Well, except that my husband has to have rotator cuff surgery, and my son needs knee surgery, and my mother may need shoulder surgery. Hmmmm, how hard can it be to operate on someone?


Tracie

Heading into the Holidays

It's that time of the year again. Thanksgiving will soon be upon us, then we'll sail right into Christmas and New Year's and then all at once 2009 will be completed and we'll welcome 2010. It seems like just yesterday I was blogging about the new 2009 year. Sigh. Time is flying by.

Someone mentioned buying a Christmas tree the other day and I honestly thought they must have some sort of brain madness to even think about such a thing, then I realized that Christmas is only a little over a month away. 43 days - folks. 43 days until Christmas. This simply cannot be. I'm not ready. I'm too far behind. I haven't even celebrated Easter yet--have I?

Okay - so I have to get my act together.

I have to buy a turkey and find the Thanksgiving tablecloth. I need to dig up my family's favorite recipes and maybe find a couple of new ones to spring on them for the feast of thanks. Maybe you can help with that - if you have a favorite holiday recipe - send it my way.



Then I have to remember where I put the tree stand and those presents I bought for the grandkids earlier in the year. I need to get my son to take his snowboard out of the front room where I want to put the Christmas tree and figure out whether or not we can afford to put lights up outside. Of course we may be detered by the foot of snow that fell today and the other foot that is supposed to fall tonight. Guess we're literally waiting for the other foot to drop.

So here I go. I'm putting on my festive spirit and holiday hat and plunging in. Weeeeeeeeeeeee!
Tracie

Naming Books

This week has been loads of fun as I've been working with the publisher to title my Texas series. This is the series that will debut next fall. I like to write and title all three books before any of the series releases. I think the publisher likes that too.

It seems, however, that this was titling week for a lot of my author friends. Sometimes we joke about putting words like: love, heart, hope, tomorrow, promise, home, among others and pull them out of a hat for a title. Othertimes we are confident it's like drawing bingo balls only with words.


Unfortunately it's not that simple.




In truth - there is a super secret meeting in the basement of the publishing house. Only the most important folks are invited. These are the people who know the industry better than anyone and have super memories for all the titles ever written. Now titles can't be copyrighted, so they could call my book GONE WITH THE WIND, but it wouldn't be wise.

Anyway, I have never been invited to one of these super secret meetings. I am asked what I would like to call the book - but I think this is just so they can have a good laugh before getting down to business.

I'm convinced that what happens in the super secret titling meeting is this. Someone decides how many words the title needs to have. Then they make a list of the first and last names of those at the meeting and see how many words can be made from this. When they have a list of the words they give each of the words a number. Then they take the birth date of the person who's sitting in the secret chair (predetermined before the meeting and written on a secret card that must be taken from a lock box). The birthday numbers will then be used to pick the numbered words and from this - the title will be determined. But don't tell anyone that I shared this information with you or they might have to put me in the lock box with the card that tells which is the secret chair. :D

So after all that ordeal - my next series and 3 books are finally titled. Only, I can't tell you...not yet. But - if you take the letters of the names of the editors at Bethany House and the marketing guy and the p.r. ladies and mix them all together - you should have the letters of each title.

Tracie