I wrote it all. How the bong years began. The memories, both good and bad. The horrors and the joys. Friends and tormentors. Carl and Angie. Ronny and Mom. Kyle and Cheryl. Lisa and Janice. Catch basins teemed with urban run-off and inky tributaries swelled, as I became the San Gabriel River spilling into the Pacific toward my Catalina sanctuary.
I set down my pen, fisted and extended cramped fingers, and pulled out the drawer on my nightstand. I dug under lipstick tubes, old tissues and Juicy Fruit gum wrappers to find the buried abalone necklace that I’d shoved in there after I’d taken it off that first morning. I placed it in the center of my palm, gazed at the colors, and returned to the island.
Thankful for that memory.
Thankful to be alive.
THE END
Dear reader,
We hope you enjoyed reading Finding Joy. Please take a moment to leave a review, even if it’s a short one. Your opinion is important to us.
Discover more books by Laurie Woodward at https://www.nextchapter.pub/authors/laurie-woodward-childrens-fiction-author
Want to know when one of our books is free or discounted? Join the newsletter at http://eepurl.com/bqqB3H
Best regards,
Laurie Woodward and the Next Chapter Team
Acknowledgments
This book would not have been possible without the support of several friends and family. First, I would like to thank Next Chapter, and its CEO, Miika Hannila, for taking a chance on me. It is an honor and privilege to be part of a publishing company that respects and supports its authors. A huge debt of gratitude goes out to Debbie Stiles and Tony Bartholow. When my computer crashed with the final copy of this novel trapped inside, you invited me into your home so Tony’s technical wizardry could retrieve it. I owe you!
I’d also like to thank the Coastal Dunes Branch of the California Writers Club. This book took me to dark places, and I would have given up on several occasions, had it not been for your support and encouragement. Very special thanks go out to my go-to reader, the talented screenwriter, Leland Zaitz. Your patience, sharp eye, and honed craft have long helped to mold my work into the best it can be.
Once again, I would like to acknowledge my students both present and past. Your beautiful hearts continue to give my life meaning while inspiring me daily to find the joy in all of us. Also, to my fellow educators and school personnel: your hard work and dedication makes me proud to call myself an educator. Your extraordinary gifts often go unsung but know that children are finding the magic inside themselves because of what you do.
Most of all to my son and daughter: Nicholas and Jessica. All your lives, you have patiently waited while I scribbled away at my notepad or bent over the computer keys. Sometimes I was so lost in the dream that you might have had to call me twice to bring me back to reality. But neither of you ever complained. I think you always understood that when I got a distant look in my eye, I was not forgetting you. I was just dreaming of other worlds. But these worlds could never have taken shape without the love we share. And finally, to my mother, Claudia Stuart. So young when I was born, you hardly had a childhood. Yet you still endeavored to do the best you could. You have always modeled strength for me. For this, I am eternally grateful.
Finding Joy Page 23