More than Dust in the Wind
Change is in the wind. Everywhere around us, my husband and I are experiencing drastic shifts in our lives. I’m sure many of you can relate, no matter what stage of life you’re in.
Two years ago, we uprooted from our home of almost twenty years and relocated across the country. Our new city is peopled by many millions. Before this, we mostly resided in small towns or cities of less than 250,000. This realigned our large family, turning every holiday upside down. There went our family traditions, thus provoking an identity crisis.
At Thanksgiving, my husband retired after being with the same employer for over forty years. This caused all sorts of upheaval, as it’s a major adjustment for him and thus, for me.
During all of this, I finished and then launched my fifth novel, based on my great-grandparents’ early lives during WW1. With the book’s completion, that depressing farewell to their world is now part of the emotional mix.
I’ve been feeling the angst of the 1970s song, “Dust in the Wind,” by Kerry Livgren of “Kansas.”
Now, don’t hang on, nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky
It slips away
And all your money won’t another minute buy
Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind
Dust in the wind
Everything is dust in the wind
[“Dust in the Wind” lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC]
If that sounds like something from Ecclesiastes, it’s because the song lyrics reflect what Solomon also experienced. Though he had everything, he realized that no matter what, he would still die, and all his work would amount to dust.
Cheerful, right? All of this has weaseled down into my heart.
As writers, our emotions and the spiritual place from which we process our work, our family, and our circumstances impact what we write and how we write it. I’m glad all this dust is settling during the holiday season, when all eyes are on Jesus.
No matter who we are, each year we discover that these holidays are different than the last. We march through life, and things change. Rather than despair as we reflect on what is altered, how much better to focus on the One who orders all our days. The holidays circle around him.
These changes, this upheaval, these relocations, this volatile publishing industry, these constant marketing challenges, these changes in tradition, our days winding down—all are gifts from God, even if we don’t understand why or how.
I have seen the burden God
has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He
has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has
done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for people than
to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink
and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. (Ecclesiastes
3:10-13 NIV)
Though our bodies will one day be dust in the wind, our souls are eternal, and our life experiences are shaped by God specifically to draw us toward him, to mold us into the image of his Son, and to accomplish his purposes. This is all far more than dust in the wind, for we are blessed by this reality:
“I know that my Redeemer lives, and
that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been
destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own
eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27 NIV)
With this awaiting us, we need not lament the loss of what once was. But rather, we can attach ever more securely to the One who inspires everything we do.
Fix your eyes on Jesus this holiday season, especially if life has been all sorts of messy. As always, he’s the reason we live and the reason we write. God bless you in your journey, dear writer!
Though our bodies will one day be dust in the wind, our souls are eternal, and our life experiences are shaped by God specifically to draw us toward him. #WritingLife #WriterEncouragement #seriouslywrite #encouragementforwriters via @MelindaVInman
The Shadows Come
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| The Shadows Come |
Sequel to No Longer Alone
Germany threatens all of Europe. Millions have died. President Woodrow Wilson makes the declaration that the United States must enter the Great War to rescue our allies. Congress approves. Our story begins.
In America’s heartland, everyone hunkers down to provide food for the world and resources for the war effort. A draft is necessary, and all young men must register. One by one, these are called to war. With this threat looming, Prentis and Avery raise the necessary horsepower, cultivate the needed crops, and contribute their labors to the Red Cross. But crises at home, an insidious busybody, and one after another called up to fight in Europe bring the greatest dangers they’ve ever faced together. Then there’s the influenza pandemic. Will they survive the war abroad and the war being waged at home, threatening their love and their lives? Will their loved ones make it home alive?
Set in 1917-1919, The Shadows Come is based on a true story.
Available in paperback and e-book on Melinda’s Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Melinda-Viergever-Inman/e/B00GFYI0RU/ref
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| Melinda V. Inman |
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Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00GFYI0RU
