We did hard things

Just got back from Dallas where we attended the Christian Book Expo (CBE) on Friday and Saturday. Only 1500 of the expected 15,000 attendees attended it. The cost to get in appeared to be the biggest factor in keeping the anticipated crowds away. Apparently the event organizers did not anticipate that the $20+ ticket price per day would be such a turn-off in this economy.

My sister and I paid $48 to have two-day access to 200+ Christian authors and publishers. We were glad there were no long lines to stand in to meet Max Lucado, Lee Strobel, Susan Meissner and other top selling Christian authors. But then, as an author myself, I couldn't help but feel the disappointment for such a low turnout.Here's my kids (the blondes) with my niece (tie-dye) flanked by authors Brett and Alex Harris.

My kids -- who all got in free -- were glad to meet the teenage authors of "Do Hard Things," Alex and Brett Harris. And believe me, it was a hard thing to spend our hard earned pennies to travel 700 miles (one way), pay to park, pay for two adults to get in the door, and witness the tragedy of God-loving authors idly drumming their fingers on stacks of unsold books...even though we did our part to buy what we could. But we did the show. And now we're home. And we are no worse for the wear.

If only it could talk...

Bill found a 1892 penny in the sand today. (I scanned it and enlarged the image for better viewing.) Most of our town is sand -- Hooper is located in one of the highest agricultural deserts in the world. At about 7700 feet, our desert town is located between two mountain ranges, about 20 miles west of the Great Sand Dunes National Park.

This penny may have been dropped by one of Hooper's early settlers, perhaps as this person recently got off the train that once ran nearby. Or perhaps a young lad, tired of gathering wood for his family's stove, sat on a stump to rest, only to have this penny slip unwittingly from his pocket. Or maybe it fell from the grasp of a teenage girl as she played tag with the neighborhood boys. Hmmm.

It is corroded. At least in appearance. Within its remaining copper being, however, I believe it has a voice -- just waiting for someone to listen to the tales of its journeys. Lucky for it, I am that someone.

What now?

The school held the closing assembly on March 5. Here's me reminding the kids of the power of pennies, with 24 bags of pennies beside me (that's $1,200!!!).

I have spent the past two and half months with the penny project at our school. I am referred to schoolwide now as "the Penny Lady" or, lately, as "Miss Penny." Besides hosting pizza parties for the classes who raised the most money, we're all done with the project. The kids raised $1,227.26, which includes $7 from a Colorado Springs couple who read about it in The Denver Post, and just over $60 from Mint employees who just wanted to help out with our cause. Amazing! I visited the 4th graders today to read a chapter of my penny manuscript. We talked about character development, showing and not telling the story and if they would want to read more. (Yes to that last one! Are you listening Mr./Mrs./Ms. Publisher?!)

What now? Two other school districts in the area have expressed an interest in having me do the story portion of the penny project at their schools after their spring breaks. I'm looking at some revisions to the manuscript to perhaps appeal to more editors...such as moving chapter 10 to chapter 1 and pushing the back story back a few chapters. Hmm. And I am preparing for a trip to Dallas to attend the Christian Book Expo and mingle with authors and editors. Of course, my 1973 penny will travel with me.