This Perfectly Imperfect Life

Happy Pub Day to @ahoffmanwriter whose #PracticalMagic turned 25 today! (25th anniversary edition not pictured) I came to Practical Magic the movie long before Practical Magic the book. For some reason I didn't read the book until 2010 while I was recovering from a sepsis infection that nearly caused me to lose my left kidney, with a fever was so high it damaged my heart. Both ate away my muscle mass. I was a mere "hours away from dying" by the time I arrived at the ER that July 5th. (And it was my husband The Marine who saved my life that morning without a doubt). I had followup surgeries that fall. My total recovery time was a year & a half to make sure the hole in my kidney healed fully and both heart and kidney functions returned to as normal as possible. During that time, while I couldn't do anything physical except the bare minimum, I was in an emotional and mental state of shock, not to mention physical pain. The only book I read during that time was Practi

"Roll The Stone Away is the true story that influenced the award-winning" Black Mountain Series by beloved friend and writing confidant Ann Hite. It's out in the world Tuesday 5/12. Ann's storytelling is pure magic! Ghost On Black Mountain and Where The Souls Go are my favorites from the Black Mountain books, though I've been known to recommend them all! One of my favorite memories from the #ReadSavannah event hosted by She Reads With Friends in 2016 was getting to meet Ann in person & chat with her for a while, and then there was the summer we spent working our way through The Artists Way by Julia Cameron, emailing weekly. She's (Ann) creative inspiration and creative support wrapped up in a generous, beautiful soul. I'm already deeply struck by these words from the back cover: "...they have a better understanding of what it takes to survive one's history and own it without shame." This is something I've been wrestling with since Mom