It was on the worst day of her life, in May of 1997 - when the author’s arms hung paralyzed at her sides, when she howled like a wild animal because of the nerve pain, when she couldn’t lift her arms to wipe her hair-and-mucus-plastered face - that she begged God to give her a job, to give her purpose. She was only 47. Around her, life went on – family graduations, weddings, funerals… She tried her best to keep up with social traffic, and with her husband’s help, she looked presentable to the public. 
 
She didn’t know it then, but her pain was giving birth. The writer in her, being squeezed and pushed, was slowly coming through the birth canal of authorhood.
 
This collection consists of (She has to count twice because she can’t believe how many.) 61 thoughts and feelings that she memorized on her nature-trail prayer walks, and later dictated into a cassette recorder. (She couldn’t hold a pencil.) The work spans a 13-year period of the sufferer’s life who searched for a cure, visited many doctors, agonized through various modalities of physical therapy, and eventually agreed to try surgery with a 13% chance of recovery. 
 
“A MUST READ FOR ANYONE WHO STRUGGLES WITH CHRONIC PAIN.” Beautiful imagery. The author takes us on her journey that chronic-pain sufferers will recognize, regardless of affliction. From deep valleys of despair to high peaks of hope, she inspires readers to persevere and to rely on God’s strength to conquer every obstacle.  -Laurel Wenson, Author of “A Heart to Heal” 
 
“The entire reading filled me up like prayer. I literally cry when I read the poems. ‘Childhood’ really got to me.” -Anna Kierzkiewicz