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Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Booksigning!



I'm really jumping the gun on this but I couldn't wait to announce it. I'm as excited as a kid on Christmas Eve! In March, I'm attending a booksigning with eight of my fellow Kentucky romance authors. This one is special (to me) because it's my very first. Ever!

I know it's early, but I'm posting the information anyway. It's possible, and highly likely, that more authors will be added to the roster of those signing books. As that happens, I'll update the list.

Mark your calendar and, if you happen to be in the Lexington area that day, I'd love it if you'd stop in and visit. I'll post another reminder when the date draws nearer. Hope to see you there!

Devon


Barnes & Noble Booksellers
1932 Pavilion Way, Lexington, KY (I-75 & Man O War)
Friday, March 27, 2009, 6:00-8:00 PM
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHORS ATTENDING, AS OF TODAY

Jan Scarbrough
Maddie James
Magdalena Scott
Sheryl Brennan
Sloan Seymour
Teresa Reasor
Tracy Preston
Anya Bast
Devon Matthews

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Gone Home



This has been one week I won't soon forget. Too many goodbyes and sleepless nights.

My mother came up from Texas a couple of weeks before Christmas. It was the first time in nine years she'd made the trip during the winter. It was good to have her here, but the entire visit was tinged with a sense of foreboding and sadness for the time when she would have to leave again. Then the time came. Too soon. When I put her on the bus in the wee hours of the morning on Friday, as I watched through the window while she shambled along the crowded aisle, looking for a seat, I had to physically restrain myself from rushing through the door and snatching her off again. But I knew she had to go. Her possessions are in Texas, not to mention the doctors who care for her many health problems. So I stood there--braced against the brick wall outside the bus station--trembling with cold and raw emotion. I watched her settle in a seat. Then she found me through the window and blew kisses. I blew them back while tears streamed down my face and I hoped she didn't see them. Then, the driver turned off the interior lights and I couldn't see her anymore. Too soon, the bus started to pull away. I watched until it faded from sight out on the highway. And as I walked to my car, I missed her already. And I wondered--as I always do--if this would be the last goodbye.


I spent the next 27 hours on pins and needles, until this morning when I received the phone call, letting me know mom had made it home safe and sound, and more than a little exhausted. Maybe tonight I'll rest a little easier and get some sleep, now that I know mom is safe and comfortable in her own bed.


Seeing mom off on the bus wasn't the only goodbye I've had during the past couple of days. This evening, I attended the wake of a dear friend and extended family member. She died quite suddenly Thursday afternoon. She was only 5 years older than me and all I could think about was all the time we'd spent together when we were young. The pranks and, oh, the laughter we shared. The one constant about her was her ready smile and quick laughter. As I stood inside the funeral parlor, this was what I heard over and over again from the folks who came to pay their respects. She was always happy, always quick to laugh. The strange thing is, on the surface it seemed as though she had very little reason. I've known a lot of people who died from various ailments and diseases, but this dear soul surely suffered more during her short life than many of those. She developed diabetes several years ago. That was the beginning. Then her kidneys failed and, although she was on the list for a new kidney, she never received one and continued on dialysis until the end. A couple of years ago, the doctors removed one of her legs because it was becoming gangrenous--complications from the diabetes. Then, just a few months ago, they removed her other leg. But through the constant complications, therapy, recoveries, and the loss of both limbs, she never lost her smile and her laughter would burst forth at the drop of a hat. This was the one thing all of us who knew her remember most--she never pitied herself and she always seemed happy.


Bert, I know you're in a better place, but your time here was much too brief. You'll be missed, and I think the rest of us could learn a lesson from you.


Peace,

Devon

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

New Multiple Author Blog

Just want to let you all know that I've been invited by the ladies over at Inspiration, Ink to join their group blog. My links and pics are already up, and my "official" introduction is slated for this Friday, the 16th. If you get a chance, drop by and leave me a comment. Hope to see you there!

Devon

Saturday, January 10, 2009

In With the New

Hello out there and Happy New Year! Been a long time between posts and I'm in the process of updating. Much has happened during the past eight months and I hope to catch up with all the news very soon.

Meanwhile, if anyone out there has me linked somewhere, I have a new web site. Here's the url -- http://www.devonmatthews.net/

More to come. Promise.

Later,
Devon