Hmmm...Don't Know What to Call This One

Okay, here's the thing: I woke up this morning utterly uninspired to write.  (It happened yesterday morning, too; if you come here often, you might have noticed that.)  I've been making the mistake of comparing my little blog to all the other funny, smart, sassy, faith-filled, inspirational, informative (etc., etc.) Catholic mom blogs I follow: some of them that are so beautifully written, they read like actual literary masterpieces; some that fill me with a burning desire to improve my faith life drastically; and others that routinely make me belly laugh with abandon...And I've been doing that thing I do, which is wondering if this blog has a place amidst all that holiness, humor, and talent.

I'm not fishing for compliments, I'm really not--although I can see that I sound like I am.  (Please don't leave me any virtual pats on the back in the comment box; I was just venting, that's all.  And here I am, writing when I don't think I have anything noteworthy to say, so that's a step in the right direction!)  One should never compare himself to others, deep down I know this.  We are all unique souls equally beloved by God, and in our uniqueness, each of us has something to offer the world that no one else can offer (as hard as that is to believe sometimes).  And just as no two people are exactly alike, no two writers are exactly alike, and therefore no two blogs will ever be exactly the same.  And that's actually a good thing.

I read somewhere over the weekend that most regular blog readers take the weekend off--so Saturdays are a good day for bloggers to write about things no one really cares about, because no one is going to see those posts anyway.  This past Saturday, I wrote up and posted an homage to my #4 son, who was celebrating a birthday.  And obviously I really care about him!!  So I decided that for anyone who stopped by on Monday morning to see what was shaking here at String of Pearls, that post would make good reading (or re-reading, for you few loyal souls who check in here, rain or shine).  And with that adorable picture of my boy at four, he of the side-glancing smile and dimpled cheeks, I thought it would make good viewing, too.  So that got me off the hook yesterday, as far as coming up with something new to start the week.  And by golly, I'm not going to do any more posts about my family on the weekends if what they say is really true!  (Say it ain't so!)

Anyhoo, you nice readers you, I've been sitting here at my laptop, procrastinating, feeling so NOT like a writer, killing time by checking in on every sort of social media with which I've become acquainted recently, and I decided to stop by my book's Amazon page to see if there's been any action there lately.  And--yippee!--there was a new review posted.  For ages, the number has been holding at 13, but here's what reviewer #14 had to say about Finding Grace:

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Reviewed Finding Grace (Women's Inspirational Christian Fiction) ...

Settle in with a nice, long novel with a great story line!

January 28, 2014

 5.0 out of 5 stars

Finding Grace is a well-told coming-of-age story about a young Catholic girl whose faith surrounds her at home, at school and among friends. It is also an introduction to the lives of quite a few saints--both well-known and more obscure--as it drives home the message that everyone is called to be a saint. The author does a good job describing the interior struggles of an adolescent girl who wants to be a saint AND to have a family AND to fall in love.
 

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Reading that positive review was just the boost I needed to get excited about writing again.  I'm going to come back here tomorrow morning and just wow you with a post that'll knock your socks off.  Well, maybe not.  But at least I'm going to try.

In the meantime, if you know any teenaged girls (or women who are girls at heart) who like to read about young love, and about young heartthrobs who look something like the subject of this very amateur sketch (in red ink--huh?), which was rendered back in 1975 by a lovesick teenaged girl...

I think what reviewer #14 is trying to say is you should tell them about Finding Grace.

See you tomorrow.  I will, I mean it.