My Book Turns One Today!

I didn’t expect to have a baby so late in life. But in some ways, writing and publishing my memoir Light in Bandaged Places (published September 5, 2023) is the culmination of gestating a lifetime of struggle, learning, and growth. I mention both the writing and the publishing because these turn out to be two significantly different experiences.

Many people ask me if writing the book was cathartic. I always pause at this question because I think the expectation is that it was. But for me, it was more of a creative unfolding. Delightful, in that the creative process is joyful. If anything was cathartic, perhaps it was the post-publication speaking experience because giving a literal voice to my history is part of what heals. Attending to it, holding it with care and love is what heals—offering it so that anyone who might resonate with its themes and be seen and helped is what heals.

And … being so public with myself, the warts and the wonder, is … hard. Even as I felt fulfillment and enjoyment in sharing my story face-to-face with other humans, it took its toll on me. I spent the first nine months after launch day in a state of emotional and physical exhaustion - as many mothers do after giving birth! So the analogy holds up.

I’m proud of my book, of myself for birthing it, and primarily for doing the hard work of living and loving life despite the struggles, pain, and confusion. I’m proud of the little girl I was who stayed open, the adolescent who survived betrayal, the young woman who worked hard to understand and come out of the darkness, and the now older woman who lives in a state of gratitude and joy.

So please join me in celebrating this first birthday – like a doting mother, I am pleased and protective as Light in Bandaged Places continues to make its way in the world, hopefully encountering the people and opportunities it’s meant to find. Thank you to my large family of midwives, doulas, and caregivers - I couldn’t have done it without you!

The publishing world calls books older than six months “back-listed”, making room for newcomers on the scene. Yet, as with all children, the care, guidance, and love needed by a published book continue over its lifetime.

Here’s to many more birthdays, LIBP - may you live long and prosper!

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