Julie Worthington

Glitches

by Julie Worthington
February 10, 2018

Computers aren’t the only things that have glitches…

As I pondered the “new updates” that had to be installed on my computer last night (they took all night and most of the morning), I thought of how our lives have glitches as well. There are many different kinds of glitches in life, health problems, accidents, or a good dose of Murphy’s Law happening to you. We all have to deal with them in one way or another, and in one way or another they define who we are…

In my book New Parish, Sarah runs into one glitch after another in trying to live her dream. The biggest glitch is finding a decent man to marry and have a family with, but there are many more glitches, such as dating problems, family interventions, animal accidents, the wrong guy, the right guy who she thinks if the wrong guy, a couple of storms, and finally finding the life she always wanted in a very different situation.

New Parish Coming Soon!!!!!!!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Sarah gathered herself together as best she could and began walking toward the stall which looked like it would be too close quarters for her and the cowboy. With her focus on the stall she didn’t see what was on the barn floor just ahead of her. The second step she took, her foot stepped into something soft and slimy. Her foot slid forward and upward, the rest of her went backward and downward… hard. As she lay there on the floor of the barn with the aroma of what she’d stepped in wafted strongly around her she thought, “It just figures!””

Glitches happen… so if you find any glitches in this post… glitches happen, especially when we’re not expecting them.

Places That Haven’t Changed in Over a Hundred Years…

by Julie Worthington
February 3, 2018

I’ve recently visited some places that haven’t changed in over a hundred years. They still look the way they did when the earliest pioneers came out west to settle the place. The raw rustic beauty was amazing, in some places you could see forever, in some places you were near walls of mesas that jutted up from the ground to the heights where eagles fly. These places reminded me of friendships I’ve had over the years, some friendships I know will go on forever, and some have elevated me to new heights… Each new friendship we make in our lives has the possibility to do that for us – be something that will last forever and or lift us to new heights.

In my book New Parish Sarah finds new friends that will last forever and lift her to new heights… It all begins with her new friend Mary who comes out to Atlanta to do her work study for the teaching program she’s in. Mary is from a community out west where they live differently, well… they live marriage a little differently. Mary tells Sarah about plural marriage in her community, New Parish, and about life out there. This leads Sarah into an investigation that will change her life forever and lift her to new heights…

New Parish Coming Soon!!!!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Sarah looked in the full-length mirror to check herself out, everything was great except her hair, she frowned.

Mary noticed, “You look lovely. What’s wrong?”

“My hair,” Sarah complained grabbing a handful of her hair on each side of her head, “I’ve never really been able to tame it. I usually just pull it back into a pony tail because that’s the extent of my hair prowess, but this is an occasion I wish I had more skills with hair.”

“I’ll do it for you,” Mary cheerily volunteered, “What sort of “do” do you want?”

Sarah laughed, “I have no idea.”

“Humm, okay let’s see what you like. We can try a few different styles if that’s okay?” Mary suggested.

“It’s more than okay,” Sarah said gratefully.

Mary smiled and held up a brush in one hand and a comb in the other, and said, “Let’s do this.”

The next half hour was spent showing Sarah different styles of “up dos”. When one was finally selected Sarah looked at herself again in the mirror, holding another mirror so she could see the back of her hair too, “Wow, I didn’t know my hair could look that pretty.” They both laughed and quickly gathered their jackets to go.”

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The Story Continues…

by Julie Worthington
January 27, 2018February 2, 2018

As things are moving closer to New Parish getting published, my mind reflects on the fact that the story doesn’t end there… The next book Return to New Parish continues the story with Sarah’s younger sister, Hannah, you’ll meet her in the first book, New Parish. Then the third book which I’m writing now, Home to New Parish, continues the story even further with Brenda, Sarah’s oldest sister. There’s a fourth one in the planning for the fourth sister, Beth, I’m calling it, Passion in New Parish. Each sister has a very different journey that is unique to them and their situation.

In New Parish, Sarah wants to get married and have children, she’s not willing to settle for less than a good decent man to do that with, which starts her investigation into this living differently scenario, and many sitcom moments throughout her story. Her sisters journeys have very different paths, but Sarah is the trailblazer for all of them, in that she finds a way to have her happily ever after out west in the desert living a bit differently.

Just like Sarah and her sisters our stories never really stop… when one adventure ends another is waiting just around the corner to begin.

New Parish Coming Soon!!!!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Later that night there was a knock on Sarah’s bedroom door, “Come in,” she said, but Hannah had already opened the door and was entering the room.

“Hey,” she said tentatively.

“Hey,” Sarah replied curiously.

“So, tell me about this New Parish place and plural marriage,” Hannah said, as she plopped down and the end of Sarah’s bed and sat with her legs crossed like an Indian – just like she used to do when they were kids.

“What do you want to know?” Sarah inquired with surprise.

“You’re not the only one who’s had “dating” experiences with guys who aren’t who you want to spend your life with. If this is a good thing, I might think about considering it too,” explained Hannah.

“Oh,” Sarah said, now in complete surprise. “Okay, well, what I’ve learned is that they have the same beliefs we were taught growing up in the church, [LDS Church], except, they still have everything that was restored and didn’t give anything up, back in the day.”

“Okay, so how do they do it?” Hannah urged her sister on.

“They use an old traditional matchmaking system, but no dowries, the girls have freedom to choose and get out of the marriage if it’s not working out. Brother Michael, the church leader is so funny…”

Sarah spent over two hours explaining what she had learned to Hannah. When Hannah finally left her room, Sarah felt like she somehow understood the whole thing better. As she lay there drifting off to sleep she thought, “Maybe explaining to Hannah clarified things in my own mind.” She felt very much at peace with things, and hoped she could stay that way.”

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Monkey Wrenches

by Julie Worthington
January 20, 2018

We’ve all had times in our lives, when we’re sure someone threw a monkey wrench into what we had planned, or gotten a complete surprise that we weren’t expecting. Sometimes it’s a snow storm that keeps us from doing what we intended, or an illness, or simply being in a big hurry and forgetting something we definitely need when we were out of the house. These things happen so very often in real life that of course I have to use them in my writing… I love working with monkey wrenches! In New Parish Sarah gets hit with many monkey wrenches, some are small and trivial, some are simply annoying, but some are huge and, at times, she thinks, insurmountable.

Sarah is a high-tech modern girl with a few old fashioned values, she simply wants to get married and be that soccer mom that she’s always dreamed of being. Her huge monkey wrench is that she can’t find a fella to do that with…

New Parish Coming Soon!!!!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Around lunch time she headed out to the children’s center. As she walked down the busy Atlanta sidewalks she looked around at the horde of people on their way to their next destination. She thought about when she’d first moved to Atlanta and how excited she’d been to be living in a big city with so much going on. She’d lost that excitement: it had turned into a tired frustration. The city hadn’t contributed to her dreams at all, her experiences there had diminished them. Her thoughts went to how much her goals and dreams had fragmented over the last few years. Her career was great, but she’d planned on being married and having at least three children by the age of twenty-seven. She sighed thinking, “I have neither a husband or children.” Her frustration on this was starting to grow beyond the normal parameters. Her thoughts turned to her job, “Right out of college, I got this great job, doing what I love, being a graphic artist for children’s books. I’ve worked hard, and now I’m the top artist in the company. I chose this career so I could be a stay at home mom. Sheesh! What’s a girl gotta do to make her dreams come true?”

Extremely loud sirens jolted Sarah out of her thoughts, she jumped and looked to see what was happening. “Oh, it’s just the cops,” she thought and walked on. No one else seemed to notice. Sighing she thought, “Growing up in Savannah didn’t really prepare me for living in the big city of Atlanta, or the daily adventure each time I leave my apartment.”

She continued down the sidewalk a few more blocks and entering the children’s center, went to the front desk to sign in. She quickly scanned the sign-in sheet to see if Mary was already there. She was.

“I can’t believe I’m actually going to ask her about this plural marriage thing,” Sarah thought to herself. “Am I really that desperate?” her thoughts were interrupted by a large group of preschoolers running up to her with giggles and open arms for needed hugs. She spent the next hour playing and reading to them. This calmed her mind, it was therapy for her – her dream of having a big family with lots of children was both eased and made more difficult by the involvement with her little friends.”

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Friends…

by Julie Worthington
January 13, 2018

We’ve all known them, friends, those who come into our lives for a short time, those who we’ve known our whole lives, and those who come into our lives to stay – and change our lives forever. As I’ve said before, I pull from my own experiences when I write. So, I’ve pulled from personalities and characters, bits and pieces of people I’ve either known or heard stories about to create the friends Sarah encounters in my book New Parish. To me this brings the characters to life and gives them depth, because after all, I really know them…

It all begins with Mary, who’s out in Atlanta working on her bachelor’s degree at the local children’s center, where Sarah volunteers. They become fast and true friends, which opens up a whole new world for Sarah… Mary becomes that new friend, who not only becomes one of those who come into her life and changes it forever, but introduces her to more of new friends who become her, forever best friends.

New Parish Coming Soon!!!!!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Sarah’s mind went to something her new friend Mary had said when they were working together at the children’s center. Mary had mentioned her home, a place called New Parish in Arizona; she had explained that she was only going to be there for a while, just until she finished her degree in early childhood development with the work study program she was involved in at the children’s center.

That day, Sarah had been complaining about the poor dating prospects and her dream of being a mom floating away from her. Mary revealed to her that in the community she came from the people did plural marriages, so any girl could get a good man and not have to worry about missing out on being a mom. Her descriptions of her home made it sound like a little piece of heaven, where people lived happy lives, and found their happily ever afters.

Sarah sighed, thinking of the small rural community Mary had described, “Maybe…””

……

““Mary!” Sarah waved as she entered the room.

Mary was working with a group of three year olds on coloring pictures of shapes.

“Hi!” was Mary’s cheery reply.

“Do you have some time to talk today?” Sarah asked, noticing Mary’s strawberry blonde hair. She always had it done in some really pretty style, today it was rolled up behind with a pretty colorful clip in it. Sarah liked how petite Mary was, she was only about five feet tall and very slender with bright green eyes that always seemed to be ready to smile.

“Yes, in about ten minutes when these little guys get to go to the gym,” Mary answered.

“Cool,” said Sarah, “I’ll wait around in the garden room.”

“Okay, see you there,” Mary said, as Sarah waved and walked away.

Sarah was checking messages on her phone when Mary joined her on a bench underneath a big tree. “Hi, what’s up?” asked Mary.

“Well I don’t know if I’m really desperate, stupid, or what, but I wanted to ask you about that whole plural marriage thing that goes on where you’re from,” Sarah said with some apprehension.

“Oh?” was all that Mary said as she sat down beside Sarah and waited for her to continue.

“Yeah, well, how does it work?”

“Very well, I think,” Mary said, looking quizzically at Sarah.

“Oh come on! What do they do? What’s the process? Are they miserable? Are the women conditioned to be in these relationships, like “Stepford Wives”? Do men abuse the women? How do the women get along? Are they mean to each other?” Sarah bombed Mary with all the serious questions she could think of, and in a way, trying to talk herself out of further inquiry.”

…….

““All I can tell you is that my mothers all seem very happy, they don’t attack each other, they’re really good friends. They’re always joking around and laughing, I haven’t seen any of that attack stuff,” Mary replied, now looking at Sarah with concern.”

I can’t wait to share the whole story with everyone! Very soonish…

Book Cover

by Julie Worthington
January 6, 2018

I’ve worked for a long time to get to this point, and now that it’s finally happening, I’m enjoying every moment of it. Last week we went out to a special place near New Parish for a photo shoot. We did two days of shooting, and now have some fun decisions to make on what pictures to use for the New Parish book cover. I guess I hadn’t given this part of the book much thought before now, but it’s really fun.

I’m learning so much about all the aspects of, the rest of the story, of writing. Putting a book together and getting it ready for publishing has a lot of details to be tended to. There’s copyrights and ISBN numbers to be purchased, there’s editing, there’s the publisher/printer, there’s marketing, there’s the synopsis and author bio to be written, and reviews to be gathered… Then there’s book covers to be created and book launches… it’s loads of work but I’m having a lot of fun along the way.

I’ve been so focused on the actual writing for so long that this new adventure is a refreshing change… then when it’s all done, I of course will return to New Parish. I can’t stay away from that story for long… Sarah’s journey to New Parish has been an all encompassing journey for me to write, although it’s fiction, it’s full of real life situations, difficult decisions, and choices that will change the course of lives forever. Just as New Parish beckons Sarah, it also calls me back…

New Parish Coming Soon!!!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Sarah felt like a cool fresh breeze was blowing inside her, “This is so refreshing and energizing to finally be a part, of the next part of my life,” she thought. “I’m going to use this time before being matched, as a learning and adjusting time. I want to learn what it’s actually like to live in such a large family on a regular basis and determine what I need to change or fine tune in myself to be successful in this new life. I’m going to figure out how to do this…””

…….

“At dinner that night Sarah was starting to reflect on the changes that were happening in her life. It was still a bit surreal for her, that she was back in New Parish, and preparing for her dreams to come true. Her thoughts turned to the gratitude she had that her parents hadn’t disowned her. Even though she knew they didn’t really support her choice she was glad they were accepting it. She was again glad they’d come out to New Parish with her. She deep down wanted them to know, that she wasn’t joining a cult or moving into a commune of weirdos.

Her mom interrupted her thoughts when she leaned over and whispered, “There are so many conversations going on till I don’t know how anyone knows what’s happening.”

Sarah smiled and said, “Just think of it like Thanksgiving dinner with a few extra.”

Her mother’s eyes widened as she whispered, “A few?!?””

New Year – New Year’s Resolutions

by Julie Worthington
December 30, 2017

As The Chimes ring in a new year, I have much to be thankful for and much to look forward to. There have been Hard Times over the past few years, but I have Great Expectations for this next year! The Long Voyage through this writing journey has taught me that The Battle of Life has many ups and downs for us all to learn from. My first book New Parish is looming on the New Year horizon! I’m so very excited about all the possibilities this will bring… I’m no Dickens but I do enjoy turning a phrase to maybe make someone think a bit, when I’m writing. New Parish is a bit of A Tale of Two Cities, because Sarah comes from living in a big city, Atlanta, to living in a small community, New Parish, and finding the life she wants to live.

A new book published, a new magazine in the works, lots of writing, lots of research, lots of good times ahead for me! I hope everyone’s new year is as fun, fulfilling, and wonderful as mine’s going to be!

New Parish Coming Soon!!!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“The flight to Atlanta ran into a lot of turbulence, Sarah felt like it was a foreboding warning of what was ahead for her. In her mind when the plane landed the turbulence didn’t end, her inner turmoil was in full force. What was she going to do? She tried to put the decision out of her mind. She was home and she needed to get back into her routine with work, and volunteering, and life as she knew it, “That’ll calm everything down,” she thought.

She was wrong, she was very wrong, although she tried very hard over the next few days to get back into her old routine, and to work through the turbulence of the decision, the decision was ever present and all consuming.

Sarah decided to get an email out to Hannah, before things got too far out of control for her. Writing to Hannah sometimes helped her calm down and see things in a clearer perspective.

Hi Hann

So, I went out to New Parish and had a really good visit, I asked so many questions you wouldn’t believe! They were very open and honest with me about everything. I met a lot of people who were very nice. I got to know Brother Michael’s wives a bit and they’re great. I tried to sort out which kid belonged to which mom and I’m still not sure on most of them…

I met a guy that was so incredibly handsome I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw him. Too bad he’s one of those macho jerks we both avoid like the plague. He’s a full on cowboy, yeah I know you’d like his horse. LOL

It’s weird now to be back in Atlanta, I feel sort of out of sync like here or there, one, is surreal. I have to decide what I’m going to do, I can’t focus on work or anything really, so I have to figure this out soon. I’m going to check with mom and see if the condo is available soonish…

How’s school? How’s work? Any cute guys?

Love ya

Sarah

After being home for a week, she was completely miserable. She’d intentionally not contacted Mary or Brother Michael, because she wanted to make sure she was making this decision without any other influences, she wanted this decision to be her decision. Invitations came in from several friends for New Year’s Eve parties, she turned them all down and spent the evening alone thinking about New Parish, dating, children, and what she wanted for the rest of her life.”

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Christmas in New Parish

by Julie Worthington
December 23, 2017

My mind has been reflecting on Christmases past. There have been wonderfully happy times that will linger in my memories throughout eternity. Watching my children reach a level of joy that could only be associated with Christmas morning, reading the story of the first Christmas to them, and of course all the covert and sneaky activities throughout the year to create the Christmas morning that will last forever.

As I reflect on those Christmases past, my thoughts drift over to the Christmases I’ve written about in New Parish. These Christmases are filled with family, large families, and Christmas traditions that have been observed in these families for generations. Sarah’s first Christmas in New Parish is as a guest in her friend Mary’s home, as she investigates maybe moving west herself – she finds a Christmas morning that will linger in her memory forever…

New Parish Coming Soon!!!

Excerpt of New Parish:

“On Christmas morning Sarah and Mary were up early because Mary said Sarah, “didn’t want to miss this!” Entering the main sitting room, it looked to Sarah like a magical place of happiness. The tree was full of colored lights and was filled to the brim with ornaments that depicted children, toys, and candy, and all sorts of Christmas happiness. The tree had been there when Sarah first arrived and she’d immediately loved it. Mary had complained that she missed the decorating and explained to Sarah that the whole family gets in on the event, they put the tree up together, place the lights together, hang the ornaments together, make homemade things like popcorn and cranberry garland together and put it on together. She’d given Sarah the whole run down on Christmas at her home.

The presents that had been added over night were covering a third of the room and there was a table with hot chocolate, marshmallows, and cool-whip. The table, with hot chocolate, made Sarah think of that “incident” she had been trying not to think of, she quickly put that out of her mind. The room looked and felt like Christmas, the best part of Christmas, you could feel it when you walked in… the kids were all filing in with excitement in their eyes and big smiles on their faces. Everyone was in their pajamas. This made Sarah think of her own childhood and the wonderful feelings she had on Christmas morning. This made her both happy and sad, as a deep longing to share this type of experience with her own children filled her heart.

Brother Michael came in last and as the kids excitedly jumped up and down pleading with him for permission to open presents he laughed and said, “Okay, have at it.” They did just that, there was a present opening frenzy the likes of which Sarah had never seen. She watched as Brother Michael slowly walked over and put his arms around two of his wives and kissed each on the cheek. Sarah smiled thinking she might like something like this, “It could really work… maybe,” she thought.”

Oh yeah, just wait till you read what happens at Christmas time in Return to New Parish… I can’t wait to share that with you too!

Merry Christmas!

Winter Chill

by Julie Worthington
December 16, 2017

The winter chill has arrived early this year. Outside the wind feels like it’s coming from the polar regions, the trees have lost their leaves, and nature is going into brrrr mode. This time of the year is the perfect time for a nice cup of hot cocoa and warm visits with friends and family.

On Sarah’s journey to New Parish she finds new family and friends to share not only hot cocoa and warm visits with, but also a whole new life that’s more than she ever imagined.

New Parish Coming Soon!

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Sarah didn’t get a chance to thank the cowboy but she thought, “I do need to.”

By that evening, she felt like she could move once again without shivering. The exhaustion of the morning was prevalent throughout the night and into the next day. She and Mary skipped church and stayed home bundled in pajamas and blankets. Susan had brought them in some hot cocoa before they left for church so they spent their morning sipping the hot cocoa and clinging to their blankets.”

Brigham Tea Magazine Coming Soon!

The next section of Brigham Tea Magazine I want to share with you is, Life More Abundantly, the fiction section. The first story in this section is called “A Day in the Life of a Sister Wife”. This story is an outtake of a day in Sarah’s life after she’s found her way to her new family. This story isn’t in the book New Parish, just a day in her life to share with everyone who might be interested in how things might work in a wonderful home where there’s more than one mom.

Excerpt from A Day in the Life of a Sister Wife:

“The mug of hot chocolate warmed her as she braced for impact. She knew tomorrow would be a supreme test of her “mom” skills.

………

“Sarah looked over the now deserted kitchen, except for Parley and Annie, and saw that Leah had cleaned away the lunch mess. Her thoughts organized a to do list – first – give Charlie some Tylenol, then call Del, next clean the laundry room… Her list stopped building abruptly as she saw Annie begin to doze off while still sitting in her chair.

“Oh, baby,” Sarah said sympathetically. She quickly got a warm cloth and washed Annie’s face and hands, then gently removed her from the highchair and took her to the nursery for her nap. Sarah turned on the baby monitor before leaving and grabbed the carry along to take with her.

Returning to the kitchen Parley let her know he was not happy.

“Okay, Dude,” she soothed him as she extracted him from the seat. “Just give me a second. We have to take Charlie some medicine.”

Sarah quickly grabbed the chewable medicine, looked to see how many to give, filled a water bottle for Charlie, and headed for the family room.

“Here you go buddy,” Sarah handed the medicine to Charlie and checked the time so she’d know when he could have some more if needed. “1:20,” she thought, “remember that.”

“Here’s a water bottle,” Sarah handed the bottle to Charlie. You need to drink lots of water, okay?”

Charlie nodded his agreement and sank back down into the sofa.

“I’m going to go feed Parley, then I’ve got some cleaning to do. If you need me just give a shout. I’ll be back to check on you in a bit.”

Charlie nodded again.

Sarah went to the den to feed Parley who didn’t want to wait one second longer. Finding a comfortable seat, she sat and began nursing Parley. “Sheesh,” she thought as her body began to relax. “I knew I was tired but, wow, it feels good to sit and rest for a moment.”

Rosie and Mia came bouncing in the room full of energy and giggles, “Can we go outside and play in the garden?” Rosie asked,

“Sweetie,” Sarah began apologetically, “Maybe later we can go out. I have a lot of work to do now, and Annie’s taking a nap, and I need to keep a check on Charlie, he’s sick.”

“Oh, okay,” Rosie shrugged. “We can help,” she offered.

“Okay,” Sarah replied. “You can quietly check on Charlie for me, but, don’t get to close to him just in case his sick is catching. Okay?”

“Yes!” Rosie and Mia agreed energetically.

The girls ran out of the den and Sarah’s thoughts returned to her to do list, “Call Del,” she said aloud…”

[Show slideshow]

Home for Christmas

by Julie Worthington
December 9, 2017

Going home can be wonderful, difficult, complicated, or even a great adventure. This week has been a journey of going home to see family and friends… Without getting too personal, I’ll just say this has been a great adventure! Planes, trains, and automobiles…
I guess the most complicated part has been the unexpected snow… it impaired my ability to go and see someone I dearly wanted to see. Life can be that way, unexpected things happen to change our plans… We live with those things, we learn from them, and we grow…

Excerpt from New Parish:

“Sarah’s memory of last year’s arrival continued in her mind, last year when there were shouts of “Aunt Sarah,” and nieces and nephews coming out to greet her. She wondered what the greeting would be this year. She didn’t have to wait long for her answer to that uncertain quandary. The door burst open just like last year and the usual shouts of, “Aunt Sarah,” rang out.”

…………..

“The last evening with her family was spent telling old stories and sharing new ones. Sarah told about how she and Max first met, everyone laughed, Dave laughed so hard he almost fell off the sofa.

Falling asleep that night Sarah thought, “This was nice, I’ll miss them but it’ll be good to get home. Home, she thought… home.””

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