Friday, March 23, 2007

Joy, from Melissa

You probably know the Little House books, written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Did you know that prequels have been written about Laura's grandmother and great-grandmother? Melissa Wiley wrote these wonderful books, in two series, called The Martha Years and The Charlotte Years.

I was so happy, a couple years ago, to discover that Melissa Wiley is a Catholic homeschooling mother with a blog. She's such a good writer, I almost think she should charge us to read her blog. Of course she won't, and of course I'm only joking, Melissa...about charging us, but not about how much I enjoy your writing.

Yesterday's post on Melissa's blog, for March 22, is so inspiring that I'm excited to share it with you. It's not a subject that you would necessarily think of when you think of joy: the serious illness of a child. At first glance, it reminds me of St. Francis of Assisi's definition of joy. But it is also about making a decision to be joyful, and shows how our own joyful attitudes can bring joy to our children. I hope you will run right over there to read it.

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