Monday, February 13, 2006

Home is Where You're Going

I guess it's just the oddity of being me, (we're all quite odd, you know?), but the same day I received my delightful little package from Method, I also received another pretty amazing package in the mail. It was a banner day for mail call, I suppose. Now, why I chose to write about the Method package first, I don't know exactly. Except that it's the oddity of being me. Anyway, I'll write about it now.

On Friday, I received in the mail a copy of a book which contains an essay that I wrote. It's called Home is Where You're Going: Crossing Borders and Risking Solidarity through Women's Studies. And my little essay was adapted from a sermon I preached while serving as a chaplain at the Oregon Extension Women's Studies May Term a few years ago. (The book emerged from this program.)

More time has passed between the writing of this essay and it's publication in the book than any other piece I've published before. That means, to some degree, that it feels less mine. I wouldn't write it today exactly the way it's published now. (And I have this inescapable fear that mine will be the essay where everyone writes vociferously in the margins: "No!" and "Wrong!")

Nonetheless, the book exists. And there I sit in the table of contents along with some amazing women, including bell hooks, Denise Levertov, Carter Heyward, and others. I guess that's pretty cool.

4 comments:

cyen said...

VERY COOL! Yes, I think a published essay trumps a free T-shirt :)
"Sarai, Hagar and Abram..."
Something tells me this isn't the "Hagar the Horrible" that I'm thinking of is it... :)
Way to go JWD.
You should provide a link to the publishers site so we can buy it... I was able to find it via a little digging on the web.
Congrats.

kwpershey said...

awesome, jwd! you're such a fantastic writer. i am mighty interested in that book, too.

Anonymous said...

How very exciting! We are so proud of you JWD ( aka: daughter, dear)! xoxo

JWD said...

Thanks, Mama.