At my cousin Darcy’s funeral on Sunday, I read from Ecclesiastes 3. Here’s the King James version of the passage:
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.
Wise words.
This is my time to keep silent; to mourn, to give thanks, to reflect on the bewildering experiences of the last couple of months, and to prepare for the year ahead. I’m taking a vacation from blog writing until January 1st. I will be responding to email and snail mail. But slowly.
I need a season of quiet and healing.
Don’t worry, I’ll soon be speaking out again (at the top of my lungs occasionally), I promise. There will be some very cool website updates to talk about. I have to write FORGE and get to work on a new non-fiction picture book and begin the quest for a new YA idea. Baking season is upon us. Homemade jam must be consumed. By January I’ll have the details of my March book tour and I’ll have to get ready for a trip to Lima, Peru. Before we know it, it will be time for ALA again!
I’m off to hibernate in the Forest, friends. See you in 2009!
