My Girls

Many years ago, at the age of 15, I found myself pregnant in a culture where “good girls” didn’t do things like that. I became a social pariah, and which was worse, an outcast from the faith that for so long been my only emotional support. I married the baby’s father on my 16th birthday, an abusive, alcoholic drug addict, and thus began a long slide into several divorces and other abusive relationships. However, it also led me into a lifelong pursuit of truth and knowledge as my emotional and spiritual needs were just not being fulfilled in either my relationships or my current worldviews. As much as I was able, I attempted to address this need by reading everything I could in this area, but the hunger for advanced education persisted. Unfortunately, this desire for learning took a back seat to the responsibilities of raising five daughters, but eventually I was able to start pursuing my dreams; dreams which culminated in two Master’s Degrees and three published books, two novels and one non-fiction book on spiritual direction.

 My journey has not been easy. I have had to overcome the trauma of divorce, the ramifications of being an abused child and spouse, and the inherited tendency toward depressive episodes. In addition, as a pregnant teenager I was, for most of my life, in the lower social-economic strata. Thus I was continually faced with financial challenges while trying to ensure that my children had more than just the basic necessities so that they might grow into fully confident and accomplished adults. I did succeed in this area and am proud of them; proud that they have well-balanced lives, proud that they have not succumbed to the pressures of substance abuse, and proud that all of them have had enough confidence and motivation to pursue and succeed in the areas of advanced education.

 However, I want to do more. I want to reach more people. I want to help others through the type of trials that I went through. I believe that the way to do this is to learn more about religion, education, counseling and writing in order to bring to the faith-based denominations an ecumenical outlook toward the various doctrines which currently only serve to divide and discredit Christian Spirituality.  I want to be able to provide comfort and solace to others that experience the underbelly of life whether it be addictions, poverty, mental disorders, or lack of educational opportunities, and I believe that a united faith, one devoid of doctrinal issues, is the key to reaching those that are in the most need.

 In addition, I have had a lifelong love affair with the written word. It was my passion, my dream and, next to raising my children, my greatest accomplishment. It manifested itself in many ways including the publication of two novels, numerous articles and newspaper stories, children’s literature, poetry as well as adult literary fiction. I pursued advanced education in this field and achieved a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing. This love for the written word extends itself into my teaching philosophy as I seek to instill in all my students not only a passion for writing but the ability to write clearly, concisely and effectively. I know that not every student will fall in love with the written word like I did, but I strive to at least give them a taste of what is possible when one communicates successfully in writing.

 It is my goal to combine these three passions, faith, writing and teaching, in such a way that I may help others learn, grow and prosper in their academic, professional, creative and spirituals lives and, I am humbled by the trust my students, my friends and my family have in me and my small attempts to help others. I honestly don’t know if I am worthy to do this, if I have the talent, the skills and/or the brains to even try this, but if I don’t try, I will never know.  So, I thank you all in advance for your patience, love and support.

God’s Peace,  Nancy