Role Reversal

As you’re reading this, I’m in Denver at the American Christian Fiction Writers annual conference. This year marks another major shift for me. Things had already changed dramatically around this time last year, when I’d recently signed my very first book publishing contract (with no idea a second one was only weeks away!). Now that my debut novel has been released, I’m anticipating my first time ever to participate in the huge multi-author book signing event this Saturday!

What does any of this have to do with romance, you may ask? I’m getting to that.

Here I am a couple of years away from . . . well, let’s just say my high school class held their 40-year reunion last summer . . . and my writing career has suddenly jumped into hyperdrive!

In the meantime, my husband, who took early retirement a few years ago from SBC (now AT&T) and is now a part-time consultant, has more and more free time on his hands.

Talk about role reversal!!! My husband could just as easily complain that I’m spending way too much time writing, too much time stressing over book promotion, too much time networking on blogs and social sites.

And not enough time doing fun stuff with him.

But he’s also walked with me every step of this writing journey, through 25+ years of finding time to write while raising a family, crying over rejections, celebrating contest wins and manuscript sales. He knows how much it means to me, how hard I’ve worked and how long I’ve prayed to reach this point.

See, that’s what romance is all about--sharing each other’s dreams, supporting each other through sorrow and celebration. Being willing to shift gears and give the other person space and freedom to pursue those dreams.

My sweet husband now does most of the grocery shopping, the occasional load of laundry, vacuuming, and general errands. He’s even willing to get supper started (provided I give him some clue of where to begin), and he has always, our entire married life together, done the dishes after supper.

Think about it. What sacrifices has your spouse made to enable you to pursue a dream? Have you done the same for your sweetheart? Are you willing to try?

A few days away

Dan and I went to a writing conference in Louisiana this past weekend--well, I went to the conference and he took me. He is, and always has been, so supportive of my writing. And he does enjoy being on the sidelines at conferences. Many of my friends spot him before they do me. He was impressed with his first one because he says there aren't many professions where people go out of their way to help their competition. :)  He lets me do whatever I need to and he finds things to do on his own, but is always there for me. 

And I love having him with me. Conferences are always busy times for me, seeing old friends, meeting new ones and learning all kinds of things. They can also be exciting, stressful and very tiring--all at the same time. But it's just a good feeling to know he's there and to be able to talk to him about what is happening at the end of the day.  It is also a time for us to have some time for ourselves. We went to dinner together one night and that was a nice break. The drive there and back gives us that special time to talk about the things we don't always get around to talking about at home, and we come home feeling a little closer for getting away--and I appreciate him even more for being so supportive.

For those of you who've thought about taking your husband with you to conferences, I'd say try it at least once. It can be a really special time for both of you. He'll come home with a better understanding of just what it is you do at them and you'll come home loving him for just being there for you.