Love Inspired Author Ramona Richards didn’t know how strong she was until she became a mother herself. Here’s Ramona:

“I come from a long line of strong women. A healer and a midwife. The wife of a tenant farmer who raised her own siblings after her mother died. A musician whose shop-keeper husband lost his business during the Depression. My own mother married an over-the-road truck driver, which meant she spent much of her adult life raising two kids on her own.

I, on the other hand, was the pampered one. While I am old enough to remember when tape recorders were reel-to-reel and televisions only black-and-white, I grew up smart, fat, and sassy. School work came easy to me, and I spent my days curled under a tree with a book. Only after I got married did God send me to the forge for molding.

In 1987 I gave birth to Rachel, whose severe disabilities came as a total shock to both of us. Doctors told us she wouldn’t live long, and my own deep post-partum depression complicated the grief that rocked us. We had to mourn the child we had been expecting and find the depths of our love for the child we had. That last part was the easiest; the rest tore us apart.

Rachel and God have given the doctors a run for their money. She’s still here, and I’ve been a single mom since 1993. The healing came slowly; the times were rough. God has been answering prayers left and right, however, and since 1998, I’ve had a series of caregivers (Phyllis, Kim, and Marti), who adore Rachel and make it possible for me to keep a job, write, and travel. (To see more about Rachel, click on this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ys5oxl3Uw5k

And everything I’ve been through has an impact on what—and how—I write. In The Taking of Carly Bradford, Dee’s grief and her healing journey in some ways mirrors my own. I also talked to other parents who had lost children, and I drew on my memories of when one of my best friends was murdered.

But The Taking of Carly Bradford is not just about loss and healing; it’s also about finding triumph in our lives through faith and friends. It’s about a little girl who has an unshakable belief in God’s provision—and in His warriors here on earth. It’s about how love can bloom in the midst of trial, and how Jehovah Jireh is always, always by our side when we need and call on Him.

Let’s hope that, like little Carly Bradford, we never forget that.”

Thanks for sharing that Ramona. Ladies, don’t forget to drop by www.loveinspiredauthors.com and enter the contest there. It’s open till June 15th. And on there you can read more about Ramona and her books.–Lyn