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THANK YOU
How can I adequately and exhaustively thank
all those who were influential in the writing of this novel? It's an impossible
task. Just as I am the product of every person who has loved, taught, and challenged
me, so is this story. These thank-yous are consequently incomplete, but my gratitude
for each of you is boundless.
TO MY DAD
This is the only novel of mine you've read,
and you did so in your hospital bed, just days before angels singing Gaither songs
carried you to Heaven. Thank you for loving this and for loving me. God created
us both imperfect, perhaps to prove that love, in time, overcomes and covers all
flaws. Your boisterous reaction to the reading ("Where's the smooching??") and your
heartfelt endorsement meant the world to me. Thank you, Ner. I miss you.
TO MY MOM
My fellow lover of words, my friend, my
confidante, my sounding board, my most devoted cheerleader and kindred spirit. Your
love of reading nurtured my love of writing. Thank you for believing in Tidal Pools
despite the monstrous challenges of this craft. Were it not for your encouragement
over all these years, I may have lacked the confidence to forge ahead. You remain
my most trusted editor and most cherished audience. In the words of our friend Barry
Manilow, "This one's for you".
TO MY SAMPLE AUDIENCE AND PROOFREADERS
Beth, Allison, Chance, Renee, Steve, Vira,
Mari Ellen, Karen... I hope you realize that sharing initial drafts with you was
a testament to my love and security in you. I wouldn't have been able to be so vulnerable
with others, but I know that my heart and the product of my heart were safe in your
hands. Thank you for lending your very different perspectives to "The Edge of Tidal
Pools". Your pertinent suggestions and eye for detail were vital to this project.
I'm grateful.
TO MY STUDENTS
You know who you are. You have impacted
my life in powerful ways and taught me by allowing me to know you. I didn't realize,
when I became a missionary, that the blessings would be mostly mine. They came in
the form of broken hearts, angry minds, and silent needs. They came in the form
of timid smiles, fervent hugs, and gentle tears. They came in the form of each of
you. This novel is a small, inadequate attempt to thank you. I pray I've left on
you even a fraction of the mark you've left on me. You've bettered my life. I love
you.
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