Yes, he is that handsome, but I could see the gentleness
of his soul. No wonder he writes such wonderful stories.
My Nicholas Sparks collection
This is the book I brought to be signed.
Handsome man, gentle soul, and great handwriting!
While I was standing in line, someone offered me the bag.
If you did not know, I am a hopeless romantic. I mean, Gone With the Wind is my favorite book and movie of all time. I know, Scarlett married her sister's man and she pined for another man while married to 3 other men. Scarlett was also a survivor. You have to admire that, and who has not dreamed of wearing a hoop skirt?
Anyway, I say all this to say that my favorite modern day author is Nicholas Sparks. You know, he wrote The Notebook, Message in a Bottle, Dear John, and The Last Song just to name few. I have been reading his books since The Notebook came out about 14 years ago. This man seems to be able to write the way a woman feels. He has a new book out every September which also is the month of my birthday. I have been celebrating my birthday with him for many years. His books make me cry and smile. There is always tragedy, but there is always triump with love and romance winning every time...well most of the time. Sometimes the tragedy wins, but isn't that how real life goes?
My wonderful daughter found out that he was going to be speaking at a fund raiser for The John Cooper School in The Woodlands. There would be a luncheon and then his talk. It was going to be at The Marriott in The Woodlands which is where my son-in-law, Greg, works. Sarah gave ths information to her dad, and made it happen for me. The way I found out was not really romantic, but I appreciate the effort. I got an email saying that,"Sarah thought I would like this". Attached was the receipt for the ticket to the event. I appreciate the thought.
Friday, November 12, was the date of the event. I was off for Veteran's Day on Thursday and took off that Friday. I got to spend some time with Sarah and Liam before and after the event. On a hopeful whim, I grabbed one of my books in case there would be opportunity for me to get it signed. My very favorite book of his is The Notebook, but someone in my family lent it to a friend and they never gave it back. I would have liked for him to signed that one. I mean I had a hardback copy, not the movie version paper back. Anyway, I chose The Bend in the Road. The main female character in it is a school teacher, so I relate to her in some way.
My hopeful whim turned into reality for he agreed to sign books until he had to leave to catch a plane at 3:30. I did not even have to wait in line that long, maybe 30 minutes. Not only did he sign my book, but we had a brief conversation. He told the woman in front of me that he like to support any young athletic team. and said, "so go _________, some team name. I could not help myself and said, "Go LSU Tigers. He thought I said FSU and tigers, and said that he knew Clemson was playiing FSU this weekend. There was not time to explain the confusion, and I could not bear to correct Nicholas Sparks. His eyes were sparkling and full of life. I had just heard him speak about where the ideas for his books came from and about his learning disabled child. I had never heard his voice before, but it was every bit as kind and gentle as the characters in his books. He is a warm, gentle soul with a talent for expressing what we all(especially women) feel inside.
There was even someone there to take your picture. All I had was my phone camera, but it did a pretty good job. I was too busy talking saying Go Tigers, and did not turn toward the camera. The picture of him is great though, and that is my book he is signing. I am grateful for the opportunity to meet one of my favorite authors and hear him speak. I am grateful to my family for giving me this opportunity. The lunch was fabulous, his talk intriguing, and I now have Nicholas Sparks' signature in one of his books. It was a good day.
