Posted on April 5, 2022
When life surprises you with an unexpected turn …
A little over four years ago, I began a journey with a small Co-publishing company called Sela.
Anneline Bezuidenhout and I had been in the same church as teenagers. We connected again after she self-published her first book Vuurwa Taxi under her pen name, Anneline De Hout. We were both home schooling moms and followed the same social media groups where she shared about her book and mentioned self-publishing. Vuurwa Taxi is Anneline’s story about her and her friend’s miraculous escape from the hands of kidnappers while travelling in Egypt. (Note: Vuurwa Taxi has been translated into English, as Chariot Taxi. There is also a Workbook to complement each language – it is a lovely package for a Unit Study on Egypt for middle school children.)
When my sister-in-law, Carol, wrote her book Cancer Bowed to the King and was looking for a company to publish her story, I was glad to be able to point her in Anneline’s direction. With help and guidance, Carol was able to publish her book under the Sela banner.
Later that year, I hosted a book event in my home for Carol to share about her book, Anneline to share about Sela and Belinda A Weber, another author, to share about her book Dancin’ Feet. It was then that I was approached to be an Ambassador for Sela, to which I agreed, hoping that I would be able to do it justice. I was entrusted with a small stock of books to keep for events and in case anyone in Cape Town should wish to purchase copies, as Sela was about to move its office to George.
Over the years, I was introduced to precious people whom the Lord led to write their stories, their testimonies and share their hearts with others in the form of a book. I went from just being an Ambassador, to translating a book from Afrikaans into English, to editing and proofreading some of the English books, and I loved it!
I have always loved reading, especially true stories, so this was an absolute treat for me. And, in many cases, I have come to know the authors on a more personal level through my work.
In February 2021, I officially began proofreading/editing as a freelancer and have called my “company” Parpar, which is “butterfly” in Hebrew. The butterfly represents transformation. Transformation brings freedom – “every writer’s freedom to share his or her story in a way that is truly representative of him/herself.”
I love working with Anneline. She knows her stuff!
Over the past few years, Sela has grown from a small company with a handful of books to a growing organism of a business that has even begun to move across the borders of South Africa. We are in the process of revamping our website and online shop to be of even greater service to our community of authors.
In November 2021, I published my first book Protected, Living Psalm 91 and my second book Victorious, Fully Prepared has just been launched through Sela. Anneline was a tremendous help and guided me expertly through the process. I learned a whole lot more about writing, self-publishing, marketing, and supporting other authors in the process.
Julaine
If you are interested in self-publishing a book, you send an email to Sela : info@sela-books.co.za
Posted on March 10, 2022
Freedom in Lockdown
In 2020, the Lockdown Letters initiative was launched. Stories, poetry, messages, lessons, and experiences of people in South Africa across the cultural and age spectrums.
Despite the severe Lockdown mandates, God unlocked not just one, but two things in my life – Prayer pictures and Writing (although it took another year for me to publish my first book – Protected, Living Psalm 91).
I know that there are many people who were released into new avenues of worship, prayer and ministry in that time too.
This picture of Karl and me was taken when the beaches were open for walking only. For me this picture speaks of FREEDOM, because on that day we experienced the freedom of walking on the beach and breathing in the smell of the ocean.
Walking in freedom and breathing in God’s Spirit – that is how He wants us to live.
Posted on March 6, 2022
FOOMO
WHAT IS FOOMO?
No, it is not a “spelling” mistake, I made it up!
In this day of speaking in abbreviations, often we, as the older generation have had to learn to decipher code of modern abbreviations, especially when texting.
How many of us thought Lol was “love you lots” or “lots of love”, until we found out it was “laugh out loud”. There was something I had to ask my children about the other day, which they were very happy to decipher for me. (No wonder they think we don’t know anything and they know everything when they are teenagers!)
I also don’t speak emoji very well, but quite honestly, I don’t care. If the expression on the face looks like what I want to say, I will use it. (I learned that the “grimace” was actually a grin after using it for quite a few years – haha).
I think most of us know what FOMO IS – Fear Of Missing Out. The dictionary definition for FOMO – yes, it is recognised in the dictionary – is “anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may currently be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on social media.”
Well, if others can make these things up then, so can I …
“FOOMO” is my abbreviation. It means Fear Of Others Missing Out.
If you have more than one child, you will have seen FOOMO being played out front of your very eyes!
FOOMO is when you give your child a job to do, and they volunteer their siblings.
“What is Jonny going to do?” Or
“Why can’t Missy do it, I ALWAYS have to do it?” Or
“It’s not fair, I always have to take the trash out, when is my brother going to get a turn?”
Aren’t our offspring just wonderful, looking out for the character development of their siblings?
So now you know what FOOMO means!
Updated on February 17, 2022
The Word of God is powerful, it changes lives. As you read and study the Word and receive revelation from the Holy Spirit, you receive the spiritual power to overcome obstacles and to live victoriously. Just as an appliance needs electricity to effectively work, so we need the power of God’s Word to work in our lives so that we can be effective too.
Posted on January 16, 2022
What happens to Mom when the kids become teenagers?
And how do you negotiate these years without feeling rejected?
The teen years for any family is a time of turmoil because your role as parent is changing and your child’s role is also changing. Where you used to make Jonny’s school lunch for him and check that he had everything in his bag, now you are expecting him to do it. Where you would get him his breakfast, he wakes up at midday, so that will not work as you have things to do and by midday, you are getting ready to eat lunch.
Interests change too. When the kids were little the family did everything together. Everyone went to the beach together. If there was shopping to do, the kids had to tag along. Everyone played boardgames together, etc. Suddenly as teenagers, they each develop their own interests, often very diverse. The interests may be very far removed from their parent’s interests, creating an even bigger change in the relationship.
Teenager’s worlds become so small that they see themselves as the centre of their universe and everything has to happen within their ideal. Life is not like they would idealise though, and as they interact with others, the rough edges will be knocked off and they will begin to change their thoughts and opinions concerning things as they see them. As such, they tend to be ready to hash out topics for the mere purpose of pushing their opinion on others. It is all part of learning to communicate. At home they will be far less tactful than they most likely would be among their peers and can often come across as brash, inconsiderate and sometimes even disrespectful.
It seems as though Mom is good enough to clean the house, do the shopping, make the food, be the taxi and in some cases the bank, and she begins to feel like she has been ousted on an emotional level.
She gets told “don’t worry” – and then she wonders if she should …
Friendships whether connecting with friends personally, on a phone or via the internet are all ways that teenagers socialise. These are all important ways for them to connect with their friends. It means they spend less time with the family and more time with others or pursuing their interests.
Before the days of internet and cellphones, we had telephones and letters and of course it was easy to get together with our friends. Today it is not much different except that the technology in various forms has replaced the telephone and letter writing is in the form of an email, but with technology connecting us around the world, it is more likely to be a video chat or voice call.
Although teens would love to just laze around all day, obviously there are things that are important for them to learn. This is the time where they can learn skills like making meals, how to clean the house properly, how to use a washing machine and hang clothes on the line, how to use a dishwasher, how to iron, how to take out the trash etc. They may be teenagers, but they are still part of the family and as such need to contribute towards the chores needing to be done.
So, even though it seems as if you are not needed, Mom, you are … in a very unique way and new way…
There should be basic rules in place and there should be consistency in following them through. Teens should be part of these discussions and it may even be helpful to have it in writing and put them up in a place where they can be referred back to when necessary.
As the providers of the family, it is reasonable that parents decide what the ground rules are and then discuss them with your teens. The teens will most likely protest, but will feel respected for being part of the decision making.
Rules must be:
- Clear, so everybody knows where they stand.
- Where possible, agreed with the children.
- Consistent, so everyone sticks to them.
- Reasonable.
- Less restrictive as children become more responsible.
You can’t (and shouldn’t) have rules for everything. Although some issues will not be negotiable, there should be room for bargaining on others.