This will probably come as no surprise to you, but I’m a total library and bookstore nerd. I love the smell, look and feel of books. I could spend hours walking through the aisles of bookshelves and never get bored.
When my husband and I lived in Minnesota, our house was five minutes from both the library and Barnes and Noble. This was both a beautiful and dangerous gift, if you know what I mean. It was beautiful because literary heaven was only a short drive away, but it was dangerous because … well … who can go into a bookstore without buying a book?
I often stopped by these places to decompress after work, or have a place to write without distractions on the weekend.
One day after work I lost track of time, and after an hour of browsing at the library, I ended up with five books in my hands. OK, Lauren. There’s no way you have time to read all of these. Just pick one. I said to myself. I look down at the books and the title of one held my attention. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, it read.
They say you can’t judge a book by its cover, but at first glance something was telling me to take this book home. Maybe it was the interesting name. Maybe it was because I was hungry and mashed potatoes sounded delicious. Regardless of the reason, I checked the book out and drove home.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society ended up being an entertaining and witty read. Let’s just say I made the right choice. But the thing I admired most about the story was not the humor or the intricate plot, but the story behind the story.
In the afterword, the book shares a few details about the author, Mary Ann Shaffer. You’ve probably never heard of her, but I think we all can learn something from Mary Ann.
Born in West Virginia, Mary Ann spent much of her life working in some of California’s public libraries. She also worked at Harper & Row, which has since been acquired by HarperCollins Publishers. When Mary Ann first joined Harper & Row, she was a receptionist, but by the time she reached the height of her service there, she had advanced to the editor’s chair.
Her career was no doubt inspiring. But as I continued to read, I discovered something even more moving about Mary Ann — her life-long dream was to someday “write a book that someone would like enough to publish.”
You might read this and think, Oh, isn’t that sweet that someone actually got to see their dream come true. But here’s the thing: Mary Ann didn’t sign her first book contract — the contract for The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie — until she was 72. That means she waited seven decades for her dream to come true.
Can you imagine waiting seven decades for your dream to come true? I don’t know about you, but this encourages me in so many ways. It encourages me to keep being patient and trust God’s plan, as His Word commands. It encourages me to keep walking by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7). It encourages me to be thankful for what God has done and is doing (Hebrews 12:28-29).
If a woman can wait 72 years for a dream to come true, certainly I can wait on God’s timing for the dreams and passions He’s placed in my heart.
Mary Ann actually passed away before her book was published (and reached the number one position on the New York Times Bestseller List for paperback trade fiction) … but even though she didn’t live to see her dream come true, God didn’t waste it, and Mary Ann has left a legacy for years to come.
It’s never too late for a dream to come true, and nothing is wasted with our God.
Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, unmovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that the work that you do for the Lord isn’t wasted. {1 Corinthians 15:58}
As a young writer who’s on the cusp of getting her first book published, Mary Ann’s story inspires me. It shows me that dreams can and do eventually come to life. We just have to walk by faith, be obedient and trust in the One who put those dreams in our hearts in the first place.
Our dreams might not come true on our time table and it might be hard to leave everything in God’s hands, but His timing is perfect.
It’s easy to give up on things.
We tell ourselves we’ve missed the boat or it will never happen for us.
We tell ourselves: “That’s nice that she gets to live out her dream, but mine is never going to come true.”
We tell ourselves things are too far out of our reach. But they aren’t, because anything is possible with God.
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” {Matthew 19:26}
No one and nothing is ever too far gone or without a second chance. This goes for both our dreams and our lives. We may face roadblocks, storms and other hardships but anything is possible. Mary Ann is just one of the millions of examples of this truth. With God all things are possible. Be encouraged and assured of that today, dear friend.
What dreams are you currently pursuing? How is God working in and through that process?