Okay, maybe “world” is too strong a word. What you are reading now is, at least, a whole new site. I have a new “dot com”,valeriewritenow.com, as a matter of fact. For years I’ve been blogging. For years I’ve been looking for my own online presence. I found it…I mean, me...you know what I mean. Why do I always make things so complicated? (Don’t answer that.) I am Valerie. (Shocker.) I am a writer, even if my words are limited to this blog. I am living. Now. Let me say, “Thank you, Lord!” to that! So, as the father on My Big, Fat Greek Wedding said, “Dere you go!” My blog! Valerie (me) Write (what I do) Now (present tense).

I started blogging way back in 2007. I blogged about my “Life in the Hill Country” of Texas. Then, I moved. I wasn’t in the “hill country” anymore. (Great blogging foresight, ay?) I just couldn’t imagine leaving Texas. I loved it. I miss it still. Now, I’m in southwest Arkansas. Home to nothing spectacular. Oh, well, there’s Bill Clinton and Mike Huckabee. And they’re politicians. Like I said, nothing spectacular. There I was, with a problem: what to do about the blog? I decided to start another one, this time called “Valerie’s Hope Chest“…get it? I live in “Hope”? Anyway, I didn’t like it after a while. I started to worry that someone would think I was referring to the front of a torso or something. I changed the title to “Joy in the Journey”. Nah. Didn’t dig that, either. I mean, I want to have joy in this journey of life, but the blog wasn’t about that all the time. Or even most of the time. Let’s face it, I’m not that joyful. Most days, I’m smiling through the pain. And one thing I must do, wherever I am, is be real. I’m not “Joy”. I’m…Valerie. (Yes, this blog is packed with profound truths! Keep reading! )

Around that time, a man who used to be in our church, (and one of the few who have left that still like us), started calling my hubby “The Bishop”. It follows that he called me “the Bishop’s wife”. I liked that name. I’m a pastor’s wife, wherever I go, whatever I do, that is what I am. So it worked.

I’m still a pastor’s wife, and Lord willing, I’ll always be. But I noticed that the title implies that this blog will have a ministry focus. It doesn’t always. I often write about homeschooling, day-to-day life, poetry and some days, I share photos and videos. Most of my life has very little to do with being a PW. The one constant, however, is me. Here, you will always find my words, my thoughts, my heart, my beliefs, my life. You will see what’s happening in my life right now…well, I mean write now. 

My old blogspot address automatically redirects to the new URL. I have a new design, but that will probably change as the days go by. The feeds should still work. If you experience a problem, please contact me and I’ll do my best to figure it all out. I have a new blog button, so, please pick it up before you go. Oh, and, one more thing: I’ve started a new Facebook page, so please hop over and “Like” me.

It’s a new day, and a new “world”, the online kind, anyway. I’m enjoying each and every moment! Thank you so much for being here, for being part of my world.