Choose Light
This being my first blog post (EVER) I suppose I should begin by introducing myself. Hello, my name is Melissa Candland, and I’m a recovering sugar-holic. Oh, wait, wrong group. LOL
I’m an Oregon native that has been transplanted to Eastern Idaho. Let’s just say I’m still getting used to the weather. . .Last week it got down to -12° and we were convinced we’d moved to the Himalayas. We’ve since thawed out a little, though, so no worries. It’s important for you to know that I’m a remarried widow and my late husband’s name is Dave, because I tend to mention him a lot. My new husband’s name is George, and together, we have a whopping TWELVE children that range in age from 6-30!
Yes, you read that right.
George has 6 girls. 3 of them are married, and 2 of them have 2 children each. I have 5 (my youngest, who could be 11, is an angel). We have a surprise 6-year-old caboose who’s well-deserved nickname is Taz. As in the Tasmanian Devil. I guarantee you’ll be hearing more about mine and ours later. His kids are feeling cautious and don’t want their photos online so I’ll be respectful of their wish to stay on the DL. As you can imagine, blending a large family has been. . .turbulent. We have our highs, lows, and everything in between, but for the most part we’re evolving well.
At least we get those nifty solar-safe glasses nowadays. Check out these viewing boxes from the 60s. LOL
Fun Fact: Light travels at the mind-blowing speed of 186,282 miles per hour. That’s almost 245 times faster than the speed of sound!
On Augutst 17, 2017, my family (like countless others in Oregon) were gathered on my Mom’s front lawn in camp chairs, donned in fancy schmancy safe solar viewing glasses. My hometown was an hour away from the path of complete darkness and we had no interest in fighting the crowds up in Salem. 99% of the sunlight would be cast in shadow. As the big moment approached, time seemed to slow down. I imagined it akin to lighting a candle in a pitch-black room. As the moon overlapped with the sun, I panned my camera over to my family’s faces. I was determined to get video documentation of this once-in-a-lifetime experience. The moon slowly slid into position. My family gazed up at the sky on bated breath.
And. . .
Well, that was the anti-climactic.
It wasn’t even dark!
We had only ONE PERCENT of light and we could see everything perfectly fine. Had I opened a book, I’d have been able to read it without even squinting. Had it been hot water, my kids would be arguing about who used it all. Had it been brownies? Oooo, buddy, we’d have big problems. We. Felt. Jipped.
Once over the hurdle of disappointment, however, we discussed the incredible power of light. It’s a universal truth that light, with all its versatility, is vital to our very existence. Without it, every living thing on this planet (human and otherwise) would instantly perish.
Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, I was used to the rain. My mom’s fourth grade class charted the weather each winter and they once counted over sixty straight days of measurable precipitation. That is a LOT of gloom, you guys. When the days are short, and it’s gray and soggy out, life can become bland. Our skin gets so pale we could be mistaken for an albino.
You can imagine how ecstatic everyone is when spring arrives and the sun comes out of hibernation. WOOHOO! Sun-shi-ne! Quick, everybody outside before it rains again! Oh, dear reader, if only I was exaggerating.
We like to joke that Northwestern Oregon has two seasons: Rain. And fire season. (okay, not really) Summers are super nice in the Willamette Valley (Oregon), though. Not too hot (normally), not too windy. Some of my fondest memories from my youth are from Girls Camp.
When we weren’t doing crafts, skits, snipe hunting, or singing goofy songs, and night fell, we were star gazing. Every time I see this painting of our dear Savior gazing up into the heavens, it reminds me of camp. Those of us that lived in the city weren’t used to the magnificent view of the light-pollution-free-universe.
[Image: Worlds Without End, by Greg Olsen]
Laying there among friends, observing the sea of stars, I fell in love with the majesty of the Lord. On one hand, it made me feel so miniscule. Insignificant. Yet, on the other, I KNEW the Creator of the heavens and the earth loves me and He knows my name.
Every single one of us have been born with the Light of Christ within us. Our built-in compass helps us learn right from wrong and ignites our desire to learn and grow. Our spirits yearn to be fed additional light. All good things come from God, and the more spiritually fed we become the more at home our souls feel. The Lord celebrates when we find joy in wholesome things.
When I was in 4th grade, I finally became a confident reader, and to my surprise, I even liked it! That year I wrote, illustrated, and published my first novella: The Wallball Kid. Watch out, NYT, here I come! I couldn’t settle for anything less than the finest printer paper, folded in half the hamburger way, and bound with state-of-the-art binding. Staples. My one-of-a-kind sketches (more like stick figures with more dimension) were eye catching. And oh, the stunning pros of a nine-year-old! What a masterpiece!
By the time I was in 7th grade, writing became my life. Ninety percent of my free time was spent stooped over college ruled spiral notebooks, filling them with stories. I’d tried many other hobbies and was left discouraged with my mediocre results. Depression plagued me. I was tired of sitting in the corner and watching all my friends live life to the fullest. They all had grand interests and talents, and I was just too shy and awkward to put myself out there. So, I watched. When I wrote, however, I felt on top of the world.
Fellow creators know how difficult it is for us to share our work with others. If they don’t like it, it feels like they’re rejecting a piece of our soul. When a youth leader finally convinced me to let her read one of my stories, she ultimately laughed at it and teased me about it being unrealistic. I vowed to never share my writing with anyone again. Ever!
Adulthood came, and along with it college, work, marriage, and kids, so writing got pushed to the back burner. Occasionally I’d pull that pot back to the front, give it a stir, and add some spices, but for the most part, my priorities were my family and my Church callings. It wasn’t long before the contents of the pot began to congeal, and it became increasingly difficult to stir.
In 2016, while caring for my terminally ill husband, I was determined to finish the book I’d begun back in high school and dedicate it to Dave. But I couldn’t. I could barely concoct a well-written sentence, let alone the last third of a novel. The Lord had officially recalled my writing talent. I’d hid my light under the proverbial bushel for so long the dang bush burst into flames. It was my personal episode of the parable of the talents mixed with the stinkin’ bush.
I fasted. I prayed. I vowed to dedicate my writing to the Lord; to create relatable and uplifting stories to help His children along their life’s journey; to teach them they’re not alone and they can do anything through Christ.
The Lord heeded my pleas and promises, and he reinstated my talent. The spirit told me this was on a trial basis only. I was bound and determined to not let Him down. As I wrapped up my first novel, Second Chances, I was shocked to find my ability had been returned ten-fold. I self-published my novel and then went to the Lord again in prayer.
“Okay, Father, what are we writing next?” I asked. A whisper of an idea I’d had a couple years before suddenly sped forward and burst open in my mind. BAM! I could see everything as clear as day. Awe, excitement, humility, and an unstoppable drive to help share the Light of Christ filled my soul.
Since 2023, when I started publishing Second Chances, I have attended two large conferences, completed my second novel, HEART TO HEART—Covenant Communications has requested the entire manuscript, which is a huge compliment in the writer’s world—and started on my third book, the second in the HEART TO HEART tetralogy. The entire experience has been incredible.
Life is hard! Our trials can make the world feel incredibly dark, lonely, and scary, which for some is the perfect storm to make us feel lost. Hopeless. Worthless. But it doesn’t have to be that way! We have unlimited resources at our disposal, and the most important one is Light. One little candle on a pitch-black hillside can’t be seen from very far away. What would happen if we all united and help each other gather and share light?
We could light up the world.
I choose light. What about you? I’d love nothing more than to hear from you about your own journey and help in any way I can. (Even if it’s just moral support) We’ve got this, my friends.
Let’s choose Light. Together.
Love, MJ
