Guest Blog, Jan Alexander
Imagine being a kid who dreams about having her own horse, but there are no
horses where she lives. Or places for them to live.
Or adults who know anything about horses or understand how important they are to you.
What would you do?
I was the girl with that dream. Your dream and the trail to find it may be different, but
your dream is worth following, too.
Follow along as I tell my story. Feel the soft nuzzle of your new best friend and the tickle of its breath on your cheek. Gaze deeply into the mystery of its eyes. Next, grab its lead rope or climb upon its back as we step together into the next chapter of your life!
“Finally…HORSES!” is the story of how my dream finally came true. I hope it inspires you to chase your dreams and that they bloom into living colors, too!
I am a writer who writes what I feel and think about when I’m divinely inspired. Therefore, my writing process feels like praying. That is why I titled my first book At Home on a Horse in the Woods, which I never set out to write. Home refers to heaven. I feel whole and happy when I write, my best self and connected to God.
My memoir is the adult version of my struggle to attain a dream that seemed impossible to me as a child. By sharing my struggles to accept and pursue my dream, I hope to inspire others, no matter what their dreams, to avoid my mistakes and thereby achieve their dreams faster and easier than I achieved mine.
I was born horse crazy in a horseless environment. I yearned to have a horse of my own, a companion to ride and to love. By pursuing my dream, I learned a lot, such as: where dreams originate; why we need to pursue them; that getting stuck is not evidence of failure but nudging to ask for help; and that there will be people willing to help you get over the humps in your path.
Woah! Why am I talking about my first book so much when I am supposed to be telling you about my new (and third) book, Finally…HORSES!? Well, one day it hit me that since children also dream, they deserve some inspiration, too! What I would have given for some when I was young! So, I simplified my story and hired an artist to illustrate it.
After the book was published, it dawned on me that adults and children would benefit from reading their books together, each at their own reading level. That partnership will further them down their dream paths.
I pictured the adult-child pair stopping every now and then to discuss what they were reading and thinking, what their dreams are, where they think their dreams come from, why they think they were put here on earth, action steps they can take to achieve their dreams, who they have asked to help them, who else they can ask, etc. Just think of the progress and the bonding that would occur in those relationships! And the practice in the art of personal (not technological) conversation it would provide!
Now, more than ever, in this time of family and societal confusion, people need my book to learn how to improve the quality of their lives and contribute to a better world. How?
1. By contemplating the source of their dream.
2. By taking it seriously.
3. By finding people to help and support us when the going gets rough.
4. By improving our own lives and serving as examples to others.
Just think of a world in which everyone knows their divine purpose and enjoys pursuing that identity and achieving that goal, a world where everyone is both a helper and an aide, a world where everyone testifies to what they were able to achieve with God’s help. What a wonderful experience our earthly home would be!
Jan Alexander is “retired” after teaching school for 30 years. Now in her early 70s, she is riding her fourth dream horse, a chestnut saddlebred mare named Dancer. Mrs. Alexander continues chasing her next dream—writing another horsebook! Besides writing, she loves braiding horsehair jewelry for horse lovers.
Join Jan and I on the Beacon of Light Podcast Apr 9, 2024 at 6:30 pm Mountain time and see how this amazing children’s book, “Finally…Horses!,” can impact you!
