Happy Book Birthday!

          Min, can you believe your memoir is 1 year old this week? Wow! And God has already used it in the lives of so many of your readers.

          Oh, the heartaches and tears, frustrations and anger, laughs and funnies that went into the 2 years I worked with you at our kitchen table!

          I remember Day 1—July 12^th, 2021. We had no clue how or where to begin, so we prayed.

          Then we pulled out letters and mementos of your life. It wrecked me when I shared with you about your abandonment paper from South Korea. That broke your heart too, but it also ignited the spark that began your story.

          First sentence: “I am number 93-89” … and it took off from there.

          But from the moment you first expressed wanting to write your story (January 2021) you desired to use your given name in honor of your birth mother (who likely chose it for you).

          Do you remember the day we laid out Cheerios and colored a very small percentage to help you understand how many South Korean orphans ever find a birth parent?

          Do you recall telling me you thought you’d write much better if we had a handy supply of chocolate candy?

          And how ’bout the Rubik’s cube* to help fidgety you cope with stress? That didn’t even survive Day 1!

          I also remember your agent asking how we planned to tell backstory. I had no clue until one night when I suddenly awoke with my lips actually saying out loud, “Letters!” I thanked God, climbed out of bed, headed into the living room, and jotted down thoughts pouring from my mind and heart.

          In the morning, I shared the letters idea with your dad, and he came onboard.

          No, it wasn’t always a smooth ride, but there were treasured, revealing moments. And you, son, were a brave soul to bear it all for the sake of this book’s birth. Remarkable! Your story and you!

          Being your scribe and chief editor was a privilege. No, not easy—either task, and sometimes I had to be the “tough guy,” making you take time-out walks to regroup, acting out parts of your story you couldn’t piece together, drawing diagrams and time lines. Oh, those pesky timelines!

          And your dad? Key! Our computer genius—the one who got us through the tears and frustration of laying out the book with Ingram Spark, filing for all the needed numbers and permissions, and umpteen other things that went into your story becoming an actual book.

          And it was your dad who was so sure God wanted the audiobook version out there and that Jim Hodges** must be your reader. Jim wasn’t sure until he read your story, then he expressed he had to do it. (Here's an audiobook sample: https://youtu.be/PYQL5T7UQuE)

          You raised the money to hire Jim, just like you raised the funds for a professional editor and cover designer. More than $2,000 worth! In and of itself an amazing feat!

          Min, you’re indeed a masterpiece! So is your story—all known by God before you were born. You had a story worth telling because God shared His. And because of the completed work of Christ, you accepted His gift of salvation, obeyed His command to write your pain and joys, and now offer Hope to all who read A Home for Min Soo~Putting Together the Pieces of My Life.

          Happy book birthday, precious son!          

A Home for Min Soo~Putting Together the Pieces of My Life—

Benjamin Hampshire (a.k.a. Kim, Min Soo) shares about his book

(with Brian & Sarah Hampshire playing I Need Thee Every Hour).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjCNhRRI93E

I need Thee ev’ry hour, most gracious Lord;

No tender voice like Thine can peace afford.

 

Refrain: I need Thee, oh, I need Thee. Ev’ry hour I need Thee;

Oh, bless me now, my Savior, I come to Thee.

 

I need Thee ev’ry hour. Stay Thou nearby;

Temptations lose their pow’r when Thou art nigh. (Refrain)

 

I need Thee ev’ry hour, in joy or pain;

Come quickly and abide, or life is vain. (Refrain)

 

I need Thee ev’ry hour. Teach me Thy will;

And Thy rich promises in me fulfill. (Refrain)

 

(from the hymn I Need Thee Every Hour by Robert Lowry, 1872, public domain)

 

 

Min’s memoir is available through major booksellers online

in paperback, audiobook, and e-book formats.

You can also purchase it at a reduced rate through Ingram Spark—

by using this link:

https://shop.ingramspark.com/b/084...

 

#writingabook #bookbirthday #memoir #orphan #SouthKorea #birthparents

#fostercare #adoption #UnitedStates #neurofibromatosis #Aspergers

#specialneeds #cancer #Godsplan&purpose #Heaven

 

Photo credits:

book cover design owned by author

*needpix.com image

**used with permission

other photos personally owned