Amazing Myra Norwell

Myra, wife of Pastor Frank, doesn't appear in Living Between the Ditches: When God Makes No Sense, until chapter 7. Since there are only 12 chapters in the book, the reader might think she's a minor character. However, Myra plays a crucial role in the story. But for those of you who haven't read it, I'll leave you to decipher that clue.

Myra bonds with the reader immediately. What's not to like? She's warm, affectionate, a good listener, and compassionate. Myra had been Layton's second mother as he grew up, and now, he guessed, she was his only mother—at least, the only one who knew him (p. 83). But in his preoccupation with Brianne's surgery, Layton hadn't even asked about her when Pastor Frank and he were talking during the surgical procedure. Now he felt guilty.

Myra put Layton at ease. Not into the sport of keeping a record of wrongs, Myra waved his concerns away. She knew what it was like to be absorbed in one's own family problems, and as we find out, she's more than just sympathetic with Brianne's disease. Myra knows at a depth most of us don't care to reach. Her comfort is with the comfort we have received from God, who comforts us in our troubles (1 Cor. 1:4).

Myra, it seems, has become a good friend to Amy. As Myra and Amy leave the hospital for "a girl's night out," Layton's not sure how he feels about this friendship. Betrayed? Jealous? But as he waits for their return, he's got a bigger problem to ponder. Why have Myra's "ups and downs" seem to have brought her closer to God while in his own pain God has grown more distant?

Myra's counsel over the coming weeks would prove critical to Layton's coming to grips with his mother's Alzheimers and learning to relate to her in terms of her needs rather than his own. Serving his mother proves satisfying, even when she thinks Layton is his brother Kyle.

My favorite Myra lines are these:
"Saint Paul chose contentment whatever the circumstances. He didn't write that because he had a life of comfort and ease. He wrote the letter from prison, of all places! Paul had learned contentment because he first learned gratitude. Remember, he started his letter with, 'I thank my God ... Did you know,' Myra continued, 'that it's almost impossible to feel anxiety and gratefulness at the same time?" (p. 148)

I love that thought! May I dwell on it tonight as I go to sleep and as I wake to a new workday. Thank you, Myra, for helping me feel God's strength as my refuge (p. 148).

Layton: A Work in Progress

Layton Brooks is the main character in my book, Living Between the Ditches: When God Makes No Sense. Whether you've read the book or not, you may be interested in the general subject of fictional character development. Or not. Stick with me on this. If you're still reading the book (true for 9 out of 10 of you!), don't worry. I'm not going to give anything away. I really do want you to finish it and write me a good on-line review!

At the beginning of the book Layton is angry and frustrated. Those of us who have been in a serious relationship (or grew up in a family!) can relate to his feelings. Layton is angry with his ex-wife (not too surprising) but he's also angry with God. I think most of us can also relate to this predicament. We don't feel comfortable being angry with God, and we certainly don't want to tell Him that. Why be too confrontational with Someone who can zap you right off the planet!

Layton is a kind of Everyman. If I may be so bold, we're all a little self-centered, caught up in our own side of things, and out of touch with some of our feelings. In fact we may be uneasy about sharing feelings, period. We can identify with Layton's foibles without too much discomfort. These are normal human emotions.

Layton's view of God is also fairly common. At some point in our lives, most people feel God let them down. I know I did, and I share that in the book. Layton thinks he's at least as good as most anybody he knows, yet he's dealing with some serious stuff. Is a God who seems to have turned His back on you a good God? Is He a giver or a taker?

In my main character I needed someone who represented being in a ditch—or one side of a spiritual paradox—as a means of illustrating my analogy. Layton is a vehicle, as it were, for helping us visualize our own ditch-dwelling and then, finding our way out. Of course, we need God's help to do that.

To some degree developing a fictional character resembles watching a movie play out in the author's mind. Although I had a story line in mind, Layton grew in depth and character as the story unfolded. I didn't know I'd come to care for Layton so much, or share his struggles, feel some of his pain, and wish him well in the conquest of his demons. You see, I wasn't prepared to like Layton because he represented a side of myself I don't like very much.

Perhaps in the end I learned to accept myself more—warts and all. Hopefully, that will be true for you, as well.

In my next post I'll tell about Amy, Layton's ex-wife, who I wasn't prepared to like, as well.