This week we’re talking about Beth Webb Hart’s newest release, Moon Over Edisto, an absolutely beautiful read from the first page to the very last. Beth has a knack for building worlds that feel so authentic, we close the book feeling as if we’ve just visited the Carolina low country. All of my senses were engaged through these pages. I was particularly impressed by Beth’s ability to capture the contrasting worlds of the New York City art scene and the backwater tidal community of Edisto. She made me feel as if I understand both completely, yet I have no personal experience with either.
The theme of forgiveness is one of my favorite topics, and Beth handles it with honesty and grace. The main character, Julia, has struggled for years to forgive her father and her college friend for having an affair and destroying her family unit. She left her hometown and fled to NYC where she built a successful new life miles away from the damage that remained in Edisto. And that seemed to work. Just close the door, leave the pain in a separate place, and move on…as many of us try to do. But life is never that easy, and those closed doors sometimes open again.
In this book, a series of family events brings Julia home again. Her father dies and his young widow develops cancer. Their young children are left alone as Julia’s young stepmom enters the hospital for treatment. Julia does the right thing and returns home to care for her young half-siblings. During that experience, she is forced to face all the pain she left behind and come to terms with a new definition of family.
The story really begins there, and I haven’t ruined anything by setting the frame for you. This is where you really feel the emotional journey of Julia’s character and join with her in her search for healing.
I loved everything about this story, right down to the cover design, and I’m certain all of you will enjoy Beth’s latest contribution to the publishing world. Great job, Beth! Now, for those of you joining us on the porch today…what is the one thing you would find most difficult to forgive?
10 comments
Jorie says:
February 20, 2013 at 11:31 am (UTC -5 )
Infidelity. Hit and run car accidents. Murder. The unexpected death of a child. Rape/domestic violence. These came to mind as I read over today’s question,…as what would be the ultimate act or circumstance that would be the most difficult to seek a way towards forgiveness? Even in the height of these dark hours if these events were to occur, I know in my heart of hearts, I would have to find peace and forgiveness, because otherwise, the darkness that entered your life would not only overshadow you forthwit tenfold, but the pain of not resolving the ability to let go of what you could not control would slowly corrode you from the inside out.
Time, next to love {as others have mentioned facing tribulations against us by utilizing our ability to love and forgive}, is the best healer, because it helps absolve the pain, and leads towards forgiveness. There isn’t any right or wrong way to lead us through the troubling waters we face as we live our lives. We all approach each day in the best ways that we are able too, greet new tribulations as they come along, and we try not to beg for trouble early, by worrying ourselves away on things that are not yet to be.
In the instance of accepting and shifting past situations that upturn our world,… I can even attest, that dealing with natural disasters that shatter our homes, our hometowns, and take our loved ones, is another act that is difficult to forgive. We all feel powerless in life, due to circumstances that are beyond human understanding and control. Yet. We have to dig deeper into our faith and into the strength we have inside us, to not only rebuild, and regroup, but to reset the foundations of everything that no longer exists.
If you give yourself the ability to grieve, feel angst and anguish, then you have the ability and the choice to seek forgiveness even for things in life that do not appear to be able to be forgiven. The best example I can say as a living example of this kind of “a diffiult thing to forgive” is the woman who was brutally attacked and raped in Central Park, NYC. I do not know the year this happened, but she exited that horrid event blind and marred. When I saw an interview with her on tv, God’s Light shined so brightly out of her, that it touched and reflected back on anyone who was in her presence. To hear her story, and to listen to her path towards redemption and forgiveness, I think would inspire anyone to know, that in the end, the only thing that is not forgiveable, is our inability to forgive ourselves and those that do us harm.
admin says:
February 20, 2013 at 12:14 pm (UTC -5 )
I so agree, Jorie. Her testimony speaks volumes!
For me, forgiving over and over again that one person that intentionally “digs” on purpose is the hardest, but I have to remind myself that she hurts out of her wounds.
Great review Julie. BW rocks again.
Jorie says:
February 20, 2013 at 12:49 pm (UTC -5 )
I know what your talking about,.. where no matter what you do {ie: tread lightly, understand where the person is coming from, or try to accept her on her terms}, there are times when even in this instance, its hard not to falter our understanding. I saw this first hand, where it wasn’t just a person lashing out at one person, but many people,… even though we all understand where she was acting out from, it didn’t lesson the pain she inflicted on those around her. I think sometimes the best solution is to give them a wide birth, and allow them to come to a calmer place. They do not realise it, but their actions and words start to isolate them, because everyone has their own threshold of dealing with it.
If you have to interact with them continuously, the only option you have is to resolve its them, not you, and that hopefully through prayers on their behalf, one day they will wake up and see that how they are behaving is having such a negative effect on others.
Big hugs to you, for recognising her pain, and allowing her to be as she is, but always hopeful she’ll change.
Virginia Rush says:
February 20, 2013 at 12:21 pm (UTC -5 )
Julie you nailed it….Beth knocked it out of the ballpark with this great book….it’s not just a story, it’s a life lesson.
I think there are alot of hard betrayals…rejection, betrayal even death….and amid these we hang on to HIM, He gets us through. and I still want a sequel…yeah…broken record…..
Beth Webb Hart says:
February 20, 2013 at 12:57 pm (UTC -5 )
Thank you so much for your lovely post, Julie, and thank you, Jorie, for your reminder about the woman in NYC who was so brutally attacked and chose to forgive. What would be the most difficult thing to forgive? Somehow I am reminded of the English martyr who while imprisoned in the tower of London saw criminals being marched to their execution and said, “There, but for the Grace of God, go I.” However horrible the sin, I think – in my heart of hearts – I must acknowledge that I am just as capable of committing it as the next person.
Blessings to all on the porch today as we bask in the beauty of grace and forgiveness.
Love to all,
BW
Julie Cantrell says:
February 20, 2013 at 12:59 pm (UTC -5 )
Great points,Ladies. I think it’s easier for me to forgive people for hurting me…but when people hurt the ones I love…I find that very, very hard to forgive. I like what Beth has done in her book by asking herself what would be a very difficult situation to forgive…and then putting us right into it. That’s my favorite kind of book, when we are stretched out of our comfort zones and forced to view the world through another lens. Thank you Beth!
Lisa Wingate says:
February 20, 2013 at 1:33 pm (UTC -5 )
Shellie’s point strikes home. Yes, it’s easier for me to forgive when someone hurts me, but when someone goes after people I love, especially my babies, it is much harder.
One of the things I loved about Beth’s story was that, if Julia can’t forgive, innocent people will be hurt (the children). It makes such a good point that often the victims are bystanders who just happen to be involved.
karenk says:
February 20, 2013 at 7:27 pm (UTC -5 )
Jorie…what a power testament. i applaud & agree w/ you.
Julie…loved your synopsis of Beth’s novel.
Beth…can’t wait to read your latest novel.
Brandi F says:
February 23, 2013 at 12:00 am (UTC -5 )
Hardest thing to forgive???
I’ve actually faced that thing. I don’t really want to go into it, but it involved my parents. After years of wrestling with the situation and knowing that my position was right…God just continued to gently woo me to forgiveness.
He used a Bible study by Charles Stanley called ‘Understanding Forgiveness’ to start the process. Then He allowed me to do a Bible study by Beth Moore called ‘Breaking Free’.
Fast forward 15 years and I can tell you that the circumstances didn’t change, the relationship hasn’t been restored (nor do I expect it to be). But the difference is that when I chose to forgive I was set free!
That’s what I love about this story…Julia didn’t want to forgive and most people would have sided with her. But through forgiveness she was set free and blessed with a different life than she planned but one worth it all.
Velma says:
February 23, 2013 at 2:24 am (UTC -5 )
I find that a tough question because unless you have experienced a hurt, it is hard to say how you would react. I am always astonished by women who are able to forgive infedelity, but I have never been in that situation, and God forbid that I ever do, but I don’t know how I would handle it or if I could forgive. I guess the hardest action that I don’t know if I could forgive is if someone hurt or killed someone I love. That is something I don’t want to think about.