Finalizing the Book Manuscript = Letting go, bit by bit

 Still alive, working on TEH BOOK. It's been approx  730 days, 11 months and half-a-year since I first wrote about it. By 2021, a book proposal approved. An extension for submission was requested and now here we are, finalizing Chapter 1.

I was reading through the Chapter 1 manuscript to distract me a bit while donating blood at the hospital for my father-in-law. My co-author decided to move the prologue - it was a really an important blog for me and for the book. But those are just to my view. That felt like 2 feathers plucked out of me in that chapter. I say to myself, I can live with it, just like the idea of living with real grief and anticipating another in this earthly life. After all, there are other things in life to go for = remaining chapters to go for.

 So, the plucked feathers shall remain in our manuscript drafts or my blog instead. And perhaps the book can live without it. Or I may try to negotiate with my co-author at the right time. Looking at the whole chapter, it felt more together after all.

And here is hoping that I can still manage to keep myself together until the end of 2022, which by the way, I want to be over soon. It felt quite similar to how it was year 2020, but now with less angst, and more of a feeling of surrender, that is leaving God to do his eternal work with my Tita Clem, Tita Nenette and my god daughter Kylene.  We all get to that point anyway, so what else is there to be done?!!!

So, this editing phase and final preparation of our manuscript seems like a parallel experience to these ongoing life events = letting go of people, bit by bit, and still keeping vigil over of my ever-present father-in-law, Lolo Ben. Hold his hand while we still can and simply being together through this process as a family, preparing ourselves for whatever outcome. Just like making sure the book essentials remain, and that the essence of the book is driven across and perhaps more efficiently and effectively less the life drama and still with my identity intact. The book project is no longer really about me, nor my co-author, rather the audience who seek to understand and appreciate what they can from the book. 

Here's is hoping I remain steady for the remaining chapter edits and the year 2022.