This post is part of a virtual book tour organizee by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be awarding a $15 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn host. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Beverley learns about God in Kindergarten and invites Him to come to Jamaica and give her her own Bible story. She goes home each day and waits at her gate for Him to show up. Will He show up, and will she be ready for her story if and when He does?
Enjoy an Exclusive Excerpt
Over the years, financially speaking, things had gone from bad to worse in my home. I got used to living with poverty and disappointment. Things had gotten so bad that I was forced to drop out of school before my fourteenth birthday. That was a very traumatic experience for me, because I loved school and did well in school. I wanted to be with kids in my age group at Denbeigh Junior Secondary School, doing what they were doing: learning, planning the future, and having fun being silly and carefree. To protect my mind, I told myself to stop expecting good things to happen and just take each day as it came.
The very day I dropped out of school was the day The Man dropped into my life. I had never seen Him, but after some time, I concluded that He was very intelligent, so He must be a spirit. I also sensed He was a man. In fact, the day I came to that conclusion, I shouted, “I know who you are!” I knew that I knew Him, but I just couldn’t put my finger on the name. After spending some time trying to figure out who He was, I gave up and yelled, “You are a man… and you are a spirit!” So much for knowing who He was. I prayed and begged for help getting back into school, and all I got was that presence. Well, that and the burnings that followed my every attempt to escape Him.
What I’d come to refer to as burnings felt more like being zapped by electricity or a laser. As soon as I sensed my environment become extraordinarily quiet, I knew The Man was present and I would try to run, but something like electricity would hit me and I would become paralyzed. My survival instincts would take over, and I’d fight, cuss, yell, or scream—but to no avail. No one ever heard me. I’d lose consciousness for about fifteen minutes, then reawaken to the intense burning sensations inside my body, especially my joints.
So that morning, when I felt Him looking at me from the foot of my bed, I thought He was there to “burn” me, again. I opened my eyes and stared at the spot where I sensed the strong presence. Under the blankets, I was cussing, among other things, saying, “Leave me alone! Leave me alone! Why won’t you leave me alone? What do you want from me? What do you want from me? Why are you bothering me?” I yelled in my mind, something I did every time I felt His presence.
Although He remained unseen, I always sensed Him. I even covered myself from head to toe with a blanket in a vain attempt to protect myself from Him as I slept, just in case He showed up while I was deep in sleep.
About the Author:
Beverley was born and raised in the rural parish of Clarendon, Jamaica, where she attended the Content United Brethren Church and its Basic (Kindergarten) school, better known as Sister Betty’s school. Growing up, she attended York Town Primary and Denbigh Junior Secondary school, now Denbigh High School. She migrated to Toronto, Canada, as a young adult. A graduate of the University of Toronto and OISE, she is an Elementary teacher by profession, and also a Sunday school teacher. She enjoys reading, writing, travelling and working with children.
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Thanks for hosting!
Sounds like a book I would enjoy a lot.
Thank you for sharing an excerpt from the book