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Author: CAstfalk

Carolyn Astfalk is a wife, mother, and author of contemporary Catholic romances, including her latest, All in Good Time. She formerly worked as a communications director and now works just to keep her head above water. Find her books on Amazon and her other words scattered around the blogosphere and social media.

This is the Way

Published by CAstfalk on 11/08/2020

Jesus said to him [Thomas], “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me.”

John 14:6

These words from John’s Gospel couldn’t be simpler. the way, the truth, and the life.

Seven simple words.

Despite the many distractions created by my children, these words and their implications burrowed into my mind and heart at Adoration last month.

During the same hour, they stared up at me from the pages of St. Teresa of Avila’s Interior Castle. Then again in a scripture quote in Totus Tuus.

I’m accustomed to not hearing from God very often, whether due to His taciturn way of dealing with me or my own failure to listen, I can’t say. I suspect it’s a bit of both. Either way, I’m quite accustomed to it. That this little verse could move me so deeply, nearly to tears, was highly unordinary and remarkable.

For several minutes, I felt a tiny, infintessimally small fraction of Jesus’s sorrow. His sorrow at our rejection of those words:

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”

We’ve replaced those words with something more akin to:

The My Way, the My Truth, and the My Life

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Chapter Books Series for Catholic Kids

Published by CAstfalk on 10/19/2020

I remember the unique joy of reading well enough to pick up a chapter book for the first time and read on my own. I’d anticipate finding the next illustration, then moving on to the next chapter, and checking my progress to see how close I was to completing the book and how much I’d already read.

I read some marvelous classic chapter books and probably some junky ones as well, but I didn’t have access to the wonderful Catholic books I’ve been able to offer my children. One or more of them have read many of these books already.

Belt of Truth
Saving Mount Rushmore
Secret of the Shamrock
Sisters of the Last Straw

Armor of God series by Theresa Linden

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Pair a Book and a Drink

Published by CAstfalk on 09/28/2020

Bethany House Publishers had a fun blog post pairing their new fall books with a beverage. It got me to thinking what drinks I’d pair with my own books.

I would pair Rightfully Ours, which includes a few sweltering summer scenes, with a glass of ice-cold, fresh-squeezed lemonade. Paul and Rachel could use something to cool them down, in more ways than one!

Here’s a little excerpt. For context, Rachel’s little brother James has just shot her with his squirt gun.

Rightfully Ours

A stream of ice-cold water smacked her upper arm.

She squealed and jumped from her seat, turning in time to see James push off the ground with his forearms and sprint around the side of the house. She let out a growl. “I’m going to kill him.”

Paul sat up, scanning the yard in either direction. “Man, I’ll pay him to hit me. I’m dying out here.” He unbuttoned his cuffs and rolled up his sleeves.

Rachel giggled. “You look ridiculous, you know.” Sleeves and pant legs rolled up. Shirt undone. Bare feet. He needed to put on some shorts. He could leave his shirt off, and she wouldn’t mind one bit. Not one bit. “Why don’t you go get changed?”

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The Bird and the Bees Blog Tour

Published by CAstfalk on 09/17/2020

The Bird and the Bees

by Neena Gaynor

About the Book:

When Larkin Maybie buries her mother in the foothills of Appalachia, she is left all alone. Her only inheritance? A crazy aunt, a mountain of debt, and a run-down, secluded cabin left by a mysterious benefactor. While Larkin thinks an escape to a cabin miles from anything familiar might be exactly what she needs, the quick answer to her problems only leaves her with more questions … Questions concerning her true identity.

As Larkin searches for her link to the Lewandowski Estate, she begins to accept the kindness of strangers on Presque Isle and the affection of professional baseball player, Ketch Devine. Charged with caring for the cabin’s honey bees and haunted by past choices, Larkin struggles to move forward in a new direction and is running out of time. With summer and baseball season coming to an end, she must decide: what is the value of true love and an authentic life?

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