Many years ago, when my children were very young (they were so young, the third one was just a gleam in the Good Lord's eye), I watched as a young mother walked out of a K-Mart and left her little brown-haired girl behind. The episode, and how the event unfolded, rocked me to the core of my beliefs. But it changed me, too.
Years later, when I started writing essays, the K-Mart story surfaced and begged to be told. I bet I wrote a dozen versions of that story. And each time I submitted the essay to a market, it came back with a "No, thanks." I can't say that surprised me. I knew there was something more I needed to tell, and that I hadn't gotten to the heart of the story. Then I saw the Thin Threads Contest.
As described on the website, a thin thread is a "moment, event, setback, crossroad or encounter that connected you to a person, place or an opportunity that changed your life for the better." I knew immediately that I had to try again.
I suppose that this time, I got it right. Because "A Little Brown-Haired Girl" was selected for Thin Threads, Special Edition: Compassion and Giving. They're always looking for life-changing stories, and maybe you have one that's just right for this series. Find out more at their website. Or submit your story for the Thin Threads Contest like I did.
I'll be ordering a few copies of the Thin Threads Compassion and Giving, perhaps have a contest here and give it away. But it won't really compare with what a little brown-haired girl gave me so many years ago.
