If you’re here, you know me. At least well enough to know I’m the author of the Angel Eyes trilogy.  Two of the novels have been released and the third, Dark Halo, will be on shelves in August. It’s been a journey I will never, ever forget and throughout it all, there is one question I’m asked time and again.

Why write about angels and demons?

It’s a legitimate question, especially since the Christian marketplace is known more for their romantic novels than anything else. But I have to admit, at first I was a little taken aback by the question. You see, angels and demons have always played on the backdrop of my storytelling experience and it was the most natural thing in the world for me to speculate about.

I grew up in a church where the creative arts were encouraged. As a teenager, I was part of a traveling team that performed mime, puppetry, dance,  dramas and the like. We were called (and I almost hate to tell you this) DMV, the Dynamic Mighty Voices, which I’ve always thought was curious since the one thing we DIDN’T do was sing.

We started out doing puppets and such for the Sunday school classes at church and that led us to our first competition where we took home little gold medals in both puppetry and mime. After that, our fearless leader, Sherry, led us through every open door that followed. We performed at malls, a Billy Graham crusade, with Psalty. All things, you church brats will appreciate. But mostly, we toured other churches, youth groups, and schools. It was a time that shaped so much of who I am today. And it absolutely fueled my passion for storytelling.

About a month ago, I did a Twitter chat with Inspire Writers and I promised to post a few pictures of myself during these years. See, when church kids tell stories, there is always a built in bad guy. Satan, right? And somehow, some way, I ended up playing him an awful lot. I couldn’t find as many pictures as I would have liked, but here are a few.

And yes, I give you permission to laugh. 

This is the oh-so-official publicity shot for DMV.  I’m in the bottom row, far left, and that is my favorite puppet, Penelope. Please note the birds up there in the top row. They’re sitting on the shoulders of Sherry Patterson. She is to blame for much of what I am today.

This shot was taken a bit earlier. I was in junior high here and this is a school production, The Tempest. Not sure why I’m wearing different colored tights, but here I am as Sycorax.

This was taken at summer camp. I’m there on the far right. We were the mean girls before mean girls were cool.

Performing at the mall here, a mime called Sleepwalking. I’m the second from the right. So many hilarious make-up faux pas when we were in our face paint.

Here we are performing Carman’s, The Champion, on the beaches of Tijuana. Now, the truth is, youth groups the world over have done this drama. Certainly not original, but I got to play Satan. Tons of fun, by the way.

Of course, I’ve played Mary the mother of Jesus. I mean, who hasn’t? I can’t quite remember when this was taken. After high school some time.

This was a show I did while in college called Eternity. It’s very similar to Heaven’s Gates and Hell’s Flames. See all those angels behind me?

And you wondered why I chose to examine the invisible.

I am a huge 49er fan. Always have been. When I was a kid, the team practiced just up the road and my dad would take the three of us girls out to watch. I even have a war story (and maybe a scar or two) from the time I got Jerry Rice’s autograph.

Needless to say, this climb back to glory the Niners have undertaken is quite exciting for me. There have been so many moving pieces and parts to track as the franchise fights their way back from nearly a decade of struggles. One of the more recent, and more colorful pieces to watch dance has been head coach, Jim Harbaugh. From his hard hitting handshakes to his vein popping tantrums on the sidelines, he is quite a character. And I like characters.

When he came to San Francisco, he brought with him a saying from his childhood that has really become the anthem of the team and, in turn, Niner Nation. It goes a little something like this:

The story of how that saying came to be is here, but the real genius of it is found in how Harbaugh’s used it to build a culture around his players. Early in the season (obviously) I caught an interview Bob Costas did with Vernon Davis and Alex Smith. Bob Costas asks Alex (and I’m paraphrasing here) how, through all the years, through all the criticism, was he able to maintain belief in himself. This is what Alex says:

For me, I think, I looked around at the league, especially at the quarterback position, and you soon realize that nobody has it easy. No one had the easy way to become a starting quarterback and playing well. Everybody’s gone through things, everybody deals with things. It’s the good ones–the guys who stick around are the guys who focus on what they can control . . . The people that allow the other stuff, the negativity to creep into their head, allow it to affect them, you aren’t going to be around very long. You’ve got to be thick skinned. You can’t let those things change your work ethic, change your approach to the game.

Wise, right? And because I think sports are a great metaphor for living, that statement has stayed with me. I assume it’s stayed with Alex as well. I hope it has. It’s all part of that culture, isn’t it? It’s a mindset that says, “NOBODY has it better than me. Everyone I am tempted to compare myself to has stuff to fight. They have things they must battle through, mountains to conquer. No one has it easy.”

I don’t know, maybe I’m just overly excited about tonight’s game. And nervous. I’m nervous. Because we’re playing the Packers. And since every game moving forward is possibly our last I thought I’d take this opportunity to share this lesson I learned from Coach Harbaugh, Alex Smith, and the Niner Nation.

Who’s got it better than us?

NOBODY!