Words from a Mother's Heart

I recall the day I became a national bestselling author. It was September 2005, and the book that marked that monumental moment for me was Crossing Jhordan's River (Moody Publishers/Lift Every Voice imprint), my third novel. Since that time, God has truly shown me much favor. Between then and now, six more of my titles have graced the Essence magazine's Best Selling Books list, making me a 7-time national bestseller. It's an humbling honor that I don't take for granted.

The first time I made "the list," I can remember thinking that it would be incredibly difficult for any happening in my literary life to measure up to that moment. I've been immeasureably grateful and elated every time I've made the list, but there has always been something about that first time that made it more special and more memorable than all the others. That moment - the moment Crossing Jhordan's River made the list - had never been rivaled...until now.

Today, my heart is overwhelmed. Thanks to the sales of her novel, Testing Relationships (Urban Books/Urban Christian imprint), my daughter, Brittney Holmes, made the list (see Essence magazine's February 2009 issue). And I found myself overjoyed beyond belief. Far more so than I was when I saw my name etched among the elite four years ago. Today I laughed louder, cried harder, and celebrated longer than I ever did for myself. My baby made the list! It was a prayer answered, and I took joy in calling her in her dorm on the campus of University of Georgia to inform her of the honor. While she released gleeful screams, I cried some more. The same glee motivated my tears.

It sounds so cliche' at times when we hear it said that parents want their children to be even more blessed than they, or to obtain greater achievements than they did. But what I felt today brought so much validation to that age-old adage. I was 38 when I became a national bestselling author. Brittney is 19. It was my third book. It's her second. She's on track to achieve above and beyond what her mother achieves, and I don't think I could be happier or prouder if I'd tried.

Congratulations, sweetie!

From a mother's heart......