Baby Steps by Marion Andrews of Green Pastures Christian Writers

After Covid, the Cancer Support Unit I previously had volunteered at re-opened. The team were delighted but somehow things were not the same. Fewer people called in and the caring, ‘buzzy’ atmosphere we had enjoyed had fizzled to a much quieter space.

Jane, the manager, invited us all in to find a way forward. We discussed how babies change from being a helpless, fragile bundle at birth, their neck too weak even to support its head. Other stages follow closely. There’s ‘let’s play with my toes’, then ‘rolling over’; soon they’re struggling onto their knees and they’re crawling!

Jane explained that change is similar slow steady development. Suddenly you realise something is happening. We only needed to be patient.

It reminded me of my writing journey. Initially I showed no-one my work. Supposing I was told it was rubbish? How would I cope? I joined a local writing group and the feedback on my story (which I thought was okay) was that it was ‘utterly boring’. I was devastated and never returned. However, the flame was not extinguished and I eventually started writing again, still rarely showing it to others.

Then I joined a much more supportive Creative Writing evening class. Everyone had to read out their homework. I did too. One day the leader said, ‘Your work comes alive when you write about nursing. Have you ever thought of writing your memoir?’

So I did. It took me over a year, with lots of ups and downs; but it ignited my need for my grandchildren to know the importance of the NHS, because I feared one day it might become obsolete. (Does that sound familiar?)

I didn’t win The Booker Prize. I had to self-publish, but I was proud of my story and it was another foot along my writing pathway.

Now I regularly contribute to various devotional magazines, able at last to cope with negative comments (only just though!). Sometimes God touches my heart and I find myself rushing to my trusty pencil and notebook to record what is bubbling inside me, believing that as writers we should use our gifts to tell God’s stories to the world.

So, I stumble on, believing that God is beside me. If I trip and fall, He will pick me up again, hold my hand and keep me safe. I must learn again to ‘Let go; let God’.

To find Marion's book, click here: Angels of the NHS: Amazon.co.uk: Andrews, Marion: 9781786230478: Books