The curtain rises on the second act.

For years, this house rocked with the sounds of crying babies and willful toddlers, giggling pre-teens and secretive adolescents blasting hip-hop. But these days it’s a quieter place. Two children are in college now, and only one remains to finish out his senior year of high school. He’s gone more often than he’s here.

Working part-time in the schools, with only the dogs for company when I returned home each day, I dusted off my old English literature degree and embarked on the writer’s life I’d always planned to live.

Although I’ve kept a series of journals all my life, this time I challenged myself to complete a bigger project. Inspired by my circle of friends, I decided to write a love story. Most of them have suffered disappointments in love and marriage. Wouldn’t it be nice to rewrite their stories and give them a happy ending?

My first novel, A Leap of Faith, to be released by The Wild Rose Press early next year, tells the story of a friend of mine. Not her real story, but a tale of soulmates whose passion, thwarted at every turn, overcomes all obstacles. The kind of story my friend deserved to have actually lived.

I began my second novel inspired by another friend. What if I put her together with the type of guy who represents everything she dislikes about men? What could she learn about herself? I’m having fun with the fireworks that detonate every time the two characters come together.

There are plenty of things to hate about aging, but having time to rediscover your own interests and talents isn’t one of them. I’m lucky to have a partner on the journey: my husband of 23 years, who still buys me flowers, tucks notes into my briefcase, and buys me sexy underwear at every special occasion. He is the reason I know that true love really exists. And I don’t take anything for granted.

Because inside of me, a time bomb may be ticking. Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease overtook my father at the age of 51. His children have a 50% chance of developing the same illness. Only time will tell.

Whatever the future brings, I’m facing it with radical hope. Because from where I stand today, life is very, very good.