Did You Know? ~ Rules for a Sick Room (1877)

I found these Rules for a Sick Room in The Circle of Useful Knowledge by Charles Kinsley (self published in 1877), and I thought it might interest our readers. (Please note last sentence, which I thought pretty funny.)

Keep the patient and all about him perfectly clean, and secure as far as possible pure air. The chamber should be ventilated at least once a day, or twice if it can be borne. The bed-clothes should be carried out into the open air, if it is dry; if not, into the next room; and if the patient is unable to sit up meanwhile, let them be supplied by others. Keep the room quiet and in perfect order. Let the sick be addressed in a gentle voice, and the conversation, if any is admitted, be pleasant and cheering. The nurse and friends should express sympathy with the sufferer, but at the same time seek to inspire courage, and patience to endure. All vials and powders should be labelled to prevent fatal mistakes. The bed should be made at least once per day, and if the patient can bear it twice. Carry the beds into the open air, or if damp into another room. Keep the skin clean by daily ablutions; change the garments frequently and rinse the mouth often. A nurse should be of pleasant, agreeable, persuasive and even temper, with great patience to bear with the whims and unreasonable fretfulness that often appear in the sick. Never dispute with a very sick person, nor reprove him for any seeming inconsistency. Remember that he is hardly a responsible being.  

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If At First. . .by Author Richard L. Mabry, M.D.

Outside, strobes atop the police cars spilled red and blue over the figures huddled on the lawn. 

From the front window, the lights of the Christmas tree cast multicolored reflections on the snow. 

Inside the house, red bows and green garlands adorned the mantel of the living room. That color scheme continued in the tattered green coat the man on the floor wore and the darkening red stain that spread from the knife handle protruding from his back.

Dr. Shannon Frasier stood transfixed in one corner, unable to tear her eyes away from the corpse. Her “almost-fiancé,” Dr. Mark Gilbert, was beside her, his arm resting lightly on her shoulder. 

This was no way to start the holiday season.

In case you’re wondering where you can find those lines, you can’t, unless you scan the hard drive of my computer. When I started writing my most recent novel of medical suspense, Critical Condition, I planned to set it during the Christmas season. But after writing the first chapter, I decided that wasn’t going to work. So I started over.

When I was writing another novel, Heart Failure, I scrapped 20,000 words after I saw I was headed in the wrong direction. That one was tough to write, but I kept at it and after a number of false starts, several new beginnings, and multiple revisions, I produced a novel I thought was good.

In the past I never gave any thought to how many times an author may have started over, how many drafts and revisions were involved, until the book in my hand was born. But that was before I started writing. Now I am acutely aware of all that. As author Alton Gansky told my group of neophyte writers: “Once you begin writing, you’ll never read a book the same way again.” And I’ve found that to be true.

To the writers reading this, I would remind you that there may come a time when, despite all the work you’ve put in on it, it’s necessary to scrap what you’ve written and start over. If that happens to you, don’t worry about it. After all, the finished product is what counts. 

In writing, as in so many other things in life, the old adage is true: If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

Richard Mabry is a retired physician, past Vice President of the

American Christian Fiction Writers, and author of “medical suspense with heart.” His novels have been a semifinalist for International Thriller Writers’ debut novel, finalists for the Carol Award and Romantic Times’ Reader’s Choice Award, and winner of the Selah Award.  His most recent novel, just released, is Critical Condition. You can follow Richard on his blog, on Twitter, and his Facebook fan page.

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Romance Book Spotlight ~ Love's Promises

The winner of last week's giveaway for a copy of Alone Yet Not Alone is...

Meagan Davenport!

Congratulations, Meagan! I'll send you an email. :)

Now...announcing a new release from author Sandra Leesmith! In a similar vein to Love's Refuge, Love's Promises is an inspirational romance with a dash of suspense - this time set at Lake Tahoe in the 1980s. (Would you consider that contemporary or historical? I'm curious!) I had the pleasure of editing the book and organizing the publicity campaigns, and if you love character-driven romance with a setting that whisks you away, you're in for a treat with Sandra's latest. Read on to learn more...

About the Book

For Monica Scott, building her late father’s house at Lake Tahoe isn’t an option—it’s a necessary distraction from confusing memories and an uncertain future. But a handsome planner working for the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) is keeping Monica from moving forward with the project. Never mind that he’s young and charming with a great sense of humor. No one is going to stop Monica from making her father’s dream—and her own—a reality.

All Greg Linsey wants is for his work to mean something. His job at TRPA gives him the opportunity to fight for the environment he loves and make a difference in his small corner of the world. But with the sophisticated Monica Scott’s arrival, his dedication is tested as never before, especially when Monica turns to his unscrupulous nemesis for assistance.

As Greg and Monica’s animosity turns into something far sweeter, can they learn to accept each other’s promises and avoid the growing danger to their lives and hearts?

About the Author

 Sandra Leesmith loves to travel in her RV and explore all of nature’s beauty, discover America’s history, and fellowship with the wonderful people she meets while on the road. She enjoys reading, writing, hiking, swimming, and pickleball. Learn more about Sandra and her books at www.sandraleesmith.com.

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• The book is currently FREE in Kindle format! (Promotion runs through today, April 21st, and tomorrow, April 22nd.)

• Check out previous Sandra Leesmith book spotlights at the BB: Love's Miracles, Love's Refuge

• Love's Promises is currently on tour in the blogosphere! View the schedule, enter the "taste of Lake Tahoe" giveaway, and more HERE. Today's stops include the introduction at Seasons of Humility, an author interview at The Wonderings of One Person, and a review at The Curried Nut. 

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Winners!!

Good morning, BB fans! Thanks to everyone who participated in our "puzzling" Friday giveaway! Keep all those facebook and Twitter notifications, coming!

This week's winner is: 

Laura Pol (sylvesternator AT yahoo DOT com) - Healer of Carthage by Lynne Gentry.

Congratulations, Laura! Thank you all so much for stopping by The Borrowed Book.

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Sunday Devotional: Where Are the Words?

Speechlessness in the mouth of a preacher is not a good thing.

Speechless, however, is exactly how the followers of Jesus found themselves on the morning of that third day.

It’s also where I find myself now.

I’ve written for six weeks on varying stages and aspects of Christ’s journey to the cross. And now, today, we celebrate the anniversary of the day He rose from the dead, and I am at a loss for what to say about it. It’s nice, as I look back, to know I’m not the only one.

I listen to my fellow believers reflect on this season with varying degrees of awe, thankfulness, and joy. All I can think about, however, as I go back and read over the accounts of the actual Resurrection, is how dumbstruck the core group of disciples was.

Why was this? Jesus had warned them often enough in the weeks beforehand that His death would take place. “And on the third day, I will be raised.”

In the shock of witnessing his death—which surely was more awful than they dreamed possible—did they not believe the last thing would come to pass?

The women believed, and bursting with joy, ran to share the news, although it’s clear that Mary Magdalene struggled at first with believing.

There were other hints that this particular plot twist was coming. The raising of Jairus’ daughter, the raising of the unnamed young man being carried away to his burial, the raising of Lazarus. Yet, it seems the disciples were tempted to believe the taunts above all else—“He who saved others is unable to save Himself.”

But—no. Oh no. He was more than able, just not in the way they expected.

I wonder, too, what the eventual state of belief was for those hapless guards left to keep watch over the tomb. They ¬saw the angels. They knew the disciples hadn’t come and stolen the body. They were there to prevent that very thing, and yet afterwards they were paid off—by the Pharisees and chief priests, no less, not even Pilate himself—to say that very thing happened, after all. The irony!

When I reflect on the Resurrection of Jesus itself, words like glorious and awesome come to mind ... but we all say that, in our time. What about how it appeared to His original followers, and to those guards?

Stunning.

Terrifying.

Unbelievable.

Even now, people struggle to believe. Is it any wonder the rest of the world shakes its head at us, these crazy Christians who insist that there really was a literal resurrection?

And yet, on this hangs all of our faith. Not the value of Jesus as a good teacher, but as the Son of God and the Son of Man, perfect humanity offered up to die on our behalf, then risen again to life. The One who cracked death wide open, as the tomb was opened during that earthquake long ago.

May I walk today—and the rest of my days—living out the conviction that my lips speak. And may I ever be speechless before Him—but not in giving others an answer for what I believe.


¹ Who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

³ He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

¹⁰ Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.
¹¹ He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.
By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,
For He shall bear their iniquities.
¹² Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,
And He shall divide the spoil with the strong,
Because He poured out His soul unto death,
And He was numbered with the transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many,
And made intercession for the transgressors. (Isaiah 53)

¹ Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. ² And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. ³ His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. ⁴ And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.

⁵ But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. (Matthew 28, all NKJV)

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Weekly Drawing ~ Gentry

It's Fun Friday at The Borrowed Book!

To enter:

Leave the time it took you to complete the puzzles in the comments section as well as your email address for notifying you if you've won. Winners will be drawn from ALL of the times, so the person with the fastest time may not be the actual winner, but by leaving your time, you double your chances.

Want another entry? Tweet your puzzle time and mention The Borrowed Book, get another entry. RETWEET our Tweet, get two entries!

Post your puzzle time on BB's Facebook wall and...you guessed it...get another entry!

Post it on your OWN Facebook wall and you could get as many as FIVE entries.

It's all a way to spread the word about the great giveaways on BB. So c'mon! Help us spread the word, and have a little fun at the same time. Enter all weekend long! Winners will be announced Sunday night at midnight.

This week's puzzle feature is brought to you by Lynne Gentry and her newest release, Healer of Carthage.

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The Solitary Life of Extrovert Lynne Gentry

As much as I enjoy putting words on paper, the life of a full-time writer is not an easy one for an extrovert. Some days the isolation becomes so great I’m forced to take drastic measures to satisfy my cravings for real people. Those are the days I run screaming from the make-believe characters populating my head and walk the mall. I’ve been accused of talking the ears off  perfect strangers.

I’m not one of those writers who can say, “I wrote my first story at age seven and knew one day I would write books.” But I have always been a storyteller. I grew up in rural America. Our dairy farm was fifteen miles from the nearest playmate. I was forced to entertain myself. One of my earliest memories is of me standing on a cattle loading dock with a stick in my hand that doubled as a microphone and a magic wand. With a wave of this wand, my mind quickly transported me into an imaginary world where I played all the characters, good or bad. Another wave of my hand and my stick became a microphone I could talk into for hours.

The stage was the ideal place for me to capitalizing on this ability to make-believe and talk. I went on to become a playwright and drama director. Writing a book never occurred to me until a writing friend thought my second musical would make a good novel. After two years of being holed up with a computer, I had a permanent twitch and 400 pages that will probably never see the light of day. But the grueling process of fleshing out characters, plot, and message had carved a home in my heart.

That was ten years ago. Since then, I’ve been writing every day.

Some days the words flow. Admittedly, they usually flow better after I’ve experienced the stimulation of being around real people. But when those words flow, it’s an extrovert high. I’m once again standing on a cattle loading dock waving a wand. This time it’s at a computer, painting one word picture after another until I’m satisfied that I’ve transported readers from their solitary lives to the exotic places in my head.

If it seems I have an ulterior motive, I do. If I can immerse real people so deeply into my adventure that they forget where they are, I suddenly don’t feel so alone. Please don’t make me walk the mall.

Lynne Gentry has written for numerous publications. Her newest novel, Healer of Carthage, is the first in The Carthage Chronicles series. She is a professional acting coach, theatre director, and playwright with several full-length musicals and children’s theater curriculums to her credit. Lynne is an inspirational speaker and dramatic performer whose first love is spending time with family.

You may learn more about her on her website, or connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

Don't forget to stop by tomorrow, when you can enter to win a free copy of her latest release, Healer of Carthage, the compelling adventure of a disgraced twenty-first century doctor who discovers healing in the middle of a third century Roman plague.

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