By Naomi Musch

It seemed there had been a rash of it touching the edges of my world — women walking out on their families, their lives, their husbands and children. Not the kind of walking out that comes of being wounded and scarred by abuse, of someone fed up with distrust or infidelity. The women I speak of had simply lost their way. They’d forgotten who they were, or maybe they never really knew.

It saddened me to hear of friends married many years turning away to search for something new, of young women who seemed to think they’d not really lived and regretted “settling down”, of women choosing career over marriage or the lure of an adulterous fling.

I guess I can’t begin to know why some women leave. Yet, I too have been dissatisfied at times, frustrated, angry. I’ve been heart-broken, irresolute, at wit’s end in my marriage. But I have no illusions that the grass might be greener and the flowers brighter beyond my garden gate. I’ve come to discover every day in the trenches is worth the living for the victories on the hilltops. Life comes to us in waves, fluctuating day by day, month by month. The rewards of constant pursuit are delight, love, the give-and-take of sharing our hearts’ journey. We have to stand our ground to lay hold of that enduring joy in our relationships.

But the heart-wrenching choices of those women I knew tore at me. I dreamed about it. I dreamed of a woman who’d walked away from a beautiful life, one she didn’t think she even deserved, yet one she felt drowned in — obscured by. I woke from that dream and wrote it down.

Paint Me Althena is a new book releasing from Desert Breeze Publishing in August about that young wife and mother who lost her way. It’s a testament of choices and healing:

When still life artist Ethan Day discovers a fantasy painting by Althena Bell in a consignment shop, he’s sure he’s found Ava, his wife who abandoned him and their two little girls three years ago. Finding her is one thing, but forgiveness and second chances are impeded by outsiders, and conflict between Ava’s search for identity and Ethan’s new faith might break the safety net he offers.

What about you? Have you ever had a time in your life when you’ve felt like leaving it all behind — the life you’ve made, those closest to you? Has your search for identity and self worth led you on a path you wished you hadn’t chosen, or one on which you’ve felt abandoned or have abandoned others? Have you lost your way and don’t know how to find it again? I’m praying for you today, for women everywhere who struggle with who they are and where they’re going. May all of us, on our journeys, discover the beauty in the lives we’ve been given. May Christ guide our steps, and may we each find ourselves truly willing to be led by Him.

Blessings~

Naomi

Naomi writes from the pristine north woods of Wisconsin where she and husband Jeff live as epically as God allows on a ramshackle farm near their five young adults and three grand-children. Amidst it, she writes about imperfect people who are finding hope and faith to overcome their struggles, whether the story venue is rich in American history, or along more contemporary lines. Her most recent release,