Late Bloomers

"Christy" by Catherine Marshall planted a seed in me as a teenager (I read it 9 times!) to one day write a book that would touch other hearts the way "Christy" touched mine. The fertilizer didn't kick in for thirty years, but one fine day in 2002, "The Distant Shore" bloomed large and lovely. Ten books followed in quick succession.

I guess you could say I'm a bonified late bloomer. Are there others out there like me? Those who need a few extra years for ideas and motivation to marinate before coming to full robust flavor?

You betcha. You may be one of us.

Julia Child's first cookbook was published at age 49 and her television debut occurred in her 50s. Prolific author Raymond Chandler published his frist novel, "The Big Sleep" at age 51. Morgan Freeman found movie fame at age 52. Paula Dean overcame agoraphobia to open up a small catering business in Georgia and published her first cookbook at 50; this led to her own TV show at age 55. World famous artist Grandma Moses (Anna Mary Robertson) began painting in her 70s. Laura Ingalls Wilder was 65 when she published the first of her "Little House" books.

So how about you? Are you feeling the itch to bud?

Take heart - it's not too late to propogate, fertilize and harvest your latent talent! So put on those gardening gloves and coax some gorgeous fruit from those fallow fields today.