Great Grace at the Book Fair

This was the experience of the Early Church: "And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all." (Acts 4:33)

I might have experienced the same at, of all places, the noisy Manila International Book Fair. As people swarmed and buzzed like bees inside the OMFLit booth, I signed copies of my books, particularly the two new ones: Solo Flight (Embracing the Single Life and Discovering God's Purpose), co-authored with Francie Castaneda-Lacanilao; and Tree for All (book #13 in the Oh, Mateo! series), illustrated by Beth Parrocha-Doctolero.

But the signing took only half of the time. Posing for photos and conversing with readers took the other half.  

Through these two activities, great grace also came upon me.   

"Your photo with my kid last year—I had it framed.  It's on his bed headboard," one dad said.

Then while I was signing about two dozen books for an eight-year-old boy,  I exclaimed, "I see you're buying most of my books.  I hope you enjoy reading them!"

He replied, "Oh, I have read them all.  My mom wants a new set to give away to my friends and cousins!"

Next in line was a pretty teenager who asked me to sign Tree for All.  Sheepishly, she said, "I am 16 years old, and you might think I am too old for children's book. But I love reading the Oh, Mateo! series and I bought this to complete my collection."

“Nobody is ever too old for children's books,” I assured her.  The Little Prince is a required reading for my college students in English class."

"I heard you talking about Solo Flight on DZAS, so I rushed over to buy a copy," a middle-aged single lady said.

"May the Lord bless you a thousandfold as you continue writing about His grace," a Pastor whispered in my ear so I could hear it over the noise.  

"The lines to all the four cashiers are too long, so would you sign my books now—I promise not to abscond with them!" an elderly lady said.

"I need four copies of Solo Flight," a yuppy remarked as he took them from the pile on my table.

"Christmas gifts?" I asked.

"No, I am going to leave them at the nurses' station in the hospital where I work, so they'd be available for anyone who goes there," he said.

"Oh, you work in a hospital—as what?" I asked.

"I am a doctor," he replied.

All this great grace at  the book fair!   

I prayed right then and there that by this same grace, I can keep writing for and about the Source of it all.

Day 1: Book Signing for SOLO FLIGHT 

Day 2: Interview on DZAS