I have big news for readers of my inspirational novels! On December 1, just in time for Christmas, I will be hosting a Launch Party on Facebook for my new series which takes place in the Ozarks! Join me from 4:00-6:00PM Eastern Time for my Facebook Live event. I will have copies of my new book, Desert Fire, Mountain Rain, on hand for you to purchase via a special link, and you can watch me sign your book while I answer questions and talk to readers. Leave a comment with a question, and I will answer it live during the launch. Keep checking my website and social media (Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter), for more information about the launch and the series.
Have you ever heard of the Blue Zones? These are the areas of the world where people are the healthiest and live the longest. Many of them are in and around the Mediterranean. Sardinia, one of the Blue Zones, was featured in the Zac Efron Netflix Special, Down to Earth, which our family thoroughly enjoyed.
I’ve often told my girls I want to live to be over a hundred. It’s not that I’m not looking forward to spending eternity in the next life with my Lord and Savior (God willing), but I’m enjoying watching my girls grow, looking forward to grandchildren, and only in recent years have met my true tribe of female friends. I want to live as many more years as I’ve lived so far. And this is why I’m fascinated by the Blue Zones.
What makes these Blue Zones such healthy places to live? Doctors and scientists believe it comes down to several factors: lifestyle (less driving and more walking), a true sense of community (friends and family living closer together), wine drinking (yes, you read that right), and healthy eating. And here’s a little something I personally noticed when researching the Blue Zones – almost all of them are in countries or regions with high numbers of people who practice a religion (usually but not always Christianity/Catholicism).
In 2019, Morgan and I visited Greece and spent time on the mainland and in the islands. Greece is a large part of the Blue Zone, and we could see why. While there was traffic in and around Athens, the locals tended to walk most places, and on the islands we visited (mostly off the tourist route), cars were few and far between. The food was phenomenal, and the wine… Well, let’s just say that Morgan and I tried our fair share of Greek wines.
And olive oil. That’s a HUGE component of the Mediterranean diet.
We did an olive oil tasting and were told that the average Greek consumes at least six shot glasses of olive oil a day – that’s about twelve ounces! Imagine drinking a cup and a half of olive oil every day! Of course, they don’t drink it, but they use it in and on everything. Morgan said the baked potato she tried was better than any she’d ever loaded with butter or sour cream. We even had chocolate mousse made with olive oil, and the taste was amazing!
For the past couple months, the two Bible studies that I lead have been reading the narrative books of the Bible, following Jeff Cavins, The Great Adventure. Throughout the Old Testament, the writers always pointed out the ages of the prominent people (particularly in Genesis during which period all of the oldest men lived). While I’m pretty sure Noah did not live to be 950 years old (or father children at 500) by today’s calendar, I believe their ages were pointed out so frequently for a reason.
It’s important to those reading the Bible, or anyone anywhere for that matter, to always remember that age doesn’t really matter, and that great things can be accomplished at any age. In fact, one can achieve a heck of a lot at an older age. At the age of sixty-two, J.R.R. Tolkien published the first volume of his fantasy series, Lord of the Rings. At the age of seventy, Cornelius Vanderbilt began buying railroads. At the age of seventy-five, cancer survivor Barbara Hillary became one of the oldest people, and the first black woman, to reach the North Pole. At the age of seventy-eight, Benedict XVI became the Pope. At the age of eighty-six, Katherine Pelton swam the 200-meter butterfly in 3 minutes, 1.14 seconds, beating the men’s world record for that age group by over 20 seconds. And at a spry ninety-four, comedian George Burns performed in Schenectady, New York, sixty-three years after his first performance there.
It’s not age that matters. It’s the belief in yourself and, I firmly believe, faith in God that allows one to persevere, achieve, and accomplish. In today’s society, we’re often led to believe that once a person hits retirement age, their worth decreases exponentially. They may as well be put out to pasture. During the pandemic, Belgium Spain, Sweden, and some areas of Great Britain chose to let their elderly die in favor of helping younger victims of the virus. Even in California, one official said that anyone who was elderly, ill, or homeless should be left to die.
I look at my father, going strong and still building outdoor furniture and Christmas tree display stands by hand at the age of eighty-three, and I think, “I want to grow up to be just like my dad.” Here is a man who was in the hospital last week with a gall bladder attack who came home from the hospital and went right back to work in his garage. By the week’s end, he had completed three orders from nurses and others who contacted him while in the hospital! Dad has a strong and deep-abiding faith, and he never wakes up a single morning without thanking God for his day. That’s something to remember and emulate.
So, bring on a Mediterranean diet, and let the sun shine long enough each day for me to go on a walk. I will practice my faith, consume my olive oil, and do my exercise. Most of all, I will thank God for every day and do my very best to live each day to its fullest.
Do you love Amy’s blog about inspiration and living your best life? Try this…
Amy’s new book, A Devotional Alphabet, is now available! These sixty-second meditations are meant to inspire, encourage, and welcome all women traveling on the road to Heaven.
Don’t forget to tune into Amy’s Facebook Page on December 1 to buy your signed copy of her newest book, Desert Fire, Mountain Rain.
Want More from Amy?
Subscribe to my newsletter for information on upcoming books, cover reveals, and insider information. Do you know what my next book is about? My newsletter subscribers do!
What I was writing about a year ago this week: When I, in Awesome Wonder.
Would you like Amy to speak to your parish, your women’s group, your reading patrons, or your book club?
Contact Amy’s assistant to schedule Amy’s visit–in person or via Skype or FaceTime. Now is the time to schedule a visit for this fall or winter!
Amy Schisler is an award-winning author of both children’s books and sweet, faith-filled romance novels for readers of all ages. She lives with her husband and three daughters on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Her books, Picture Me, Whispering Vines, and Island of Miracles are all recipients of Illumination Awards, placing them among the top inspirational fiction books of 2015, 2016, and 2017. Whispering Vines was awarded the 2017 LYRA Award for the best romance of 2016. Island of Miracles has outsold all of Amy’s other books worldwide and ranked as high as 600 on Amazon. Her follow up, Island of Promise is a reader favorite. Amy’s children’s book is The Greatest Gift. The suspense novel, Summer’s Squall, and all of Amy’s books, can be found online and in stores. Her latest novel, Island of Promise, was recently awarded First Prize by the Oklahoma Romance Writer’s Association as the best Inspirational Romance of 2018 and was awarded a Gold Medal in the Independent Publisher Book Awards 2019 for Inspirational Fiction. It is the 2019 winner for Best Inspirational Fiction in the RWA Golden Quill Contest, Best Romance in the American Book Awards, and a finalist for the Eric Hoffer Award of Fiction. Amy’s 2019 work, The Devil’s Fortune, a finalist in the Writer’s Digest Self-Publishing Awards and winner of an Illumination Award, is based, in part, on Amy’s family history. The third book of Amy’s Chincoteague Island Trilogy, Island of Hope, was released in August of 2019.
You may follow Amy on Facebook at http://facebook.com/amyschislerauthor, Twitter @AmySchislerAuth, Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/amyschisler and at http://amyschislerauthor.com.
Amy’s books: Crabbing With Granddad (2013), A Place to Call Home (2014), Picture Me (2015), Whispering Vines (2016), Island of Miracles (2017), Stations of the Cross Meditations for Moms (2017), The Greatest Gift (2017), Summer’s Squall (2017), Island of Promise (2018), The Devil’s Fortune (2019), Island of Hope (2019).
If told u before I LOVE your books
.I’ve always said I want to live to be100. People just look at me and think I’m crazy. I read an article recently that said babies born today will have a good chance to live to be 100+.
Have a great day to myv pilgimage friend.
Marybeth Carney