In 1989, when I lived at Chapelgate, I bought a brand new white Conversion van. I LOVED it. After my late husband died I had 4 little children to raise. I wanted to teach them about God. That meant homeschooling them. I did it as much as I could but it wound up a blend of public schools and homeschooling. Since the van was brand new and in good shape we traveled. We traveled a LOT. I think the van wound up with 300,000 miles on the engine before it finally gave out a decade later.
In my book, "Island," the girl (me) hears God "calling her to a far and distant land" (Biblical Hebrew). It's a fantasy so I give her, in my writing, "unlimited funds." SO, she just leaves her beautiful ocean front condo in Galveston (one of my family's favorite places) behind. She buys a beautiful sailboat with an engine (think small yacht) and names it "Swan." It has a small stained glass window with a swan (I have one like it in my van right now and a Swan decal on the window). Then, with the "How To" sailboat manuals beside her she sets off to find the "island" that is calling her in her heart. She has her Bible, her Strong's Concordance, and her Greek and Hebrew Bibles in her white sailboat, "Swan." She also has every "Martha Stewart" comforting luxury item she can think of to buy beforehand, pirate chests full of gold (her 100 books on various interesting subjects) and every survivor supply sold.
She sets sail to go find her island. She manages to actually get there by hugging the South America coast then following behind a cruise ship headed to Tahiti. Robin and I went to Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora, and Tetiaroa (see my stories) when he was alive, before we bought Evins Mill/Chapelgate in Smithville, Tennessee. I LOVED it. So my book, "Island" blends that experience and our Galveston homeschool experience together as the setting. Oh, and she had a yellow Corvette when she lived in Galveston. She left it behind (notice the color of Gabriel's Corvette, mine was first).
"Adventures in Swan" are the Creative Non-Fiction stories of my adventures in my beautiful white Conversion van. I've had 4 vans named, "Swan," now, since that first one in 1989. Some of my stories are just me, exploring, in "Swan." Most of them are my, now 7 years old, granddaughter, Laileigh, and me exploring. I consider our explorations and adventures to be a part of her education. And mine, lol. xo
Copyright 2025 Angel Isaacs All Rights Reserved
Written February 11, 2025 at 1:18 pm
