I Wasn’t Dead When I Wrote This: Advice Given in the Nick of Time

A dying youth minister was asked what she wanted young people to know before she passed on. This was her advice . . .Perhaps the greatest gift we receive when we grow older is the gift of wisdom. When conversing with our children or with those younger than we are, we might find ourselves giving advice and thinking, “If only I knew that when I was your age!” This is certainly the case for youth minister Lisa- Marie Calderone-Stewart – but it is especially noteworthy because this book was written in her final months before dying of cancer. After 30 years of working with teens, Calderone-Stewart sums up a lifetime’s worth of the best practical advice she has given and received for young people to be happy and spiritually strong in I Wasn’t Dead When I Wrote This.Calderone-Stewart acknowledges that one’s teenage years are formative in shaping his or her attitudes and soul habits, but too often teens look to contemporary culture and acquaintances to develop the ways they deal with life’s curveballs. She reflects on painful periods of time in her youth – such as the time she was the only student in class to receive just one Valentine as well as the moment she overheard her parents discussing how much she had changed as a teenager and how they had “lost her.” It was through difficult but relatable experiences such as these that she learned the lessons on how to best avoid falling apart when life becomes challenging.It is never too late to change your life or to shape someone else’s – and Calderone-Stewart does just that with this honest, heartfelt perspective on living written a few months before dying.