Bonnie Root

Being born and raised in rural southern Oregon colored my view of the world in very calm shades of blue and green, rather peaceful and uncomplicated. I was born during a time when most mothers stayed home to raise their families and even though I was the oldest of five children we were by no means the biggest family in our little town. We were raised to respect our parents, to love God and each other and to live a life that would honor that.

Necessity taught me to cook, clean and care for young children at an early age. Even though I worked hard, my favorite way to while away my free time was to read! As soon as the chores were caught up, I'd grab a book, head to the top of our property, find a tall Douglas fir, climb to the top and read until it was time to start dinner. I dreamed often of becoming an author and have written many, many short stories over the years.

I married my college sweetheart 40 years ago and we have three wonderful grown children and 8 little loves who fill our hearts and lives with joy. I worked for our local school district for 25 years teaching reading and math as a paraprofessional and loved watching children's eyes light up when they learned to read!

Four years ago though I was diagnosed with breast cancer and realized that there was no time like the present if I wanted to stay home and care for our little loves so their parents could work. How blessed I am to be here with all these sweet little ones, watching the' lights come on' as they grow and learn.