Once upon a time, Love Lived Here.
If Love Does means anything to you, you surely know of Bob Goff, its contagiously energetic author. You probably also know of Sweet Maria, his long-suffering and always supportive wife who makes several appearances throughout Bob’s adventures. Well, Sweet Maria is the most recently published member of the Goff family and her book, Love Lives Here is a must read.
If you’ve followed my adventures as part of Katie Davis Majors’ launch team, then you’ll know a bit about my journey to fully experience one, having often been “so close” to that coveted advanced-copy book several times before. Maria Goff’s launch was one such close-call and, as a quasi-member, I was given the first four chapters in advance (along with access to the Facebook launch group filled to the brim with other quasis and full-fledges). It didn’t take the first four chapters to fall in love with Maria’s style...it didn’t even take the first four pages.
In Love Lives Here, I discovered the same commitment to actionable love, but the tone of her pages, and of Maria’s voice, held a deeper current...a richness founded in pain and freed through joy. Similarly structured to Love Does, Maria’s missive is a collection of stories about her life, before and after meeting Bob, and then as parents to their remarkable brood. She speaks of loss, she speaks of searching, and she speaks of discovering what she really needed inside herself to create a safe space for loving others.
It was especially intriguing to relive a few of the adventures from Bob’s book, this time as seen and felt by Maria. Reading of her own internal struggle with faith and fear gave me even more appreciation for her commitment to run alongside Bob and his ideas with her patented quiet resolve to help him soar while providing a tether back down to heart and home. Her reflections were like little treasures to unwrap from chapter to chapter and I highly recommend you snuggle up in your favorite chair with a cup of warmth, conjure up a rainy day if possible, and settle in to learn more about Maria's dedication to cultivate a space where love could live...a place called here.