Dark Angel

I belong to two book clubs, both quite different from one another, and both a pleasure to be part of. One is made up of women of a similar age, and of course that's somewhat of a unifying factor. The second one just formed a few months ago. Most of the women are quite a bit younger than I am, and they really know how to carry on a lively discussion. .Staci, who told us she reads about a book a day, recently revealed to us, upon close questioning, that she earned two bachelor's degrees, one in psychology and one in history. She recommended Dark Angel by Robert Kirby, a book I'd never heard of, for this month's read. And what a wild read it is! Amid all the cussin'', shootin', lyin' and spyin, and downright irreverent humor, Kirby spins an engaging story that teaches a powerful lesson about the worth of every soul. He lays open the hearts and motivations of the characters to us, exposing them as they really are. Some of them are good, some are silly, some are confused and hurting, angry and vengeful, cruel and evil, and others are full of love and integrity. Wouldn't it come in handy to be able to get a peek into someone's heart in real life at times? What was even more fascinating than that though, was the way it made me look into my own heart. I caught glimpses of myself at various stages of my life in several of the characters. How the author managed to do that, I cannot even guess. I gained insight into myself as a child, as a mother with a young family, then a woman with teens, and beyond, right up to the present. I have to wait till Thursday night to find out if the others experienced anything like this. Were they only entertained, or did they learn something about what makes us who and what we are? I can't remember taking a book so personally before. Maybe it just came along at the right time for me. The craziest thing of all is that I feel a little more like I imagine Heavenly Father must feel when He looks down upon His Children. He sees what is really happening, and why it's happening that way. He sees the whole story. We never do. We're in the dark so much of the time. Actions that look meaningless and pointless to us, He understands completely. He knows the right and the wrong of every situation. Probably never even intending to, Mr. Robert Kirby's book left me with a strong message that my Father KNOWS. He knows it all! And I absolutely love knowing that.