Part 26 (1/2)

And so I reread the story of God's love affair with huh this new lens, and Demon: A Memoir Demon: A Memoir was born was born

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT DEMON DEMON

The quote by Isak Dinesen is from the book Out of Africa, Out of Africa, which is also the author's favorite movie which is also the author's favorite inally written as ”package stores,” a New England term The Borders store in chapter 2 was the location of the author's first book signing of Demon Demon Esad is based loosely on the story of a local Bosnian tailor in the author's home city Sheila's two boys, Justin and Caleb, are the two sons of the author's friend since first grade, Julie The star-shaped perfume bottle that used to sit on Aubrey's bathrooler Lucian's ”Carpe Brewem” sweatshi+rt in the coffee shop chapter came from Lazlo's brewery in Lincoln, Nebraska Lucian in the coffee shop (wearing the brewery sweatshi+rt) is the author's friend, Scott The Asianhairline is the author's father Lucian's ”Animals Taste Good” T-shi+rt in the Commons chapter is made by David and Goliath The author and her sister have a cameo at the bar at the Four Seasons Hotel Every piece of art mentioned in the museu in 2005 The house in Haverhill is based on one owned by the author's college friend, Heather Clay's s on Norfolk is based on one exactly like it in real life The Gospel Room is a real church the size of a house across the street on Norfolk The tea shop in Cae is called Tea Luxe in real life All of the Bible searches conducted in Demon Demon (based on BibleGatewaycom) yielded the same results that Clay found at the time of (based on BibleGatewaycom) yielded the same results that Clay found at the ti Clay's office exists as described in Cae, across from the former Quantum Books The author is named for a Puccini opera The operas mentioned in Demon Demon are Puccini operas are Puccini operas The dim sum restaurant is the China Pearl, in Chinatown The Four Seasons Bristol roo of Demon Demon The Grover book is a real book acquired by the author in the etaway took place at the Riu resortYou really do have a choice to make

You can find more expanded materials on Demon: A Memoir Demon: A Memoir at Pureenjoymentcom! at Pureenjoymentcom!

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

When Demon Demon was first published in 2007, I had no idea what lay before reat journey, but what I did not know is how side me, or the chord that this story would strike in the hearts of others was first published in 2007, I had no idea what lay before reat journey, but what I did not know is how side me, or the chord that this story would strike in the hearts of others

I have the best readers in the world Thank you-for your letters, your prayers, your support and encouragement You are with me each time I sit down to write; you are constantly on ent, Steve Laube, and my editor, Karen Ball Words are feeble tools; they cannot do ratitude to either of you justice

Julie Gwinn, I ae to ith you Kris and Jeff Beckenbach, Chad Bring, Katie Weaver, Kristin Nelson: thank you for keeping me relevant and (relatively) sane And thank you: my friends, my sister A me even when I'reat debt of gratitude to those who enabled my obsession and made this book possible: Joyce Hart, Jeff Gerke, Karen Lee-Thorp, Reagen Reed, Dan Mueller, Conan Schafer, Peggy Malzacher, Don Hawkins, Greg Stier, Tiie Bentley, and my parents (all of them)

Thank you most eminently to irl's heart

PROLOGUE

I have seen paradise and ruin I have known bliss and terror I have walked with God

And I know that God ans, that a lifetiht be encased in one mortal chamber

I still recall my first moment of consciousness-an awareness I've never seen in the eyes of any of enius of consciousness, e know nothing and accept everything

Of course, thearden, like the leaves of the fig tree in Eden after da and leaf green It fades with that sense of soue, savored now insih, the scent of earth and leaf mold that was his sweaty skin has faded too quickly So like an Eden da on fig leaves

His eyes were blue, my Adam's

How I celebrated that color, shrouded now in shriveled eyelids-he as never intended to have even a wrinkle!

But even as I bend to smooth his cheek, my hair has becoave life to so many

I think for aIt is the first ti, and my heart cries out: He is dead! My father, my brother, my love!

I envy the earth that envelopes him I envy the dust that comes of hie of Adaiven hi: I will craft these words into the likeness of the man before I, too, return to the earth of Adam's bosom

My story has been told in only the barest of terms It is tith of the heart, which has such capacity for joy, such space for sorrow, like a vessel that fills and fills without bursting

My seasons are nearly as hters I, Havah, fashi+oned by God of Ada, there was God

But for me, there was Adam

1

A whisper inbut a drifting bit of down, flotsaht illuminated the thin tissues of my eyelids

A bird trilled Near hs stirred in the warrass that tickledsibilant secrets up to the trees

Fro veins of the vine, the beat of my heart in euphony with hundreds more around me, the hed as one returning to sleep, to retreat to the place I had been before, the realm of silence and bliss-wherever that is

Wake!

I openedblue, saw it spliced by the flight of a bird, chevron in the sky

This ti mind: Wake! Wake!

There was a of where or what I was, did not understand the polyphony around me or the wide expanse like a blue eternity before roan practically in ainst my hip A moment later, a touch drifted across a belly I did not yet knoned, soft as a leaf skittering along the ground