Well, in about a week, Lorraine and I will be taking only our second ever trip across the Pond to visit Merrie Olde England once again. This will be for a new joint art exhibition with Ted Nasmith, Ruth Lacon, and Peter Pracownik, and for a book signing of “Black & White Ogre Country” with Angie Gardner and Chris Tolkien.

For those who know us, this is a pretty scary deal. Lorraine and I are about as happy to leave our home (The MooseNest), our hamster (Ignatius), and our honeybees as we would be to head off for root-canal surgery. We both have very strong Baggins roots in our backgrounds, and no amount of positive personal experience with traveling seems to overcome that.

We have many, many friends who love traveling, and we know that once we’re in Moreton-in-Marsh, we’ll be OK. But, believe me, it will continue to take every bit of encouragement we can get from family, friends, and all of the great folks we met in Moreton last year to keep us from bolting out of the security line and hiding under the covers until all of this blows over….

So, we hope we’ll see many of you again next week…and we are asking for prayers for the safe arrival and return of ourselves as well as for all the other free folk of Middle-earth who will be joining us in the Cotswalds. Despite the Hobbity horror we feel
towards travel, we know it will be well worth it….

Nai Eru lye mánata ar tíra (may God bless and watch thee)

Jef

P.S. For those interested in joining us, and especially if you’d like a ticket to the “Lands of Enchantment” preview on Friday night (April 3), please contact Andy Compton at http://www.adcbooks.co.uk/ , or see my website at http://www.JefMurray.com for details.