K.D. McCrite grew up on an Ozark Mountain farm along an old dirt road, just like April Grace Reilly in In Front of God and Everybody. She loves writing stories that make people laugh and think. For a while, she worked as a librarian, but these days she sits at her desk and makes up stories. Her second book to this series, Cliques, Hicks, and Ugly Sticks, released in December 2011. The third book in the series will be released in the fall of 2012. Visit her at http://kdmccrite.com/

Serendipity. It’s a rather long word that sounds special. And it is. The best definition I’ve found makes me smile: “the act of finding something valuable or delightful when you are not looking for it” (www.WhatIs.com).

I recently experienced serendipity, and the results of that moment now give me much pleasure.

A couple of months ago a friend of mine and I had lunch together in one of our favorite local restaurants. We talked about our writing projects, our pets, our homes, the weather—all those things that people share over lunch. She had recently lost her job, and we talked a little about that too.

At one point she said, “Now that I’m not working, I’m going to the Georgia coast to spend some time in our house down there.”

She went on to explain that she and her husband had bought the house before getting transferred to Arkansas, and how difficult it has been for them to find time to go there.

“I think the house really needs to be lived in for a while. Of course, I’ll be there all by myself for at least month,” she sighed, “and I don’t like being alone for that length of time.”

“Then take me with you!” I blurted in the heat of excitement. I never really expected her quick response.

She blinked as though surprised, then said with a big smile, “Okay!”

We talked it over with our respective spouses, and lucky for us, those two wonderful men supported our idea. They understand how important it is for us to concentrate on our writing projects, and that a trip away from the daily distractions and responsibilities of home would help us immensely.

I am writing this article from my friend’s house. Surrounded by gorgeous old oak trees dripping with Spanish moss, it sits in an older neighborhood on a very quiet street, near a lovely natural park. We have no television here, and no telephone except for the cell phones we brought with us. The room in which we write has many floor-to-ceiling windows, some of them overlooking a saltwater pond. (How lovely to watch cranes and pelicans come and go there!) Trips to the beach, ten minutes away, take us to a place for long walks on white sand with hardly anyone else around.

My literary agency is nearby, and for the first time I met my agent face-to-face. Greeting her was like meeting a familiar old friend because we’ve worked so closely together online and over the telephone. The president of the agency threw a dinner party, and my friend had the opportunity to meet these marvelous people who work so hard to help us writers share our gifts with the rest of the world.

A writer could hardly ask for anything better than a quiet house in a gorgeous setting with a good friend of similar mind and goals. We’ve been here for two weeks and will remain, God willing, three more weeks.

What if my friend and I had not met that day for lunch? What if I had not blurted out, “Take me with you!”? Serendipity. The right place at the right time. Good luck. A blessing. Whatever you wish to call it, there is no denying that God’s grace surrounds us daily, and it’s up to us to recognize opportunity when it presents itself, and then, of course, to act on it.