I Sent in My Article Today for "Faith and Family"

Mom came over for dinner today, and we edited my story about Christina's birth for the "Faith and Family" article. Actually, it's just a sidebar for the main article, but it's my first PAID published work.
I've written articles for the St. John's parish newspaper, "Eagle's Wings", many letters to the Editor for "The National Catholic Register", "Newsday", "The Long Island Catholic", and "Suffolk Life".
But I've never been paid for my work before,so now I'm finally a professional. My second (or is it third?) career is just beginning at 44.
This reminds me of a story in my favorite book, "The Story of the Trapp Family Singers" where Maria is visiting an ancient church.The tour guide tells a story about a woman who becomes an author after she's 40. Maria rings the church's bell, playfully saying, "I want to be a writer too, after I'm forty!" The guide gives her a strange look, saying, "once, every hundred years, someone makes a wish while ringing this bell. It always comes true." Maria laughed, but did write the book after she turned 40, which was made into a German film "Die Trapp Familie". Broadway producers saw the movie, and "The Sound of Music" was born. The Trapp Family made very little from it, as they had already given up exclusive rights to the story to the original film.
The world, however, has been a more musical place since "The Sound of Music" was born, and it's the most positive portrayal of the Catholic Church ever to be done by Hollywood.

So, here's to lady authors over forty!