90 Days to an Opus

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away. ~ Hilary Cooper

The word "opus" came to me in the middle of the night.  I had only heard it used once in my life in the title of "Mr. Holland's Opus."  The word is profound, it means a work, a composition, an exertion.  In the movie, Richard Dreyfuss plays a high school music teacher who is forced to retire due to budget cuts.  He was always dreaming of getting rich and famous from a musical composition that never seemed to come to fruition.

I highly recommend the movie.  For those who don't mind seeing the end of the story first, check out the final ten minutes of the movie in the YouTube video below.

My own opus is now in it's final trimester.  The book is about to be born.  I chose St. Patrick's Day for several reasons.  Number one, to honor my father, Patrick Mulligan, a man who knew how to celebrate this day like no other.  Number two, to celebrate my daughter's 18th birthday.  And number three, to celebrate the 6th birthday for ZoomAutos.com.

My wife told her doctor that I was praying for our little girl to be born on St. Patrick's Day when she first found out she was pregnant.  When she went in for her check-up, he told her to plan on late March as "nothing was happening."

Our computer programmer fell behind as he was completing the software programming for our new business and told us it would be a miracle if we launched on St. Patrick's Day.

My fellow writers don't believe I will make my deadline for my book.  As with our daughter's miracle birth and Zoom's miracle birth on St. Patrick's Day, my reply is, 'let's see what kind of miracle God has planned.'  I pray that my opus brings honor and glory to God and a smile to my dad's face (that's really some kind of oxymoron...how can you NOT be smiling in Heaven?).  With the Holy Spirit guiding me, this memoir will arrive according to God's perfect time.  This is the equivalent of moving Mt. St. Helen's. The world will know that this writing came from God because only a Divine Being can accomplish what is to be born in the allotted time and it will be for His Glory.

Don't forget to "play the sunset" in your life as Mr. Holland teaches his clarinet student in the first video.  If you don't mind watching the ending of Mr. Holland's Opus before checking out the movie, check out the second clip at the bottom...