The Importance of Prologues

I'd like to share a story with you. I'm a fan of prologues. I know that "epilogues" are the much cooler kids on the block, but I've always been partial to prologues. I like to know where the story really began, a little bit of back-story, a little bit of history, maybe a prophecy or two to hint at where the story is going. When I was growing up, my dad often skipped the prologues of stories he read out loud to us.

So, of course, when I went to write my own novel, I had to include a prologue... simply because I knew then he would have to read it.

Today, I got to witness the end of a prologue, and the beginning of a first chapter. Maybe I'm being overly heavy with the metaphors, but it's a neat metaphor, and I like it. I've never claimed to be part of the "in" crowd anyway.

Friends of mine began an incredible journey about six months ago. It was a journey that changed their hearts, changed their lives, took them all the way to the other side of the world and back, and when they came back, they carried in their arms their brand-new, 8-month old baby girl.

And she's a cutie. :)

I had the privilege of being able to be there at the airport with some other friends to welcome them home, give them hugs, and meet their newest family member. I had been worried I wouldn't make it, as I had a dentist appointment earlier that morning, but we got there. I couldn't feel the entire right side of my face and my speech was a little slurred, but who cares? We made it, and this isn't my story anyway, it's theirs (my including it is simply an illustration of reality. Mundane details like dentist appointments don't usually make it into the story books).

And now their story as a family of five (no offense to the furry family members), really begins. Anyone might be tempted to walk away from that meeting at the airport and think, "What a beautiful ending to a beautiful story!" And it is, that's where most story-books would end. You'd close the book and feel quite satisfied.

But this is real life, folks, and that wasn't the end. It was just the beginning. Everything up until this moment has been merely the prologue.