Being lonely. Joy is becoming quiet and peaceful.

Becoming strong. Joy is overcoming grief and fear.

Deception of happiness and success. Joy is becoming content.

Redemption and restoration. Joy is experiencing freedom.

Seasons of life. Joy is becoming mature and complete.

Recovery step 12. Joy is becoming an encourager and influencer.

Feedback from the McCleary family matriarch. Doris McCleary McFadden, age ninety-five, after reading The Joys of Being and Becoming said, "This book is about Resilience."

The Joys of Being and Becoming

The Secret Formula of Joy Revealed

by Rose Marie Page Yerka

The Joys of Being and Becoming is a memoir from the life of a young girl's journey to maturity. It is a four-part journey of transformation and wholeness. From a fifty-year journal, the author becomes a writer by writing. She felt called to write the story and something new inside was born and healing came upon hearing a voice. "I have told you this so that my Joy may be in you and your Joy may be Complete" (John 15:11).

Seeking truth, finding faith, she developed self-acceptance and maturity over time. A treasure hunt by digging deeper helped bring her the capacity for healing in the process of being and becoming more passionate to become an influencer.

A legacy wrapped in truth, brings love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The secret of joy is revealed through the stages and the struggles of a life well lived. She has learned to seek joy and not happiness for her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and the next generation.

"Life by Design" is becoming a generational thinker. My grandmother's story from more than a hundred years ago revealed to me that I am to live my life backward with the end result in mind to impact the next generation. It built a character of resilience that will teach others how to endure. I am an answer to prayer.