“Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look what they can do when they stick together.”
~~Vesta M. Kelly

Hi all,

Before I get into this newsletter, a word about the next one: I haven't quite decided how I want to do it.  It'll be in honor of John Dye's (January 31st) birthday.  What I haven't decided is whether to send it early on the 31st or wait until Feb. 4th when the next newsletter is actually due out.  If anyone would like to contribute anything, please send it to me by January 30th.  If I have enough content, I'll send on the 31st.  Otherwise, I'm going to wait til the 4th to give myself a bit more time.  If you have any questions on what you might like to include, please don't hesitate to reach out to me.  Thanks!

God bless,
Jenni
Ask Andrew: The On the Job Edition

(Big thanks to Sierra and Shirley for submitting questions for a certain beloved AOD to answer!)

Question: Why is it that sometimes we humans can see you (Jasmine in "Ship in a Bottle") and others can't (Jasmine's Dad in "Ship in a Bottle" when he comes to the cemetery to find Jasmine?)

Answer: Great question!  There are a number of answers but two main ones that cover the majority of cases.  First, God might want someone to see us but not someone else.  For example, I might appear to an assignment as a means of encouraging them.  Suppose they're having a much-needed but difficult conversation with a friend or family member.  My visible presence could help my assignment but, at the same time, distract the other person and derail that conversation.  So God wouldn't allow that second person to see me.  Secondly, some people are more sensitive to what's going around them, including what humans refer to as "the supernatural."  They might see an angel walking down the street while countless others are oblivious.  Personally, I always think it's pretty cool when one of those people sees me and gives me a smile.

Question: What is the longest time you have spent on an assignment?

Answer: It depends on how you count it.  There have been a few times when God has assigned me to someone for years at a time.  Think of the little boy you know as Dylan from the episode "Full Circle."  I checked on the real Dylan many, many times over the course of his life.  But I also worked other cases and returned Home during those years.  The longest time I spent on an assignment without interruption was when I was assigned to Max in Afghanistan.  That was from July 31st until mid-November of that same year.  After that, I returned to Dyeland but was still assigned to Max until Christmas.  It was tough but I wouldn't change a thing.  After all, Max and Rose are gonna make me a grandpa!

I'm an old geezer.  Where's my cane?  Get off my lawn!

Sorry...  Adam commandeered the laptop briefly.  You know how he is.  :-)

Question: Has a case ever been so hard for you that you almost asked someone else to cover for you?

Answer: I've definitely had tough cases and, yes, I've had cases where another angel had to take over for me.  Not very many but a few.  However, I would never ask or even think about asking another angel to cover for me because God assigns angels, not me and not any other angel.  That includes supervising angels.  They pass along God's orders to those they supervise but aren't making the orders themselves. 

We can certainly ask the Father for help  and even make suggestions about who would be good on a case.  For example, if I was having a tough time getting through to a caffeine-addicted Irish imports shop owner, I might ask God if Monica was available.  It would be up to Him whether or not to assign Monica to the case. 

Question: (This is alluding to the Jesus Taboo in the show) Do you ever mention Jesus to your assignments, or do you always just mention God?

Answer: Another really good one!  If my assignment was Christian then I would definitely mention Jesus, especially if they brought Him up first.  Otherwise, I'd worry that I might give the impression that Jesus isn't who they think He is and cause undue fear.  That being said, it's not my job to proselytize to my assignments.  I introduce all my assignments to God but God Himself is much, much better suited to revealing His true nature to them. 

It gets a little more complicated when my assignment is more caseworking in nature.  Since I won't be taking them Home (at least not in the immediate future), it's important to not interfere in them working out their own faith over the course of their life.  If they are Christian, they should believe in Jesus because of their faith, not because I (or any angel) told them to.  Free will, ya know? 

And then there are the times Joshua decides to get Himself directly involved.  Then all bets are off!  0:-)

Well, I had fun!  Thanks for the great questions.  I'll definitely do this again sometime!

God bless,
Andrew
And now a word from your faithful co-founder...

So I thought maybe I should explain the Jesus Taboo that Sierra referenced.  I first mentioned it in JABB 406 after reading about it on tvtropes.com.  You can read their definition and examples here.  In short, a Jesus Taboo in a work of fiction is when the show, book, etc. borrows from Christian belief yet seldom to never mentions Jesus Christ.  They most likely do this to avoid ostracizing audience members who are not Christian.  While TBAA certainly had Christian elements (the Nativity in "Fear Not!" and "An Angel on the Roof") and vague references to the Incarnation via hymns and Christmas carols, the angels usually referred to the Divine as God, Lord, or "the Father."  A character might even be shown to be obviously Christian (a pastor, kneeling before a cross, going to church, etc.) and still the angels won't reference Jesus or "the Son" or Christ.  

For a long while, the JABB/Dyeland stories also maintained the Jesus Taboo.  That's because I didn't want to make any non-Christian members feel left out.  Very occasionally I would have Jesus/Joshua figure into an Author's Cut story when I had an issue I was struggling with related to Jesus and/or Christianity.  But Jesus never made it into the main stories.

But then January 2011 happened.  Not only was I heartbroken like many fans of John Dye but it also meant reckoning with the fact that there would never be any new shows or movies featuring John to riff on.  200+ TBAA episodes plus 20 odd Tour of Duty episodes and several movies seems like a lot of material but not when you're trying to do biweekly newsletters for nearly 20 years.  Add to that the emotional difficulties of having to continue to write stories about a character who, at least for a time, just made me sad... it was a literal Jesus take the wheel situation for me.  I needed a second male lead, so to speak, to do some heavy lifting story-wise until I'd done more grieving and then healing.  Jesus/Joshua was so very tempting (ha, ironic) not only because of my familiarity with His story in thanks to being a cradle Catholic but also because my belief in Jesus was what was helping me cope.  I truly felt like my two options were to maintain the Jesus Taboo and let JABB/Dyeland die out within a year or two or write what I actually believe to be true and keep going indefinitely.  The latter seemed like the best option and while I still sometimes worry that I ostracized non-Christian members, I also realize that if I hadn't dumped the taboo then no one would be reading JABB because JABB would be done.

And now because I had to visit tvtropes.com to get that link... another edition of one of my favorite features...
More Tropes in Dyeland Stories: Cold Weather Edition

You Must Be Cold- Both David and Andrew do this with Esther and JenniAnn respectively in "Chava."  Slightly different, though, since both guys also remain in their coats.  I guess they like warm hugs.  Someone tell Olaf!

Catch Your Death of Cold- Maybe don't take wellness advice from Dyelanders or angels.  In "We Trust in Thee," Adam hurries Lynn and Robbie into a car lest they catch cold.  JenniAnn worries about Andrew catching a cold from the chilly weather in "Feels Like Home."  Andrew feared the same for JenniAnn in "Dark Night of the Soul." 

Dreaming of a White Christmas- Even when not stated, whenever I write the Dyeland Christmas stories, I always imagine it being snowy.  Just doesn't seem right otherwise.

Evil is Deathly Cold- "Shadowlands" has numerous references.  Nen and Tzila make Andrew's and Violeta's blood run cold.  Andrew gets blasted by cold air when the demons are tormenting him.  Nen has "cold eyes" and so on.

Snow Means Love- Gotta end on a nice note!  In "Abide with Me," a delirious Andrew remembers JenniAnn telling him she loved him while they watched the snow fall.  Later, they sit together in his living room and watch the snow.  JenniAnn, Rose, Shelby, Owen, Violeta, Logan, and Adam band together to give a recuperating Andrew some fun and friendship in the snow in that story, too.


This newsletter is dedicated to John Dye for making dreary winter days less so whether giving us TBAA episodes to watch while snuggling up or stuff like this to write while sipping hot chai.
 
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(Photo Credits: The photograph used on this page is from Touched by an Angel and owned by CBS Productions, Caroline Productions, and Moon Water Productions.  It is not being used to seek profit.)