The Ruth Report, Volume Three

Greetings, everyone, and happy June July! ❤ Three months later, I’m here to write a little update on the first four months of 2026. And quite a bit happened!

Welcome to The Ruth Report, an occasional publication wherein I discuss my three favorite things: life, writing, and books.

What this writer has been doing, enjoying, and sometimes avoiding.

The main things occupying January-April were speech competitions (my last of high school!) and travels. As a senior, I competed in Stoa Speech and Debate, participating in platform and limited prep speaking events at two different tournaments. I also did Parliamentary Debate with my sister, Mary Kate, as my speaking partner. It was fun and terrifying—as speaking almost always is.

We traveled down through Washington and Oregon to California at the end of January for my great-grandmother’s memorial service. Although the emotions felt overwhelming, the time with family was beautiful and unforgettable.

In this family, I am a personality:
A name, a face, a daughter and granddaughter, a niece, a cousin.
I have an identity—a place in the photos that say,
“Here she is, this fraction of a family.”
In this family, I’m more than an outside observer:
I’m an active participant.
I speak and laugh and weep and dance in this family,
And I do it actively,
Because this part—this small part as a fraction and a piece—
Is my birthright.
I was born to it.

from Here I Am | written at the California ranch | 1/30/26

On the way home, we spent a day meandering through Redwoods National Park. Oh, the gorgeousness… Those trees always fill me with awe. We also visited the ocean—which does the same thing. There’s so much air and water and wind and life that I can barely take it in.

The sea! The sea!
My whole body felt its presence,
From the tug of the waves at my ankles
To the slight vertigo of running parallel to a retreating tide.
Oh, here I am, at the sea!

from Waves | written after visiting the beach | 2/3/26

I also got the chance to visit the tiny Bible college I’ll be attending—once in February and once in late April. The campus and location and program have me so excited, and I can’t wait for this fall. I’ll be spending a year studying the Bible and rooting myself in God’s Word and His plan for my life before I begin my life as a bona fide adult.

Any and all updates on writing.

A list, because I like lists.

• I joined the S.E. Collaborative Guild of Authors and Artists (the same group which put together the fabulous Firefly Tales)!

• I published an Easter poem with The Wildfire Weekly, which was very exciting! You can read it here.

• I wrote about 25,000 words during our weeklong January Writing Challenge—half of my SENaNo 2025 total (which was totally insane and I only recommend if you care very little for your sleep schedule or your other responsibilities).

• I sent out lots of stories for publication, received quite a few rejections (I’m starting a collection! 😏), and a few acceptances!

• I finished drafting two different novels, one of which was largely completed.

Also, my book is with a new editor. Please pray that she’ll get back to me with edits soon. 💕

In this section, I share about a few books I’ve recently enjoyed.

I confessed my delight in gothic literature in my “Best Books of 2025” post. All three of Eleanor Bourg Nicholson’s books scratch that gothic itch. Even though she readily acknowledges darkness (vampires, werewolves, and other horrors) in her books, Nicholson sheds beautiful, glorious light on them as well. The darkness is never allowed to win, and Father Thomas Michael Gilroy always points us towards Christ and His grace as he aids the protagonists in a battle against the darkness of this world and the world below.

Star rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Goodness, I’ve read this book and heard/seen various adaptions of the story a million times. But every time I reread Little Women, I feel it in a different way. Jo and Meg are always so relatable, especially in their struggle against growing up and changing and losing those dear to them. I loved rereading Jo’s quest for publication as I sent pieces out and received rejection after rejection. I was newly committed to Team Laurie-Amy, because the book shows the way they need and complete each other better than any movie adaption ever has.

Star rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book! I was in absolute stitches the entire time, mostly because I had to write a serious academic essay on it and it was so ridiculous. Jane Austen wrote Love and Friendship (which she spelt as Love and Freindship) at fourteen, and already, her sense of the ridiculous, her staunch morality, and her ability to mock popular novels and critique social restraints was blossoming. Her heroines faint in every chapter and make the most ridiculous choices and statements as if they are perfectly normal. If you’re looking for a good laugh, please, read Love and Friendship and enjoy its ridiculousness.

Star rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Wherein I share “a few of my favorite things.”

1. Attending performances of Little Women: The Broadway Musical and Annie! Jr.

2. Walking around my college town at 11p.m. with my cousin.

3. Going to Bible study with friends.

“No separation from the world,
No work I do, no gift I give,
Can cleanse my conscience, cleanse my hands;
I cannot cause my soul to live.
But Jesus died and rose again;
The pow’r of death is overthrown!
My God is merciful to me
And merciful in Christ alone.”

Eric Schumacher and David L. Ward, “Not in Me”

Thank you so much for reading this update! May your summer be blessed abundantly.

Yours,
Ruth Anne with an “E”