I Painted Maggie: A Faith-Inspired Short Story for Women Entering a New Season

Life moves through different seasons, and some are especially busy. Motherhood is definitely one of those times.

Babies cry. Kids call from the other room. Calendars fill up. Laundry piles grow. Dinners need to be made. Someone always needs a ride, an answer, a hug, or help finding something they misplaced for the tenth time that day.

Then, one day, life begins to sound different.

The house grows still.

The roles that once filled your heart and home start to change. You might look around and feel grateful for your life, but also wonder who you are in this new chapter.

That is where I Painted Maggie began for me.

This little book is finally here, and I’m so happy to share it with you.
 
📖 Get I Painted Maggie here: https://a.co/d/01yFp9DT
Ebook Cover for the book I Painted Maggie by Sunni Baerwalde

A Faith-Inspired Story About Hope, Memory, and Becoming

I Painted Maggie is a faith-inspired short story for women walking through change, reflection, motherhood, empty nest emotions, and the question so many of us quietly ask:
 
What comes next?
 
This story is shaped by the shoreline, memories, faith, and those gentle moments that appear when life slows down and we can listen to our hearts again.
 
This book doesn’t claim to have all the answers. It doesn’t pretend that change is easy or that every transition feels beautiful while you’re in it.
 
It is about hope.
 
It’s about remembering that God still sees us, even when our lives look different than before. It’s about realizing that when one chapter ends, our purpose doesn’t end with it. It’s about learning that we keep growing, even when the people we raised don’t need us in the same ways.
 
Sometimes, a new season feels strange before it starts to feel meaningful.

Why I Wrote I Painted Maggie

This short story truly came from my heart.
Like so many women, I have spent years pouring into the people I love. I have been a wife, a mother, a business owner, a helper, a planner, a cheerleader, and the person who often holds many pieces of life together.
 

Motherhood changes you in ways no one can fully explain until you live it.

You spend years building traditions, making memories, driving carpool, sitting through practices, celebrating milestones, worrying over hard moments, and loving your children through every stage. Then, slowly, things begin to shift. They become adults. They create homes of their own. They build families. They make decisions. They need you differently.

That is a beautiful thing.

It can also be a difficult time.

Rest assured, there is a season after the daily raising is done. It’s a season many women feel but don’t always know how to name. It is motherhood after motherhood: still loving fiercely, still showing up, still cheering from the sidelines, and also learning how to make space for yourself again.

That is part of the heart behind I Painted Maggie.

I wanted to write a story for the woman who looks at her life and feels both grateful and a bit unsure. For the woman who loves her family deeply but is still figuring out who she is beyond the roles she’s had for so long.

For the woman who might be standing at the start of a new season, wondering if there’s still something beautiful ahead.

And I can tell you, there is.

A Coastal Story for Women Who Need a Breath of Hope

The beach has always been a place that invites reflection.

Standing by the water, listening to the waves, and watching the tide reminds me that life has seasons too. Some come gently, others arrive all at once. Some leave things we didn’t expect, and some bring us back to parts of ourselves we thought were lost.

The coastal setting in I Painted Maggie is more than just a backdrop.

It’s part of the story’s heart.

The shoreline stands for reflection, change, memory, and the reminder that God can meet us in quiet, uncertain, or even lonely places. When life slows down, we finally have space to hear what He’s been gently trying to show us.

This story is for women who love:
  • Faith-inspired fiction
  • Christian short stories
  • Beach reads with heart
  • Women’s fiction with emotional depth
  • Empty nest encouragement
  • Stories about motherhood, memory, and new beginnings
  • Books that leave you feeling hopeful

For the Woman Wondering What Comes Next

Maybe you are entering the empty nest season.
Perhaps you are adjusting to grown children, grandchildren, retirement, a move, a loss, a new dream, or a role that feels different than it once did.

And maybe you are not quite sure what to call this chapter, but you know something inside you has shifted.

This story is for you.

Not because I believe every woman’s story looks the same, but because I believe many of us carry similar questions in our hearts.

Who am I now?
What do I do with this space?
What dreams are still mine?
Can God still use me in a new way?
Can I still become someone new while honoring the woman I have already been?
I believe the answer is yes.
 

God does not waste seasons. He does not forget the woman who has spent years serving, loving, building, giving, and showing up. He sees every part of your story, including the parts that feel unfinished, uncertain, or tender.

There is still purpose ahead.
There is still joy ahead.
There is still beauty ahead.

Now Available in eBook and Paperback

I Painted Maggie is now available in both eBook and paperback formats, so you can choose the one that works best for you.

Read it on your Kindle with a cup of coffee. Tuck the paperback into your beach bag. Give it to a friend stepping into a new chapter. Share it with a mom whose children are growing up faster than she ever expected.

This is a short story, but I hope it stays with you.
📖 Get your copy of I Painted Maggie here: https://a.co/d/01yFp9DT

A Small Request From This Author’s Heart

If you read I Painted Maggie and it speaks to you, I would be so grateful if you would leave a short review on Amazon.

Reviews mean more to small authors than most people realize. They help books reach the readers who may be looking for exactly that message at exactly the right time.

Your review does not need to be long or fancy.

A few honest words about what touched your heart, what stayed with you, or who you think would enjoy the story can make a beautiful difference.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for supporting this little book. Thank you for leaving a review and cheering me on as I continue to share the stories God places on my heart.

From My Heart to Yours

Writing I Painted Maggie has been a deeply personal experience.

There is something vulnerable about placing a story into the world and hoping it finds the people it was meant to reach. But there is also something beautiful about knowing that stories can travel farther than we ever can on our own.

My prayer is that this book meets a woman somewhere in the middle of a season of change and reminds her that her story is not over.

Not even close.
She may be stepping into something new.
She may be remembering who she is.
She may be finding hope again.
And she may be becoming.
 
📖 Get I Painted Maggie here: https://a.co/d/01yFp9DT

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