“The darkest moments are before the dawn.”
~Dr. Ira Progroff~
In search of old administration records, I browsed the attic and opened boxes. I cut the tape of one particular heavy box, unfolded the top, and gasped: the diaries of my teenage years. Blank books customized with eighties rock gods, holiday souvenirs and black and white photographs from various boyfriends. My fingers traced the old covers – dormant memories begging for attention. Pink ballpoint in a girl’s handwriting. The vague smell of scented ink. When I was done crying, I got up, and wrote the first paragraphs to the novel Mango.
In the Summer of 2008, when I was still working on Mango, I was in love with two men. Clueless on how to handle this, and not knowing where life would take me I knew one thing; “I have to document this. One day it will make a great novel!” The roller-coaster ride that followed became the eNovel Dutch American Diary.
My name is Lauren Sanne Harteveld, or LS Harteveld. My diaries and blog are in English, but my mother language is Dutch. I was born and raised in The Netherlands and spent a few of my childhood years in Africa. I graduated at a technical university, and I am a professional yoga teacher.