GOING HOME season 2 is here!
Episode one is streaming today on Great American Pure Flix
I am so pleased to share that season two of GOING HOME is releasing today on Pure Flix.
GOING HOME is the first TV show that I officially worked on (and got paid for!) and it has been the best, best possible experience. The writers room is me with Dan and Kara Merchant, two people who were already my friends. The actors are all so kind and amazing. The crew has been incredibly welcoming and friendly when I’ve gone out to set to visit.
Plus the show is so beautiful, life affirming, and well done. Dan (who is the creator and does a little bit of everything else on the show as well) has built a show that makes you cry, makes you laugh, and makes you think about hard things in life… grief, loss, pain, death… and how to navigate those things well and find beauty in them.
(I know from experience that Dan would *immediately* respond to this and talk about his team. How important Kara has been, for instance, to making sure that women are well represented from the moment we start dreaming up characters in the writers room, not to mention the many, many other people who work on this show for months and months to make it the absolute best it can be.)
One of the really fun things in a show like this is the guest stars. I got to hang out some with Ellen Travolta while I was on set (in fact, we might have gotten a little too energetic… Dan said he might have to separate us). And one of our actors who was meant to be a one-episode guest ended up showing up several times this season!
You might also notice some familiar names in the poster above, including Karen Allen (probably best known as Marion Ravenwood from the Indiana Jones movies).
Here’s a little secret for you: I haven’t seen this season’s episodes yet! So I’ll be watching them right alongside those of you who are watching. I’ve seen some clips and heard that the show has taken a big step forward in a lot of ways, which is pretty amazing given that it was already so great.
Anyway, grab a loved one and grab some tissues1 and give it a watch!
Coming a month from tomorrow!
My friend Aaron Burns (director and producer Aaron Burns also has two movies on Pure Flix! If you’re in there check out LEGACY PEAK written by yours truly and BIRTHRIGHT OUTLAW) and I wrote this prayer and devotional book about the Irish hero and saint, Patrick!
One of Ireland’s most beloved figures, St. Patrick was a man who lived a life soaked in prayer. A risk-taker in the service of others—particularly women, enslaved people, and the poor—Patrick spent years enslaved himself. He found himself praying all the time—praying for freedom, for a warm place to sleep, or to return home. He never stopped. It was something he did with great intentionality, but also in the breath between one task and the next.
Praying with Patrick takes us on a journey through Patrick's life, allowing us to pray alongside him using his story and his actual prayers to deepen and enrich our own prayer lives. Each reading features a quote from Patrick, a scripture, a devotion, and a prayer for the day.
A perfect book to read leading up to St. Patrick’s Day!
Reminder:
This Sunday, January 7th I’ll be speaking after services at East Woods Presbyterian Church in Vancouver, WA. Service is at 10am.
Next Monday, January 8th I’ll be speaking about WRITING WITHOUT BOUNDARIES at the Northwest Christian Writers Association. The meeting goes from 7-9pm at Eastside Foursquare Church, 14520 100th Ave. NE, Bothell, WA 98041 (show up fifteen minutes early for social/hang out time!). All levels of author are welcome, from absolute beginners to professionals of all kinds.
Sleepy winter, sleepy Bruce
In the summertime we can barely get Bruce to come inside, but in the winter he stands at the back door throughout the day wanting snacks. He also stands on my feet if I’m sitting in the easy chair until I scoop him in my lap. The body heat has a soporific effect on both of us.
Look at that boy! He’s just knocked out from the burning hot 65 degree house we keep in the winter.
Peace to you and Happy New Year!
Matt
One, I just want to say that there are some good laughs as well. But also that Kara would count how many times Dan and I cried in the writers room (it was a lot).