Coming Soon

“The Quest” is the first volume in the Manifesting the Glory trilogy, a memoir by Dr. Lydia A. Woods. It chronicles her adventures as a fifty-five-year-old, African American pastor, coach and professor at a crossroad where her personal happiness, career and health are at stake.

The loss of her teaching position at a prestigious historically Black college, is only the tip of a downward spiral in Lydia’s life, heightening the stress and overwhelmly leaves her marriage and home in jeopardy. To cope, she overcompensates with a go-to workaholic behavior, but she isn’t fooling anyone.

Lydia inadvertently finds a road to redeeming her life in a challenge from a fellow sports enthusiast colleague — participate in the local Senior Olympics. To prove that she’s up to any challenge, and to get the challenger off her back, Lydia registers for the track and field event and discovers a way out of her depression and back into an active lifestyle in sports. She begins a running and training program that allows her to re-connect with her teenage ideal of competing and winning gold at the highest level of sports – the Olympics!

This begins a journey of inspired resourcefulness, discipline, and personal sacrifice that ultimately leads to the fulfillment of “The Quest” — to become the first person to be nationally ranked in the top USATF Masters single events (22) in Track & Field. All she has do is learn how to pole vault, steeplechase, run distances up to six miles and much more to make her dreams of winning gold, silver and bronze come true. And, even greater, regain her confidence, joy and peace of mind, in a triumph of spirit.