By Rebecca Houg, staff writer

WELLS &8212; Brenda Rebelein, author of &8220;Living for the Moment,&8221; said she never intended to write a book.

Rebelein experienced the loss of her mother, Marvel Niebuhr, in March 2005 after a seven-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

Rebelein and her siblings, Chuck Niebuhr, Bruce Niebuhr and Darcy Johnson took care of their mother in her home with the assistance of hospice.

&8220;The book couldn&8217;t have been possible without the help of hospice, family and friends,&8221; Rebelein said. &8220;It&8217;s not really my book; it&8217;s kind of our book.&8221;

During her mother&8217;s battle, Rebelein started journaling the events and her thoughts to help her deal with the pain and grief.

Rebelein said it was something she was doing privately, until one day her mother caught her writing and asked what she was working on. After learning about the time and effort her daughter was putting into documenting the journey, Marvel suggested printing book and together they tossed around the idea.

&8220;She didn&8217;t mention it again until one day when she hadn&8217;t said a word for about four days,&8221; Rebelein said. &8220;I was standing next to her bed and she mumbled something about the book.&8221;

Rebelein still wasn&8217;t committed to the idea until after her mother&8217;s death.

&8220;It was about three months later, I was camping with my family and it just came to me,&8221; she said. &8220;Before I knew it, it was just taking off.&8221;

Rebelein surfed the Internet to find a book publisher and settled on Author House.

&8220;I just kept coming back to Author House. I really liked their Web site and they were the nicest people to work with,&8221; she said.

The overall tone is bittersweet and Rebelein said she tried to keep the book as positive as she could.

&8220;Mom never wanted to see tears. She just wanted to enjoy the time she had been given,&8221; Rebelein said. &8220;Her attitude was: If I was scared, I did not know how to live. There is nothing to be sad

about. I had a good life and I&8217;m kind of excited about my adventure.&8221;

The book is mostly journal entries some with short prayers, but there is also a section of poetry.

Rebelein says she is already working on a follow-up children&8217;s book named &8220;Grandma, we love you more&8221; that will feature poems and favorite memories from the grand and great-grandchildren of Marvel.

This book is for anyone whose life has been touched by cancer or another terminal illness.

&8220;Mom and I agreed that if we can help just one person by sharing this story, then her cancer journey will have been worth it.&8221; she said.