Ohio author doesn’t shy from troubled past to inspire others
Eva Dimel felt COLUMBUS — like trash for most of her life.
Growing up on the West Side of Columbus, she moved with her family from house to house, never really able to find a home. Sexually and physically abused as a child, and living with an alcoholic father and a mentally unstable mother, she relied heavily on her older sister, and God, to get her through.
But Dimel eventually discovered that she’s not trash, and has found happiness despite her less-than-humble beginnings.
Dimel, 59, has written a book about her life and her journey to find happiness and peace through God, in the hopes of blessing others. It’s titled “From Trash to Treasures: Inspired by God,” and it was published earlier this year.
Dimel, a resident of Grove City, struggled at first with writing about her life. She didn’t want to harm people who were a part of it and she was embarrassed about what had happened to her. Finally, she decided to go forward with it after a lot of prayer.
“I was ashamed; I didn’t know what people would think of me,” she said.
The book depicts the life of three sisters who are emotionally neglected by their parents, subjected to filth and hunger, and victims of the rages of an angry alcoholic and the inappropriate attention of men.
It wasn’t an easy childhood to live, or to tell about.
Even now, Dimel is a little self-conscious about the story despite the positive feedback she’s gotten from people all over the the world.
“After doing this book, I had to own who I was … I see God’s purpose and plan for this book now and I didn’t before,” she said. “When I saw that it was blessing people, it meant a lot to me.
“Looking back, if I didn’t have this history, I wouldn’t be the person I am today.”
That person, she said, is compassionate, fun-loving and firmly believes God is good. She’s the person who will send a framed throw blanket with one of her poems on it to the funeral of someone she’s never met. She’s the “silly grandma” who gets excited over her grandchildren’s birthday parties, and when it comes to God, she says, “look where he’s brought (me) … he loved me that much.”
Dimel hopes the book will show people that “no matter what kind of life they’ve had and no matter where they’ve been, God was always there.”
“I want people to see they’re not alone and they don’t have to be ashamed, it wasn’t their fault,” Dimel said.
The Rev. Arvil Jones, whom she met through sharing poetry on Facebook, helped Dimel with writing and editing the book, including changing the names of those involved. Though all the events in Dimel’s book really happened, Jones edited the book and embellished it a bit, she said. He also witnessed the pain she’s gone through while helping put her life on paper.
“I just kept encouraging her. The story needs to be told, it needs to be out there because it will help other people. Now that this is out there, she’s really glad she did it,” Jones said. “Because it’s helped so many people.
“The whole objective of the book was not just to show her past, but to show what God’s done with her present and her future,” Jones said. “She’s just been a blessing to everybody.”
When Dannette Krugel read Dimel’s book, it was like she was reading a letter Dimel had written to her, said Krugel, the owner of Dannette’s Floral Boutique in Grove City.
“It was very powerful to know the things she’s been through and never lost her sight with God,” Krugel said. The two met when Dimel walked into Krugel’s store about five years ago, asking if she could sell her poetry there.
The two have been friends since, and Dimel’s poetry even has helped Krugel and her family through personal struggles.
Krugel went through several emotions while reading Dimel’s book. At first, she was angry at what had happened to Dimel, then it made her realize that no matter what she’s going through, there’s always someone worse off out there.
“If I was talking to somebody that was saying, ‘Why me, why doesn’t God love me?’ I would tell them to read (Dimel’s book) because God is still there; he’s there holding your hand through it all,” Krugel said.
The book can be purchased on Amazon.com.