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Posts Tagged ‘Heartland America’

Honoring Our Brave on Memorial Day

America Thanks You for Freedom !

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Trudie’s Tribute to WW II Veterans

American flag

Mystery Novel – Social Commentary – 1940s – Inspiring Stories – Heartland America

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“My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.”  ~  Mark Twain

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Mother's Day Roses

Mystery, Miracles and Memories of MOTHER’S DAY

from Havenwood Tales Author, D.J. Houston

Mark Twain

Mark Twain

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Mystery Novel – Social Commentary – Coming of Age Story – 1940s – Heartland America

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Excerpts from the novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

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Spring blossomsIn the meadows and pastures, lines of fat raindrops clung like jewels to the undersides of new branches too green to absorb them, backlit by a cautious sun. Yellow-budding tulip trees drank thirstily of the fresh, pooled rain. And redbuds and dogwoods bloomed pink and white in the patches of light and shadow cast by canopies of hardwood trees, greening to life in the fertile woodlands.

I soon returned to school to discover all manner of winged creature, lending song and sound and motion to the Spring outside our classroom . . .

Ruby-throated hummingbirds zoomed on invisible wings from flower to flower, sharing nectar with the honeybees in the gardens we’d planted. And as the apple orchards sprinkled their delicate blossoms onto the breezes, sweet brown wrens whistled duets with the chickadees and chirping sparrows to the counterpoint, drumming staccato of woodpeckers courting their mates . . .

SEE: “Spring in Heartland America

A 3-Part Excerpt from the Novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

by Author D. J. Houston

Copyright©2008, 2014 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Ruby throated hummingbird

Mystery Novel – Inspiring Stories – Life Lessons – Visionary Fiction – Heartland America

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H E L L O there !! And H A P P Y  S P R I N G !!

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Spring bunnyTrudie McAfee here to share the latest with all our wonderful friends and fans of Havenwood Tales!

My author D.J. asked me to write and tell you she’s alive and well and working on HAVENWOOD TALES, and that I am eternally young. But instead, I’ll let you in on what I’ve been up to meanwhile. And please don’t tell D.J. — okay? She might thing I’m being saucy. Let’s just let this be our little secret ; )

I’m SO EXCITED!! You should see all my beautiful Pinterest board pictures!!! There’s books and birds and flowers and Spring, and surprises for Mama and all kinds of things!

You can peek at what Home in Havenwood‘s like, the 1940s, America, My Favorite Things, a Magical Kingdom, Amazing Nature, Native Americans and lots more fantastical stuff, from fancy foods and beautiful quilts to Life Lessons I’m learning (… some the hard way) ; D

Spring has sprung and the race is on to share more Havenwood Tales with you! Thanks very much for being my friend! I hope you enjoy my Pinterest fun, I really like sharing the joy : ))

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Love and Hugs,

Trudie McAfee – Narrator of HAVENWOOD TALES

P.S. I love my Author. I did this for you, Miss D.J. Please don’t be mad.

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Coming of Age – American Tall Tales – Inspiring Stories – Magical Mystery – Heartland America

Copyright©2014 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

spring duckings

HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings Novel by D.J. Houston

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~ A Valentine Love Note from Trudie McAfee

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Winter song

I always did have a soft spot in my heart for Daddy’s older brother, Uncle Chester — especially when he had a hangover after pining for his delicate Rose.

I figured if he was grumbling, it had to be better than singing sad songs to his own guitar all night out on the farm, with nobody to talk to but his flop-earred hound and the howling coyotes . . .

Valentine’s Day was not easy for him that winter of  ’47. But I remember him ever fondly for his heart of gold, despite the grumbling. And his music is still a miracle to me.

ENJOY:

Valentine for Uncle Chester

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From HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings novel by D.J. Houston

Coming of Age Story – Life Lessons – Miracles – Inspirational Stories – Heartland America

Copyright©2010, 2014 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

heart of gold

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Brand new peek at HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

D.J. Houston, Author

There were fourteen of us, the last of Havenwood Township’s Depression-era babies born in a flurry before America’s role in the war was sealed at Pearl Harbor . . .

Out In The Country by Paula Ford

Out In The Country by Paula Ford

And while none of us were the first young minds fresh off the farm to gather there, nor destined to be the last, the question as to how Miss Greenlee could captivate the attention of that motley gang of six and seven-year-old renegades I found myself surrounded by – much less ever teach us the same subject at the same time – might easily beg for a miracle. But two things were certain . . .

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HA P P Y  4th of  J U L Y,  AMERICA !

Enjoy a look back at AMERICA from the coming novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings by D.J. Houston

Faith In America by Donald Zolan

Before the second half of 20th Century America happened to her citizens, most kids who weren’t beat up too much for their choices were fairly capable — able to focus their attention on the world in front of them long enough to finish a task and get something done on their own.

Even in the cities, even during wartime, people looked out for each other’s kids . . .

As for what happened to the nation and to the minds and morals of her people in the decades that followed  . . .

C L I C K   H E R E  to READ

“Common Sense Freedom – Heartland America”

Copyright©2007, 2013 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Mystery Novel – Historical Fiction – Intrigue – Social Commentary – American Literature Treasures

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A Mother’s Day Tribute from Havenwood Tales

Sweet Surprise for Mama

Who ran to help me when I fell,

And would some pretty story tell,

Or kiss the place to make it well,

My mother.

— Ann Taylor, poet — (aka Mrs. Gilbert)

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Mother’s Day Inspirations from Heartland America

~

Coming of Age Story – Life Lessons – Wisdom – American Literature Treasures

~ From HAVENWOOD TALES Novels ~

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~ from HAVENWOOD TALES by D.J. Houston

McAfee Family Coat RackWe were loitering over breakfast, contemplating how to dig out, when a clarion cry of “Man alive!” sounded in the yard.

By the time Daddy and Timmy and I could scramble to the front door, ever optimistic Uncle Arthur was tromping in, stomping his snow-caked boots on the rug and rubbing his hands together like two sticks praying to kindle a bonfire, hollering, “Nothing like a little cold snap to clear a fella’s head!”

Behind him, a deep voice grumbled beneath a bundle of woolen mufflers topped by Uncle Chester’s red nose and a brown leather aviator cap with humongous, sheepskin-lined ear flaps . . .

 C L I C K :  “Valentine for Uncle Chester”

Copyright©2010, 2013 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Valentine for Uncle ChesterMagical Mystery – Childhood Memories – Inspiring Stories – Heartland America

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  A peek at  HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

 Author, D.J. Houston

My little pet skunk, Stripey, wasn’t little anymore …

So you couldn’t tell him anything.  And Sweetie – the possum I fed in the woods every night so she wouldn’t go grubbing in Mama’s garden – just waddled away, oblivious, if I even so much as thought about broaching the subject.

When it finally came right down to it, the only person I could get to just sit there and hear me out was Mama Dog’s fluffy pup, Rowdy. . .

But what was the use?  I was a goner . . .

C L I C K  for “Heartland America Warning”

Copyright©2008, 2012 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Humorous Stories – Mystery Novel – Life Lessons – American Literature Treasures

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HA P P Y  4th of  J U L Y,  AMERICA !

Enjoy a look back at AMERICA from the coming novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings by D.J. Houston

Faith In America by Donald Zolan

Before the second half of 20th Century America happened to her citizens, most kids who weren’t beat up too much for their choices were fairly capable — able to focus their attention on the world in front of them long enough to finish a task and get something done on their own.

Even in the cities, even during wartime, people looked out for each other’s kids . . .

As for what happened to the nation and to the minds and morals of her people in the decades that followed  . . .

C L I C K   H E R E  to READ

“Common Sense Freedom – Heartland America”

Copyright©2007, 2013 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Mystery Story – Historical Fiction Books – Intrigue – Social Commentary – American Literature

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H A P P Y   F A T H E R’ S   D A Y !

A Note from Author D.J. Houston

FATHERS — and our unique experiences and life lessons with them — are as varied as individuals themselves.

My own father’s common sense, persistent work ethic, a calm strength of character and endearing, almost corny sense of humor are traits I treasure and remember him for most.  But when I was a child, he could seem a bit mysterious. . .

Remembering him this Father’s Day . . . I miss the smile behind his eyes, as if he knew a secret joke about life and knew that I’d learn it some day . . .

C L I C K  H E R E  to READ. . .

“Father’s Day Inspirations from Heartland America”

Copyright©2011, 2013 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

American Family Life – Inspiring Stories – Life Lessons – Mystery Story – Author D.J. Houston

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“He didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.” Clarence Budington Kelland

 

 A Note from Author, D.J. Houston  & MORE 🙂

FATHERS — and our unique experiences and life lessons with them — are as varied as individuals themselves.

My own father’s common sense, persistent work ethic, a calm strength of character and endearing, almost corny sense of humor are traits I treasure and remember him for most.  But when I was a child, he could seem a bit mysterious.

His favorite song was “The Tennessee Waltz,” but I never saw him dancing.  He’d been to college, but never encouraged me to go.  He’d been a soldier, but he wouldn’t talk about the war . . .  

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Excerpts from HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

by D.J. Houston

~ Honoring My Father on Memorial Day  ~

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My first pearl appeared the summer I turned six, not long after Daddy and Uncle Arthur returned from the Second World War . . .

It was a time of new necessity for Man.  For despite any halt to the march of evil, that war had turned humanity inside out when the white-hot specter of an atom bomb shocked and awed a pre-dawn New Mexico desert and twice carried death to Japan.

Yet no one could begin to grasp the consequences; it was too impossible to confront that such a thing as an atom bomb could ever happen in the first place.

Even after the war, top-secret scientists kept right on with the military to convince each other, time and again, that bombs do, indeed explode, while regular Joe civilian had no clue of such experiments.  And anyone who might have been aware felt powerless to stop them.  So they did nothing.

Post-WW II Heartland America

Families were reunited with their military loved ones the world over, and did what they could to reorient them to whatever became of their lost years at home.

Most made the transition; all were scarred.  But I’d like to think it was easier for the battle-weary to recover in a place like Havenwood . . .

Livestock and chickens and barns and crops and bank accounts needed tending, leaving little time to ruminate about the war.  And with new enterprises springing up as manufacturing shifted to producing wares and gadgets for the new Consumer Age, earning opportunities outside the home soon grew abundant for adults and young folks alike.

Not that play wasn’t fun and important to youth back then; if anything, a crippling Great Depression with a Second World War on its heels had led Americans of every age to value their freedoms and pleasures more than ever.

But work is its own reward.  If you don’t believe me, ask someone who has none.  And with more choices that come to a freer people, we could enjoy work more than ever, too.

All the kids I knew did chores, before and after school.  And those who had already proven themselves as volunteers for war efforts on the home front had a long leg up when it came to getting hired for the paying jobs.

With no TV screens to spectate at for hours on end, and decades yet before the advent of ubiquitous shopping mall arcades, video games, and personal phones and computers, young people tended to play hands-on at the game of growing up.

They practiced the real deal with real people, in an insular world without internet . . .

~

Author, D.J. Houston

Copyright©2007, 2014 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Historical Fiction – Memoir Novels – Life Journey – Coming of Age – Social Commentary

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HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to Moms  Mums  Mamas  Mommies and Mothers everywhere!

- photo by D.J. Houston

– photo by D.J. Houston

How fitting Mother’s Day arrives when Spring is in full bloom!

A very Happy Mother’s Day to Mother Nature, too!

~

 Havenwood Tales protagonist and narrator, Trudie McAfee, whose stories I write for you, forever celebrates her Mama Birdie and the mothers and grandmothers of her ancestry.

And as always with the Art of Motherhood, Trudie’s mother was her first special teacher.

For always it is true:

.

“That best academy, a mother’s knee.”

– James Russell Lowell, poet

Mama Birdie McAfee was a great cook, too!

Trudie might say this was true of her:

“A mother is a person who, seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.”

– Tenneva Jordan

But this classic “fond remembrance” reminds Trudie most of Mama:

“My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.” 

–  Mark Twain

~

We remember and honor our Mothers in countless ways . . .

You may be familiar with time-tested rhymes like this one:

“Nobody knows of the work it makes
To keep the home together.
Nobody knows of the steps it takes,
Nobody knows but Mother.”

– Anonymous

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Here’s a fresh, modern look at the ancient wisdom of honoring one’s parents that may be NEW to you:

What a relief it is to know that our lucky children and grandchildren have these common sense inspirations to help guide them through their coming-of-age!

View the entertaining video “Honor and Help Your Parents” from The Way to Happiness book:

CLICK HERE

~

To Treasured Friends and Fans:

As I prepare to launch your ultimate gift of HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings – the first novel of the Havenwood Tales series – please know:

Your loyalty, feedback and the fun YOU bring to the party are valued and appreciated more than ever!

Have a very Happy Mother’s Day!

D.J. Houston, Author of Havenwood Tales

Copyright©2013, 2014 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Inspirations – Celebration of Life – Nostalgia – American Literature Treasures

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HAPPY EASTER!  HAPPY SPRING! 

MANY MIRACLES to you and to all our gifted children coming of age in a new world of friendship and imagination!  May you find every opportunity for freedom and adventure on life’s journey!

THANK YOU to my loyal fans and readers.  The official launch of HAVENWOOD TALES is a much bigger task than I thought!

I wish you much joy and enjoyment from these last, updated excerpts I’ll be sharing with you.

May you ever be SURPRISED 😉

CLICK  HERE:  “Spring in Heartland America

   Happily Yours,

Author, D.J. Houston

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American Literature Treasures – Miracles – Life Journey – Adventure – Coming of Age

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HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY from HAVENWOOD!!

FLOWERS and CHOCOLATE for ALL!!

But let’s talk about chocolate . . .  😉

– by Dark Chocolate Life

FUN NEWS for CHOCOLATE LOVERS

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New Year’s Eve had come and gone to the tune of Aunt Julia’s piano and a rousing Auld Lang Syne . . .

Our old house was almost done mourning the departure of its Christmas tree. Mama was back to baking for Birdie’s Kitchen and school had just gotten good and started again.

Then, on the 30th of January, a roaring blizzard slammed its way out of Canada like a bull shot loose from a rodeo pen and pummeled everything south of it from Michigan to Texas and east to the ocean . . .

CLICK to READ

“Valentine for Uncle Chester”

Photography by Anna Laura Livinal Belanger

Excerpts from novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

by Author D.J. Houston

Copyright©2010, 2013 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.


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. . . He called her his Lily of Liverpool.  She called him her Yankee Doodle.

She liked to say she married him because he made her laugh.  And that with so much opportunity and freedom in America, surely she belonged here, too.

Ladened with crates of Julia’s family heirlooms and decidedly English furniture, they set sail on a passenger ship in the spring of ’46, arrived by train from Boston and bought the old, abandoned Butler place in Rainbolt Hollow, ghosts and all . . .

CLICK to READ

English Christmas Dinner in America

Excerpts from the novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

Copyright©2010, 2012 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

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~ The World’s Most Beautiful Christmas Tree ~

It was the first time I can remember ever having a Christmas tree — and a real one, at that.

When the idea of saving the forests first came into vogue, we tried using a silver tinsel one.  Then one of those phony white ones with the “snow-flocked” branches for a while.  And years of “realistic” plastic green ones I never liked, either.

I never knew when I’d remember my last Christmas tree.  So I thought it fitting to commemorate that first one now, and the imprint it left on my life. . .

CLICK to READ:  Inspiring Christmas Story

From the novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings by D.J. Houston

Copyright©2008, 2012 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Inspirational Stories – Historical Fiction – Social Commentary – Heartland America

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D.J. Houston, Author

Hello Friends!

What a Summer it’s been for America!  Not to mention this extraordinary 21st Century on Earth.

As for our tale of Havenwood, I can only reveal that — following a summer of brave adventures, some startling misadventure and plentiful mystery after Trudie Beth McAfee’s precocious encounter with Gabriel White Cloud Walling — the era of her childhood freedom threatened to become an empty memory, as time drew near for. . .  the inevitable — SCHOOL.

Here’s some FUN for you (circa 1946)  🙂  Enjoy! (more…)

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Happy Independence Day, America!

Happy 4th of July!

from Author, D.J. Houston


Spirit of ’76 – Archibald M. Willard

Celebrating Liberty. . .

“Those who won our independence believed liberty to be the secret of happiness and courage to be the secret of liberty.” –  Louis D. Brandeis

What happened on July 4, 1776?   Why celebrate?   

As Americans, we celebrate the fact that our God-given rights to live free of tyranny from any government were demanded and penned by key Founding Fathers in the Declaration of Independence.

Click for FUN FACTS

~

Wisdom & Humor from America’s Founding Fathers

“My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government.” 

Thomas Jefferson

“They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” 

Benjamin Franklin

“All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.”

Thomas Jefferson

“. . . it is much easier to prevent an enemy from posting themselves than it is to dislodge them after they have got possession.”

George Washington

“In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress.” 

John Adams

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From HAVENWOOD TALES:

“Before the second half of 20th Century America happened to her citizens. . .”

Enjoy:  Inspiring Story – Common Sense Freedom

~

A Note from the Author to her Fans and Friends

~

“You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness.” 

Erma Bombeck

~

Thank you for enjoying this Celebration of Freedom with me!

I love sharing sneak peeks and updates with you from HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings — the first novel in my HAVENWOOD TALES trilogy.

D.J. Houston, Author

Spunky young Trudie McAfee, whose story I write, assures me subscribers are in for many “intriguing treats” to come 🙂

THANKS for all your friendship, inspirations and encouragement on our journey together!

Happy 4th of July, America!

Your Freedom-loving Friend,

D.J. Houston

Copyright©2011, 2013 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

Inspiring Stories – Historical Fiction Books – Courage and Wisdom – Heartland America

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Excerpts from the novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

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Spring blossomsRain was another week coming to wash the sin from the charred remains of Peterson’s Salvage Yard, leaving behind no scarcity of pristine air to clear my head and lungs as I wandered the woods and countryside. Any desire for vengeance that haunted me after the fire was soon purged from my heart by the merciful, relentless beauty of Spring in Havenwood.

In the meadows and pastures, lines of fat raindrops clung like jewels to the undersides of new branches too green to absorb them, backlit by a cautious sun. Yellow-budding tulip trees drank thirstily of the fresh, pooled rain. And redbuds and dogwoods bloomed pink and white in the patches of light and shadow cast by canopies of hardwood trees, greening to life in the fertile woodlands.

I soon returned to school to discover all manner of winged creature, lending song and sound and motion to the Spring outside our classroom . . .

Ruby throated hummingbirdRuby-throated hummingbirds zoomed on invisible wings from flower to flower, sharing nectar with the honeybees in the gardens we’d planted. And as the apple orchards sprinkled their delicate blossoms onto the breezes, sweet brown wrens whistled duets with the chickadees and chirping sparrows to the counterpoint, drumming staccato of woodpeckers courting their mates.

I took to drawing pictures of whatever Mother Nature offered those halcyon days, using up boxes of colored chalk and watercolor paints faster than art supply mail orders could arrive.

I was also reading every book I could get my hands on.  And because I was so far ahead in Arithmetic and so hungry for Art and Reading, Miss Greenlee made a special place for me at the back of the classroom where I could spread out my work on a nice long table with a window view.

Gnarly old Miss Hickey, the Latin teacher, disapproved, of course.

I caught her peeking through the windows before she could duck. But she didn’t dare complain to Mister Attabee; he’d already put her in her place that famous day under the hickory tree in the schoolyard, defending Miss Greenlee’s artistic license to do whatever she pleased.

Maybe she wanted her own artistic license. Maybe she was just jealous. But whatever the case, “Hickey Witch” just had to make her spiteful point by glaring at me with those snaky eyes and that squinched up face of hers whenever I passed her classroom door on my way to the library . . .

C O N T I N U E D  – C L I CK  for PART II

D.J. Houston, Author

Copyright©2008, 2014 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

From the novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

Magical Mystery – Inspiring Stories – Life Lessons – Artists of Spring – Heartland America

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~ from the novel HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

by D.J. Houston


New Year’s Eve had come and gone to the tune of Aunt Julia’s piano and a rousing chorus of Auld Lang Syne, while the grownups held up their glasses and Timmy and I toasted all their toasts with mugs of hot chocolate and root beer.

Our house was almost done mourning the departure of its Christmas tree. Mama was back to baking for Birdie’s Kitchen and school had just gotten good and started again.

Then, on the 30th of January, a roaring blizzard slammed its way out of Canada like a bull shot loose from a rodeo pen, pummeling everything south of it from Michigan to Texas and east to the ocean. Havenwood’s countryside looked like something out of a Russian fairytale by morning.

In a place that’s lucky to get two feet of snow in a whole year put together, that storm left more than a calling card under the solid white blanket that smothered the rolling landscape. All the roads had disappeared, the well was frozen over and drifts around our house were sloped so high, you could have walked right off the edge of the porch with no place to fall.

We were loitering over breakfast, contemplating how to dig out, when the clarion cry of “Man alive!” sounded in the yard.

By the time Daddy and Timmy and I could scramble to the front door, ever optimistic Uncle Arthur was tromping in, stomping his snow-caked boots on the rug and rubbing his hands together like two sticks praying to kindle a bonfire, hollering, “Nothing like a little cold snap to clear a fella’s head!”

by Ian Wilde

by Ian Wilde

Behind him, a deep voice grumbled beneath a bundle of woolen mufflers topped by Uncle Chester’s red nose and a brown leather aviator cap with humongous, sheepskin-lined ear flaps.

Once Uncle Chet pulled the mufflers loose, we could hear him saying, “That’s the doggoned awfullest mess I ever seen. You got drifts clean up past your window sills, Ben. We better git to work.”

Extreme weather — or any challenge, for that matter, so long as it was tractor, truck, food, fire, flood, Act of God or gun related — seemed to bring out the best in men of their ilk. 

With telephone lines down across the Heartland and the roads too buried in snow to be located, much less traveled, Uncle Chet had been rolling along on a beeline since well before dawn, determined, on his big-wheeled tractor. He picked up Uncle Arthur in Rainbolt Hollow. And damn the torpedoes,  the two had arrived to help out their family at our house, shovels in hand.

We were grinning and grateful for their efforts, needless to say.

“Where in tarnation did you find that hat, Chester?” my daddy teased.  “Come in, come in!”

A quiet cloud settled over Uncle Chet’s face, and we realized at once that Aunt Rose must have given him the hat and made him promise to wear it in inclement weather, before she passed on.

McAfee Family Coat RackThe McAfees were a close-knit bunch; tacit rules of engagement for generations had kept us so.  Even Timmy and Rowdy Dog fell silent, and my daddy’s question about the hat was respectfully dropped.

Mama emerged from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. She slipped past the group of us gathered in the foyer, helped Chester out of his coat, then stood patiently by as he heaved a sigh and carefully placed his hat over the last empty hook on the hall stand.

“That husband a’ yours leave any hot coffee on the stove, Birdie?”

He was grumbling again. But he thanked her kindly with his eyes and laid a big, gentle hand on her shoulder. The rest of us picked up gabbing where we’d left off, happy to see each other, while we followed Mama and Uncle Chester into the kitchen.

I always did have a soft spot in my heart for Daddy’s older brother, especially when he had a hangover after pining for his delicate Rose.

And I figured if he was grumbling, it had to be better than singing sad songs to his own guitar all night out on the farm, with nobody to talk to but his flop-earred hound and the howling coyotes . . .

~

by D.J. Houston, Author

Copyright©2010, 2014 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

An excerpt from HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

Photography by Anna Laura Livinal Belanger

Mystery Novel – Life Lessons – Historical Fiction – Inspirations of Heartland America

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Warned by a tipsy Aunt Julia that they must let their dinner settle before any sledding or they’d suffer life-threatening stomach cramps, Timmy and the cousins made a sugar-headed dash for the yard, where they managed to keep themselves occupied sailing well-aimed snowballs at Aunt Julia’s fat cats. At least until she caught them in the act, confiscated their slingshots and shooed them, sleds and all, off to the hill.

My pleas to join the boys ignored, I was sentenced to “Be a good young lady, Trudie dear, and tidy up the dining room.”

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