Mystery Novel Memoir – World War II – Heartland America

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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Mother’s Day Inspirations – American Literature Treasures

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

♥

Portrait courtesy of Dave Thomson

For mystery, miracles and memories of MOTHER’S DAY from Havenwood Tales author, D.J. Houston

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Mother’s Day Inspirations from Heartland America

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

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– 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!

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 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:

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“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

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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

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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

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

Inspirations – Celebration of Life – Nostalgia – American Literature Treasures

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American Literature Treasures – Inspirations – Mystery of Havenwood School

Inspirations from HAVENWOOD TALES Beginnings

D.J. Houston, Author

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Art supplies kept mysteriously appearing on my table at school . . .

When I wasn’t reading, I was doing chalk or pencil drawings and watercolor paintings of the birds and flowers and forests I knew.

I even made my first attempt to draw the human face — a silhouette profile of Mister Walling, infused with a golden light.

I was adding the finishing touches when I felt Miss Greenlee’s presence arrive behind me like a soft sigh . . .

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C L I C K  H E R E  for “Art of Dreamers”

Paranormal Mystery – Inspirations – Adventure – American Literature Treasures

Copyright©2009, 2012 D.J. Houston. All Rights Reserved.

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