THE MERRY MONTH OF DECEMBER

The holiday season has officially arrived.

It’s the merry month of December in the Northern United States with flying reindeer, chimneys large enough to fit fat men down, and coming soon— adorable fluffy white snow swirling around in the minus degree temperatures.

There is nothing quite as exhilarating as elbowing your way through crowds of people at the mall, all vying for those gigantic flat screen televisions now on sale. Or maybe it’s that newest air fryer, sure to hog all the space on your already crowded kitchen counter. Make sure you buy your grandchild that super-duper rocket launcher that hurls projectiles from one room to the next with little care for any fragile bone china on display.

Leaving all jokes aside, I do enjoy the season with its hustle and bustle. Christmas brings with it some of the best holiday foods and drinks, all the assortments of baked goods and special sweets, and the old comforting sing-along, holiday music for our ears. I have portable, blue tooth speakers in three different rooms so I can have holiday music as I move from room to room.

Already, I’ve put a real wreath on the back door inside a closed entrance, so we can smell the pine when we enter or leave. A small fiber optic tree now sits on our fireplace hearth lighting up the family room in a colorful and twinkling display. As always, my favorite stuffed snowmen are guarding the family room and will do so until February arrives.

This year, with the sons and families, in Alaska and South Carolina, my husband and I will be celebrating Christmas together without company. I’m trying to sell Scott on having a Christmas Eve dinner complete with crab legs, shrimp, coleslaw, and maybe some corn bread. I always bake pies and cookies during the entire month, so dessert is optional.  

How are you progressing with your holiday activities, chores, and plans for this upcoming year? Drop me a note in the comment section below.

But before I go, I want you to know—

                         It's Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air!

                                   Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

 

 

                                       Featuring my "Musical Christmas Series" in eBooks: 

 

              JUNE~The Pianist       ADELENE~The Violinist      LUCY~The Clarinetist 

 

IS PATIENCE A VIRTUE?

Do you sometimes get impatient? I do. Just ask my husband. He’ll probably reveal that I’m very good at it. I’ve learned that people who prefer to be busy most of their waking moments seem to have the most problem with being patient. And, I’m a person who likes to be busy.

In modern terms of today, patience is described as the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset. And, virtue is described at behavior showing high moral standards. The other day I pondered how the definition of patience today has changed so drastically from its definition of fifteen centuries ago.   

The phrase, patience is a virtue, is a proverbial phrase, transmitted by oral tradition, dating back to the fifth century A.D. from an epic poem called  Psychomachig which was written by late antique Latin poet, Prudentius. His seven heavenly virtues are in response to the seven deadly sins, updated also in fifth century A.D. by Pope Gregory I. Obviously, these two opposite groups, virtues and sins, represent the battle between good and evil.

What are the seven virtues? They are chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, kindness , patience, and humility. The deadly sins are: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, envy, wrath, and pride. (Each virtue is considered the opposite of each sin and is listed in the same numerical order.) Thus, patience is used to combat wrath.

But in today’s world, I believe patience now has many different variations and degrees as opposed to its earlier meaning. We are currently living in a world quite unlike the 15^th century where people lived in rural villages, life expectancy was 35 years old, and communications was word of mouth.

According to the medical community, patience is a skill that can be learned and practiced. It’s a result of choosing to emphasize thinking over feeling. The ability of technology to deliver immediate responses has caused us, as humans, to become more impatience. After all, we no longer write letters. Even phone calls take time. We now prefer to message others on our cellphones for a “quick” response.

So how does one solve being impatient? It entails learning to re-evaluate why you are impatient at a specific moment. Slowing down, re-evaluating the situation, focusing on priorities, accepting the inevitable—even resting are some of many ways to help people cope with irritating and annoyed feelings we call impatience.

As our frosty season approaches in Pennsylvania, I’m very content to virtuously and patiently wait as November transitions into winter. You see, I’m not a big fan of Old Man Winter.

Come March, however, I suspect I’ll throw virtue out the window. I’ll be  on the lookout daily for Flora, the Greek Goddess of spring buds and green shoots. Will I be impatiently waiting? Only time will tell. 

NEW - NEW - NEW     

COURTING BETSY -Book 3 of the Ashmore Brothers Series

  

                          VISIT MY   AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE FOR ALL MY BOOKS 

                                                                                              

BRING IT ON, OCTOBER!

There’s something magical about October besides pumpkins, spiced lattes, and stands of maples dressed in a kaleidoscope of color. In Pennsylvania, it’s the month of our first frost and a reminder wintertime is sneaking up.

Many people think northern folks hibernate under the first snowflakes of winter, when the wind rattles the windows, when temperatures plummet. For me, it’s actually a cozy spell and a time for reflection. All indoor, unfinished activities, like cleaning closets, cupboards, or basements—even writing—take front stage.    

There's a saying if you put all your eggs in one basket, be sure to keep your eye on the basket. I prefer to put all my chores on one list and then silently hope it disappears. To date, no one has ever stolen my list!

But seriously, autumn morphing into winter is a perfect time to reassess my writing goals. My main objective this year was to get the third novel of my “Ashmore Brothers” series finished and published. Courting Betsy came out September 1^st.  I would now like to spend more time creating another collection of short stories. And that’s the fun part. That’s when daydreaming comes into play.

Daydreaming is referred to as mind wandering. It’s the stream of consciousness that detaches from current, external tasks. A person’s attention drifts to more internal directions. There are four types of daydreaming: visualization, fantasy, escapism, and rumination. Planning is a popular method of daydreaming as well. As writers, we love to let our minds drift and enter our make-believe worlds. It’s a time to craft new characters and settings, conjure up a story line and plot, do research, and scribble down ideas and notes.

So, bring it on, October. Bring it on!  Blustery winds. Geese in flight. Acorns and tumbling leaves. Vegetable soup simmering on the back of the stove. Hot chocolate and cider. Wood smoke scenting the air. All this and more.

We’re ready for you!

VISIT MY AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE FOR ALL MY BOOKS 

 

Motivation and Writing

This year I spent most of my summer trying to get Courting Betsy, Book 3 of the Ashmore Brothers series, finished, edited, and formatted in digital and print for a September release. Courting Betsy is a historical western romantic mystery.

It has taken me two years to finish the novel and get it ready. For some odd reason, I was struggling with motivation. My husband and I had decided not to winter in Florida every year, but discover other places. It meant selling and packing up our condo which was exhausting. I came home to Pennsylvania with little motivation or time for writing.                                                                                             

So what is motivation? It’s basically the instinct to achieve your goals, set priorities, and find ways to energize yourself. Here are some things I learned along the way:

1.  Set small goals and priorities. Break the work into smaller pieces. Sometimes it’s just reading or editing one chapter.

2.  Reward yourself when you take a step forward. Take a break. Sit in the sunshine. Do a small chore that’s been bugging you. (There’s reward in seeing it finished.) And lastly, my favorite: Eat a piece of chocolate.

3.   Forget about comparing yourself to others. Everyone works differently, at different times, and at different speeds.

4.   Stop beating up yourself up when you feel you’re not moving forward, not doing your best. Sometimes pausing and resting in place is what is needed to invigorate yourself. It allows to you take the next step. And yes, you can have a second piece of chocolate!

Let me introduce you to COURTING BETSY. I hope you enjoy the story as much as I did writing it!

When Betsy Ashmore, adopted sister to a family of four brothers, discovers U.S. Marshal Luke Ashmore is lying wounded in a renegade Indian camp, she can’t refuse to help a brother in peril—especially one she has loved all her life. With the help of a wily Ute Indian, the spunky shopkeeper saddles up to rescue him.

Marshal Luke Ashmore never expected to be bushwhacked while escorting the young boy of a murdered army scout northward to Fort Collins in the Colorado Territory. Outlaws want the boy and believe he knows the location of a hidden treasure.                                        

As Betsy and Two Bears struggle to get the marshal and the child to safety, can they outwit the ruthless outlaws following them? And what will they do with two more orphaned boys they stumble upon along the trail?

Fall in love with the plucky shopkeeper and her three scheming youngsters—all determined to help the U.S. Marshal lasso her heart so they can become a family.

COURTING BETSY – Ashmore Brothers Book 3 – A Western Romantic Mystery!  Kindle version and print now available on AMAZON:  https://www.amazon.com/Courting-Betsy-Ashmore-Brothers-Romantic-ebook/dp/B0CFSXKH6L/