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Caroline Dunford Interviewed by Wendy H. Jones Caroline, thank you for joining me in Mom’s Favorite Reads As we will discover you are an extremely busy lady and I appreciate you taking time out to answer my questions for Mom’s readers. Let’s start with a short bio for those who have not heard of you – perish the thought.
during, WWI. My follow-on series focuses on the home front during WWII. I also write about spies and spycraft from the earlier part of the 20th century. My Daniel Truce series features a character who has severe difficulties in understanding the emotions of others and relies on body language. He is also a PTSD sufferer. I am a qualified psychotherapist. I gave up practice to write and teach full time. I am flexible in arranging events and workshops. I want to provide an entertaining and education experience for my audience. I can work on longer or shorter projects.
I write historical fiction, thrillers, crime fiction, romance and diverse plays. I am working on a YA novel. I currently have 25 books published, and I am always writing more. I am a part-time Teaching Fellow at the University of Edinburgh, designing and teaching courses in creative writing in the Continuing Learning department. I enjoy teaching writers of all abilities from age 12 upwards. I have run workshops both in my local library and at the Edinburgh International Book Fair. These have ranged from beginner writing workshops to themed events. My Euphemia Martins series strongly features the class system before, and
As I say an extremely busy lady. I have been a fan of your writing since I first read one of your Euphemia Martins book many years ago, so it really is exciting to be interviewing you here today.
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A nice gentle question to start off. How did you come to writing? I’ve always told stories. My earliest memories are of lining up my toys to tell them stories. Then later, at primary school, I discovered that my peers would petition the teacher to let me read out my creative essays. How do you come up with the ideas for your books?
I do a lot of historical research. I like placing my characters close to memorable events. I have to work out what roles they might have played and how it would have affected them. All my characters have a storyline that goes beyond a single book. Their lives are continually developing and they change and grow. Sometimes in ways I don’t expect!
There are numerous books in your Euphemia Martin’s series. Does one have to read all the books to get the storyline. If the answer is yes – why? If the answer is no – what does the reader gain from reading the whole series.
Your books would be described as cozy crime. What exactly is cozy crime? That’s a difficult question to answer. How can a murder ever be cozy? It’s a horrendous act. I think, generally, cozy crime is a genre in which there is a lot of emphasis on the characters and how they interact. It’s also a genre in where you would expect good to triumph in the end.
All the books are written as standalone stories. Each book has it’s own mystery and resolution. However, if you read them in order, you will get more from the various characters growth and changes. There is a baddie who runs through several books, and you may find it more satisfying to read those in order. When it comes to writing I can write anywhere? Where do you write?
Your books would appeal to both men and women despite having a female heroine. Why do you think this is? Fitzroy. Fitzroy is Euphemia’s partner in espionage (Euphemia being my protagonist). He was introduced as a background character, but became so popular with my readers that when I started a WWII series about Hope, Euphemia’s daughter, it was in my contract that I had to include Fitzroy. He’s the typical women love him, men want to be him character. I also think Euphemia has a lot of appeal to both sexes. She’s a fighter for justice, strong, but still very much a lady. -9-
Usually at my desk. Sometimes in bed. I write on my iPad Pro with the attached Magic Keyboard case. I want to be comfortable when I write, but I don’t want any distractions, so no music in the background and my desk faces the wall!
What does a writing day look like to you? I find that I can’t write for more than four hours solid. If it’s a writing day, rather than a research day. I’ll start around 10am. I might break for lunch or if I’m really caught up in the story I’ll write straight through to 2pm. After lunch, I’ll do basic admin or I’ll read and relax. After fours hours of writing I’m not good for much else. Although I might go into the kitchen. I find cooking very relaxing, and I often find I clarify plot points in my head when I cook. If you could go anywhere in the world to write, where would you choose. Somewhere warm, but in the shade, and with a hammock to relax in afterwards. Somewhere rural and beautiful. I can think of lots of places. Although if it was for inspiration I’d rather like to take Fitzroy and Euphemia to Venice and see what they got up to. Do you prefer mountains or the beach? Why? I’ve very pale, and not the kind of person who tans. Lying on a beach isn’t for me. I love the west coast of Scotland with lots of mountains. However, I am perfectly content to lie and look up at them. I feel no need to climb them! https://caroline-dunford.squarespace.com/
The ubiquitous Desert Island Discs Question – which three books would you take to a desert island? I’ll choose ones I have enjoyed rereading. Donna Tart’s The Secret History, the best story ever written about remorse and consequence. This next is a bit of a cheat - but it is in one volume - Cornish Trilogy by Robertson Davies, a Canadian author, now deceased, who I think was one of our greatest novelists of the twentieth century. And last, but by no means least, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, because while I think Mr Darcy would be an awful man to live with, their romance is one of the most appealing in literature. What do you read to relax? Everything! My reading tastes are eclectic. I’ll always look at what is coming out, and pick what interests me. I love a good plot with strong characters and I don’t mind the genre as long as I can disappear into the story. There’s nothing better than finding a story so immersive you forget the rest of the world for a while. You are unusual in that you write numerous different series. Can you tell us about some of the many series you write? I write The Euphemia Martins Mysteries, which are set during the build-up to WWI and throughout the
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You started a spin off series from the Euphemia Martins books. Why a spin off series and what is the series about? I’ve already told you a bit about Hope. I started the series partly because I didn’t entirely want to leave the original characters behind, but also because I thought it was likely to come to an end (around book ten). However, both my publisher and my readers wanted more, so the next Euphemia which will be out next year, will be the eighteenth. I also have a strong interest in Britain at war, so it seemed logical to move on to WWII. I had family who fought and lived through both wars and have a strong personal family link to both events.
war. They start out as regular murder mysteries, but gradually Euphemia is drawn into working for the British Secret Service. The Hope Stapleford Mysteries, are about Euphemia’s daughter, Hope, who lives through WWII. Her parents have trained her in observation and evasion, because her mother has so many enemies from her spying days. However, when war begins, Fitzroy quickly recruits her to do her bit for Britain.
My final question. Which of your books would you recommend Mom’s Favorite Reads readers start with if they haven’t read you before? In the Euphemia Series, if you don’t want to read them all – that’s a big ask, I’d start with A Death for King and Country. This is where Euphemia and Fitzroy really begin to team up and work together, even though Fitzroy is technically dead at the time!
You have an innate love of history which feeds into your books. Tell us about this. I can’t say I was good at history at school, when it was taught just as lists of dates to memorise. What I do love is social history. What ordinary people were doing during extraordinary times, how they behaved morally, to what they cooked for dinner. I like to connect to historical events through imagining what it was like to live during that era.
Thank you once again Caroline. I am off to read a couple of your books so I can review them. I can honestly say I am very much looking forward to reading them.
Wendy H. Jones is the award winning, international best-selling author of the DI Shona McKenzie Mysteries, Cass Claymore Investigates Mysteries, Fergus and Flora Mysteries, Bertie the Buffalo children’s books and the Writing Matters books for writers. She is also a writing and marketing coach and the President of the Scottish Association of Writers. As copy editor for Mom’s, she works hard to ensure content is appropriate and free of grammatical and spelling errors. You can learn more about Wendy on her website:
https://www.wendyhjones.com/ - 11 -
Title A Death in the Family by Caroline Stan Phillips Dunford Reviewed by Wendy H. Jones
I love the Euphemia Martins books and had to review the book which introduces you to the series – A Death in the Family. Read on to find out why.
Description Rev Joshia Martins expires in a dish of mutton and onions leaving his family on the brink of destitution. Abandoned by her noble grandfather, Joshia's daughter, the eighteen year old Euphemia, takes it on herself to provide for her mother and little brother by entering service. She's young, fit, intelligent, a little naïve and assumes the life of a maid won't be too demanding. However, on her first day at the unhappy home of Lord Stapleford she discovers a dead body.
You know straight away that this book is going to be perfect. How can you resist and opening line like that? I certainly couldn’t and there started a love affair with the series, This, the first book, introduces a band of extremely quirky characters led by the fabulous Euphemia Martins herself. She may be eighteen, but she has a keen investigative eye and certainly knows how to get down to things and wheedle out the truth. She’s a feisty soul and refuses to accept her place in the world, believing she is as good as anyone else. My kind of girl. There is a real sense of place and time in the book and the characters are portrayed realistically for their time. The plot rattles along at a brisk pace even if it is not an edge of your seat read. In fairness it is not meant to be but it certainly maintains the reader’s interest. If you like historical mysteries with quirky characters, then grab this book.
Euphemia's innate sense of justice has her prying where no servant should look and uncovering some Stapleford secrets… Review This book had me hooked from its fabulous opening line: “In December 1009 England was gearing up for a general election. Russia was rumbling with an undercurrent of revolution, and my father – the very Reverend Joshia Peter Martins – expired, face down, in his dish of mutton and onions leaving Mother, myself and my younger brother Joe at the whim of Bishop Pagget.” - 12 -
A Death in the Highlands by Caroline Dunford Reviewed by Wendy H. Jones A Death in the Highlands is the second book in the Euphemia Martins Mysteries. Does it measure up to the promise of the first? Read on to find out.
Description After dodging criminal charges, Richard returns as head of the household at Stapleford Hall. Changing fortunes find Euphemia temporarily promoted to housekeeper for the first trip to the family's new hunting lodge in the Scottish Highlands, where she meets Rory Macleod, the new butler. Taking on her new role, she encounters angry locals with a grudge against the Staplefords and thwarts what she believes to be an attempt on Bertram Stapleford's life. A strange group of house guests arrive for the Glorious Twelfth, but with disastrous consequences. Euphemia finds herself caught in the midst of bitter rivalries, and evidence pointing to several murder suspects. Will she unravel the mystery?
newly promoted and transported to Scotland, so of course I had to read this book. Would the Scottish setting come alive in a series which is essentially set in England? The author has described the setting well and it comes alive in her hands. The mystery and plot are equally good making this a book which you just have to read. I would advise reading this book after the first in the series as the first sets the series up so well.
Review The answer to the above is a categorical yes, it does measure up to the promise of the first. Caroline Dunford is skilled at drawing characters giving them each individual personas which leap of the page and into your heart. Be they heroine or villain they all draw you in to the story. Euphemia is
https://caroline-dunford.squarespace.com/ - 13 -
Bird Fairy Boy by Alison Rasmussen As I wander somewhat aimlessly through the park and woods, I like to collect acorns and conkers and other lovely woodland items, like bird feathers and such, to keep in the many pockets of my bag. I keep them because I like them, but also, I think they will come in handy one day.
But, today, I think he might like to go for a long romantic rainy walk, so to keep his feathers dry I will fashion him a pretty umbrella from a leaf. He picks one with the shape of a heart because he just might see her today. I really don’t get enough practice when it comes to drawing human anatomy and it’s a big wish of mine to be better. I practiced a lot of gesture and sketching for this (and will continue to do so!) and eventually I came up with a rough idea of what I needed to do. I redrew it many times, disliking it more and more as I went along. It was quite a mess by then – either from the joys of being a perfectionist and never quite getting there or for constantly changing my mind. Luckily, graphite is reasonably forgiving but there is only so much a piece of white paper can take.
After resting for a couple of years in a pocket, a tiny feather and a shiny acorn have met their destiny with a dried fluff of a dandelion, collected oh so long ago, and I start to plan my second fairy. A Bird Fairy Boy. The feather becomes the foundation of who he is a little feather that inspires his bird-like fairy wings. The acorn inspires the colour of his hair. He is quite a flashy fellow, too. So, he might like to wear some dandelion seeds to trim the hem of his jacket or fluffy wrist warmers or a snood for his skinny, proud neck.
Totally unrelated, I decided to brave the paint and add some colour onto the white before I worked with the coloured pencils. In this case acrylics. They can be used thinned with water and this way they make an under layer to work with pencil on top. It feels nice doing that – the paint makes a lovely support for pencil details and acrylic paint is very forgiving so if you make a mistake it will dry in no time, and you can work on top to tidy it up. I can’t explain how nice it feels drawing on top of acrylic paint. It feels rough and interesting. I mentioned last time that greens and reds are complimentary colours and how they make each other appear brighter if they are next to each other and mixing them can produce nice browns. This time I’m working with blue and orange tones and if you mix those you get some nice greys! - 14 -
I do sometimes think life would be easier if I worked digitally but I like the traditional way too much to go there from scratch. I do think digital art can look amazing when done right, but I think I like pencils way too much to abandon them completely. I have turned to digital measures to finish this piece as I want to put the two fairies into one illustration as they were always destined to interact when I first pictured their story. I used Photoshop to snip the character from the page - more fool me, as I like detail way too much and it took forever! The Photoshop tools I used were the eraser, and the clone stamp. The latter is very handy for dealing with some unwanted marks on his face. I ‘clone’ an area directly adjacent to the mark so it matches and then cover up the blemish using the clone stamp. Digital concealer? Maybe. I made this into a PNG file so I could move the image over to another background in Photoshop and make a brand-new piece as a digital collage. It was time consuming, but it made the plan I had possible for a totally different illustration- a totally different design.
https://folksy.com/shops/PaynesGreyArtShop www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PaynesGreyArtShop
And so, they meet. Both overjoyed and as playful as ever.
Alison Rasmussen is a self-taught illustrator who also loves to write. She creates fantasy creatures and whimsical gothic art and is writing a ghost story where lots of her characters go to play. She’s done illustration work for children’s stories and a zombie series, and is now illustrating her own story, just for fun. Alison has a young son and works at home, running her online art shop and creating art to go in it. When she isn’t writing about her imaginary world of ghosts, she works on improving her drawing with traditional media - mainly graphite, soft pastels, and coloured pencil. She gets inspiration from Asian art, anime, fairies, and folklore. https://paynesgreyillustration.com/ - 15 -
Traveling to Dracula’s Castle by Ceri Bladen If you have read Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula, you might long to explore the area which inspired the Irish author to write about the world’s most famous vampire.
But where do you go? Stoker never visited Romania, so the actual location is somewhat of a mystery. Did his description of Dracula’s Castle come from the illustrations he saw of Bran Castle in Charles Boner’s book, ‘Transylvania; Its Product and its People’ (Longmans,1885)? Or did Stoker conjure up his description from Castle of Arges, fortress of Vlad Tepes III, the ruler of Wallachia?
Cetăţii and Măgura, in Transylvania is visited by around 200,000 foreigners and 300,000 Romanians each year. Some come because of the connection to Dracula; some come because of its museum displaying its rich history and royal artifacts.
The menacing building of Bran Castle with its steep walls and tall spires, appearing to rise from the cliffs below, appears to fit Stoker’s description of Dracula’s Castle. It is also located in Transylvania. Perhaps this indeed is the ‘true’ Dracula’s Castle?
History of Bran Castle, Transylvania *In the year of 1211, the Teutonic Knights (Catholic German crusaders) were given land from King Andrew II of Hungary to establish an area to defend the border of Transylvania from the Pechenegs and Cumans (semi-nomadic Turkic ethnic people from Central Asia.)
But what of Count Dracula himself? Was the famous vampire based on Vlad Tepes III (Vlad the Impaler)? Vlad Tepes III was the son of Vlad Dracul/ Vlad Dragon and both father and son were members of the Order of the Dragon. Dracula is the Slavonic genitive form of Dracul, meaning the son of Dracul (or the dragon.) So, if Vlad Tepes III was the inspiration for Dracula, does that mean his castle is the true Dracula’s Castle?
The Teutonic Knights erected a small fortress in Bran before being forced away from the area in 1226 by King Andrew II of Hungary who was becoming alarmed by their growing power.
Did Stoker mix the two castles and histories?
*On 19th November 1377, the Hungarian King, Louis the Great, issued a decree to encourage the people of Brasov to rebuild Bran castle (Dietrichstein or Törzburg in German, Törcsvár in Hungarian, and Turciu in Romanian.)
Nobody really knows the answers, so you decide…
Bran Castle of Transylvania, Romania Bran Castle high on the cliffs, between Dealul
*They completed the construction in 1388. A ‘Lord - 16 -
of the castle’ was elected by the king from amongst the Saxons of Transylvania (of German origins, settled in the area by the Teutonic Knights.) During this time, the castle was inhabited by soldiers and mercenaries ready to defend the area from the Ottoman Empire’s expansion (from the east.)
Wallachia and Transylvania was moved to Pajura. *1886, at the insistence of the Brasov inhabitants, the imperial authorities agreed to repair the damages caused to the castle during the Revolution of 1848 and the Russo-Turkish war of 1877. * In 1911, the City Administration of Brasov transferred Bran Castle to the region’s forestry. Although inhabited (up to 1918) by woodsmen, foresters, and forest inspectors, over time, the castle fell into decay.
*In 1407, the castle was given by Sigismund of Luxembourg to Prince Mircea, the Elder of Wallachia, for his loyalty (fief). But after the death of the Romanian Prince, Sigismund took the castle back (because of the instability of Wallachia) and entrusted it to the Princes of Transylvania.
*In 1918, Transylvania became part of Greater Romania.
*In 1448, the Princes of Transylvania requested the help of the Volvode of Wallachian, Vlad Tepes III (later known as Vlad the Impaler) to handle the anti -Ottoman resistance at the border.
*On 1st December 1920, citizens of Brasov offered the castle to Queen Maria of Romania. The Queen loved the castle so much, it became the main residence of the royal family. (The Queen’s parents
*However, early in 1459, Vlad went against the Princes of Transylvania when he and his army passed through Bran and attacked Brasov, intent of settling a conflict between the Wallachia Volvode and the Saxons (who were requesting higher taxes.) They burned the city’s suburbs, murdering hundreds of Transylvanian Saxons, impaling them on stakes. Peace was restored in 1460. *On 1st January 1498, due to war expenses and an empty treasury, King Vladislav II of Hungary accepted an offer by the Saxons of Brasov to purchase the right to use Bran castle for ten years (for 1000 florins.) *In 1651, after extending their lease many times, the Saxons of Brasov sold the castle to George II Rackoczi (a Hungarian nobleman and Prince of Transylvania.) *In 1687, Transylvania become part of the Habsburg Empire (The House of Austria) but all previous agreements and sales regarding the castle were upheld. *By 1836, Bran castle lost its commercial and military importance when the border between - 17 -
* By 1944, Princess Ileana had a hospital built in Bran, called the ‘Hospital of the Queen’s Heart’, to treat wounded soldiers from Brasov after the Red Cross hospital was bombed by American aircraft. (Her mother, Queen Marie’s heart, contained in a silver box within an ornate sarcophagus, wrapped in Romania and English flags, was returned to Bran at her request.)
were Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia.)
*Over the next decades, improvements were made to the castle; water was piped in, a hydroelectric power plant was built to light the castle (also connected to the neighbouring towns which the inhabitants were grateful for), an English park with a tea house and ponds were built, a wooden church, stables, staff housing, a guesthouse, as well as an elevator, installed in a well shaft, for the Queen were also installed.
*After 1945, the hospital continued to treat war wounded and maimed soldiers and civilians. The Princess nursed patients and even operated in the hospital. *In 1948, Princess Ileana and her family were forced to leave the newly Communist Romania. The Princess and her six children moved to the United States in 1950, via Switzerland and Argentina, while her husband returned to Occupied Austria to save what he could of his war-ravaged estate. (They divorced in 1954, and after another marriage which ended in divorce the Princess went on to live in a convent. She was ordained as Mother Alexandra. She died in 1991 and was buried in the monastery of which she was an abbess in Pennsylvania.) *In 1956, Bran Castle was turned into a museum by the communist authorities. *By 1993, the castle was restored and reopened as a museum. *After many years of legal proceedings, on 18th May 2006, the castle was returned to the heirs of Princess Ileana and Archduke Anton of Austria. The Romanian Government continued to administrate the castle for another three years. *On 1st June 2009, Bran Castle became the full legal possession of its heirs, Archduke Dominic, Archduchess Maria Magdalena, and Archduchess Elisabeth. The castle is open to the public.
*When Queen Marie died on 18th July 1938, the castle was bequeathed to Princess Ileana (the Queen’s favoured child.) The Princess, along with her husband, Archduke Anton of Austria, planned for the castle’s future. - 18 -
*In the 14th century, Poenari (known then as Castle of Arges) became the main citadel of the Basarab rulers (family of Cuman origin.)
Poenari Castle (Castle of Arges), Vlad’s abode, Romania Poenari Castle, despite its closeness to Bucharest (Romania’s capital, 2 ½ hours south), is not a major tourist attraction. It only receives around 5,000 tourists yearly.
*The residents of the citadel changed over the next few decades until it was finally abandoned and left in ruins.
Recently, however, the castle has attracted more filmmakers from abroad. In 2013, the television series ‘Da Vinci’s Demons’, Leonardo de Vinci travels to Poenari Castle to meet with Vlad III (episode: ‘The Devil’.) It is also featured in ‘The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Mysteries’ (episode: ‘The Hardy Boys & Nancy Drew Meet Dracula’.) It also is in the Fallout 3 video games.
*In the 15th century, Vlad Tepes III realised the potential of the castle, perched high on a steep rock. He repaired the structure using enslaved enemies from the nobility of the Danubian Principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia. Vlad Tepes was the second son of Vlad Dracul (Vlad the Dragon) and later became known as Vlad the Impaler because of his reputation of impaling enemies.
Now in ruins, in my opinion, it is still worth walking up the 1,482 well-tended steps to reach what is left of Vlad the Impaler’s castle.
*In 1462, Vlad’s first wife, Jusztina Szilagyi of Moldavia, flung herself from the towers of Poenari into the river rather than be captured by the Ottoman Turks during a siege. The river is now called ‘The River of the Princess’ or ‘The Lady’s River’. Vlad managed to escape the siege through a secret passage into the mountains. Helped by peasants from the Arefu village, he arrived in Transylvania.
History of Poenari Castle *Construction started in the beginning of the 13th century by the Wallachians (Romanians) high up on the steep rock. (2,800 ft) - 19 -
*In the autumn of 1462, Vlad was captured by the Hungarian King, Matei Corvin, and taken to Bran castle in Transylvania. He was locked up there for two months before being moved to Visegrad Fortress, Hungary.
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*After being released, Vlad died in December 1476, fighting Basarab Laiota and the Ottomans. *The castle was abandoned in the first half of the 16th century becoming ruins by the 17th century. *On 13th January 1913, a landside, caused by an earthquake, brought down parts of the castle which crashed into the river far below. *Earthquakes in 1940 and 1977 damaged the castle further.
RESOURCES Image 1: Image credit: Pixabay. Bran’s Castle, Transylvania, Romania Image 2: author’s own (2011) Bran’s Castle, courtyard Image 3: author’s own. Bran’s Castle’s well Image 4: Image credit: Pixabay: Poenari Castle, Romania
*In 2009, the Arges County Museum took over the administration. Visitors are welcome to climb the steps, up to the ruins for five Romanian lei.
Image 5: author’s own (2011). The valley from Poenari Castle Image 6: author’s own (2011) The view from Poenari Castle
So, there you have it: two castles in the heart of Romania, both with ties to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Which one would you like to visit?
Image 7: author’s own (2011). The tower Vlad’s first wife jumped from Image 8: author’s own (2011) The 1,482 steps Image 9: author’s own (2011) The Lady’s River or The River of the Princess
Ceri Bladen originates from the lovely Welsh village, Caerleon, before she moved to Swansea to obtain her teaching degree. After having twins and another child, seventeen months later, her family moved to Turkey for a slower place of life. Here, in between looking after numerous street dogs and a kindle of street cats, she enjoys researching history and writing. Ceri loves romance, so most of her books contain elements of it, whether in the form of historical, contemporary, or fantasy. - 21 -
An Update from Logan Submitted by Poppy Flynn I don’t like change very much, and even a reversal means steps to get to that which might not work.
Written by Logan Age 14
The next step being an ACE procedure that turns my appendix into a tube so I can flush my digestive
system with saline. The doctor says that takes about an hour each time. I don’t like the sound of it. But I wrote a couple of years ago about my
then I didn’t like having a stoma at first either, but it
experience of going to Great Ormond
changed my life, so that’s an important thing to
street children's hospital. I hoped it would
remember.
help other kids who were scared about being in hospital. Today I’m going to tell you about after the surgery. It’s not all great, but this is my story, and everyone’s is different. I wrote that I’m 14 on the top of this, but I’ll be 15 next week. I should be about to start the second year of my GCSE’s. But that’s not what’s happening. I’m waiting to go back into hospital. That was supposed to be in the new year. I’m not sure how long the new year lasts, but I’m pretty sure it’s not this long, and I’m still waiting. I’m supposed to have tests to see if my colon has recovered after being ‘rested’ by having a stoma and then possibly a reversal. I don’t know how I feel about that. Everyone says I can live a normal life, whatever normal is. It’s not something I’ve ever had.
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I went back to high school last year after nearly
like cooking, she says they are life skills. I have
three years off sick. I had a 1 – 1 tutor then. Before
friends and I miss them, but I didn’t manage well
that I was in school part time, just till lunch.
being around so many people in such a big school
High school didn’t work well. It was full time, which
after not seeing anyone for so long when I was off sick. In 2 weeks I am going back to the pathways
I wasn’t used to, and straight into my two exam
centre for 2 days a week. They teach kids who are
years after I’d only ever been taught Maths and
not in mainstream school, like me. I get 10 hours
English. I know I’m behind and I know I need an
teaching which is supposed to be the same as being
education, but it was a bit full on.
in school for a whole week.
In the end my mum took me out of school again
But I still get to go to the cinema or bowling some-
after a few months because a boy who had been
times with my friends and they accept me for who I
bullying me punched me in the stoma.
am. I never keep a secret about my stoma. It’s not
I had a lot of problems with my stoma bags failing
really possible, anyway.
after that, but the school said it was my word
My mum says there will always be people who are
against his and they couldn’t do anything about it
nasty and make you feel bad, but remember you are
except getting him to apologise for some of the
special and there are people who love you, so let
other bullying he admitted to.
them help.
Being at home again wasn’t the best thing in the world. I get a bit bored. Mum teaches me things
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National Picnic Month by Melanie P. Smith
July
Pasta Salad — Pasta noodles are small and easy to serve at a picnic. There are tons to choose from so add one to your next picnic and don’t be afraid to try something new.
Cover design created to honor National Picnic Month
The weather is great, the air is fresh and the garden veggies are plentiful. What better time to have a picnic. July is National Picnic Month.
Watermelon — Need I say more? Deviled Eggs — In addition to being tasty, deviled eggs are packed with protein and easy to make.
Whether you’re packing a meal for a tailgate party, heading to the local park, or you’re in the mood for an adventure in the wilderness, picnics provide an excellent way to enjoy nature, warm weather and great company.
Sandwiches — Nothing beats a homemade sandwich. There are so many different kinds and they’re easy to make and take. Lemonade — Bottled water is simple and easy, but if you want to spruce up your picnic, bring along a jug of lemonade.
When packing a picnic, remember to keep it simple. Sandwiches, finger food, and a simple beverage are great items to include in your next picnic.
Brownies — Every picnic needs dessert. Brownies are perfect for a picnic as a special treat because they are easy to transport and they don’t require utensils. Take them frosted or unfrosted… nobody will mind. They’ll just be grateful for the treat.
What to pack? Here are 7 items that are perfect for a picnic… Fried Chicken — There’s nothing more perfect for a picnic than fried chicken. If you want a healthier option, simply coat it with corn flakes or bread crumbs and prepare a baked alternative.
It’s summertime — let’s eat!
We are excited to announce that Goylake Publishing has teamed-up with the Fussy Librarian and in partnership we are offering you 20% off your first book promotion with the Fussy Librarian. To qualify for this promotion, your book must be either permafree or listed free during a special offer.
In our experience, the Fussy Librarian is the best book promoter in the business. When we promote with him, our free books always reach the top five of Amazon’s genre charts, most often they reach the top three. We promote with the Fussy Librarian every month and will continue to do so into the foreseeable future. Prices start from as low as $15, minus our special discount of 20%. Click here: https://authors.thefussylibrarian.com/?ref=goylake for full details. And, at the checkout, be sure to enter this code: goylake20 to claim your 20% discount. Thank you for your interest. And good luck with your promotion! - 24 -
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Summer Picnics Submitted by Melanie P. Smith
Italian Pasta Salad INGREDIENTS
DIRECTIONS
1 (16 oz) pkg Rotini pasta (can use any pasta)
Prepare pasta according to package instructions. Rince and pour into large bowl. Add tomatoes, olives, peas, bell pepper and cheese. Cover in Italian dressing, mix and chill.
1 pkg cherry tomatoes (washed) 2 cans sliced olives 1 (10 oz) pkg frozen peas I bell pepper, sliced (optional) I cube mozzarella cheese (cut into cubes or slices) 1 bottle Italian style dressing
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Chocolate Syrup Brownies
Chocolate Syrup Frosting
INGREDIENTS
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter
1 Tablespoon Cocoa Powder
1 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons sugar
3 eggs
3/4 Cup milk
Dash pf salt
2 Tablespoons chocolate (broken into pieces)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 Teaspoon butter
3/4 cup canned, flavored chocolate syrup 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
In a sauce pan combine cocoa powder, sugar, and milk. Mix well with a whisk. Heat until boiling making sure to whisk frequently to keep from scorching.
Powdered sugar for garnish (Can use chocolate syrup frosting)
DIRECTIONS
Add chocolate, and mix well. Add butter and mix until melted. Cook for 2 minutes, mixing frequently. Cool for 2 minutes and pour over brownie squares.
In a bowl, cream together butter, sugar and eggs until very creamy and well blended. Add salt. Stir in flour, mixing to blend well. Add chocolate syrup, vanilla and chopped nuts. Turn mixture into well greased and lightly floured 9 inch square pan. Smooth top Bake at 350° F (176.6 C) for 35 to 40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan or wire rack, but loosen at edges. Cut into squares. Garnish with powdered sugar or frosting. Makes 16-18 brownies.
Garnish with mint leave (optional)
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Summer Greens by Jenny Sanders It was William Blake who referred to England’s green and pleasant land, in his famous 1804 poem, Jerusalem. During the gloomy days of World War I, Sir Hubert Parry composed some wonderful music for it, and so was born the rousing hymn which is familiar to us. With it’s forceful chords and uplifting cadence, it still has the power to stir the spirit, lift the head and encourage the downhearted. For years it was sung in every meeting of the Women’s Institute up and down the land. It has even been mooted as one of several possible alternatives to our, arguably less inspiring, national anthem. As someone who takes almost every opportunity to explore the miles of public footpaths we are so privileged to enjoy, I never fail to be amazed at the extraordinary range of greens that adorn our British landscape throughout the summer months. Every lane and byway exudes verdancy, as plants which have been succoured but the relentless rain and drizzle of autumn and winter now flourish with exuberance in the longer daylight hours of benevolent sunshine. The southern hemisphere is currently and reluctantly enduring winter. Everything there is brown: the colour has been drained out of the trees and
plants. When I returned from my most recent visit (the first in over two years - thank you Covid), ready to gleefully embrace summer at last, I was dazzled by the sheer spectrum of greens which greeted me here. From the pale yellow-green of the larch trees, through the soft greens of beech and silver birch, - 28 -
right across the artist’s palette to the dark blueblack of evergreens, we are presented with landscapes that cheer the heart and refresh the soul. The psychologists tell us that green is the colour to calm us and make us feel at peace. It’s the colour of peace and harmony, they say. So, a happy accident, or an extraordinary piece of intentional design then (depending on your philosophy or faith), that nature clothes herself in gorgeous greens for our delight, each year. No wonder city planners include green spaces to break the monotony of greyness, and to provide oases of living things within the sprawl of soulless buildings and roads. The sterile environments within which many of us spend most of our working days do little to nourish our minds, bodies or innermost parts. No wonder we often find ourselves gazing out of the window in search of stimulation and relief.
the skittish minds of young learners, including myself; a strategy to calm us as we grappled with the mysteries of chemical formulae and complex sentence construction. I don’t think any of us were fooled. My marks certainly didn’t leap upwards with any measure of conviction. Now, of course, classrooms boast interactive white boards and all manner of IT gizmos to help unpack the secrets of the curriculum, and another theory falls by the wayside.
At one time, during the late 1970s and early 80s, school blackboards were replaced with green boards. Presumably, this was an attempt to engage
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In the best-loved of the Psalms, much quoted at the mile-stones of life – christenings, marriages, funerals and the like – King David of Israel, vividly recalls the nurturing and restorative characteristics of nature and places crafted by the artisanal hand of the Creator. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. What soothing words they are. Is there a person alive in these dark and confusing days who doesn’t yearn for refreshment and replenishment in body, mind and spirit? Thank God for our
beautiful countryside, still clothed in resplendent green for a couple more months. There are those who love the crisp, cold days of the coming season, but for myself, I wish that we could enjoy eternal summer and soak in the invigorating greenness of it all year round. Wherever you are this summertime, I encourage you to make the most of it and drink thirstily from the transient beauty of the natural world. May you be refreshed, restored and replenished in body, mind and soul. That’s certainly my plan.
Jenny Sanders is a writer, speaker, encourager and mentor. She loves writing, reading and walking in nature whenever she can. For the past several years she’s lived between the beautiful cities of Bath, UK and Cape Town, S Africa. Her exciting and humorous new children’s book The Magnificent Moustache and Other Stories is now available published by The Conrad Press.
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All Those Years Ago by Stan Phillips All those years ago We said they are destroying the sea. All those years ago. We told them that over fishing an irreplaceable stock would decimate our oceans. All those years ago. We said that polluting the seas with our waste would ruin the clean, clear waters that we need for life itself to flourish.
When the last polar bear weeps on the unforgiving and shrunken ice.
All those years ago.
When the last whale dives deep into the barren depths, never to resurface.
We said that society needed to manage the precious oceans responsibly, but our words fell on ears.
And the last white wolf howls, starving into the bleak night.
All those years ago. And nobody listened then.
And the last fisherman abandons his nets in a futile search for an ever diminishing catch.
And they don't listen now.
Then it will be the beginning of our end.
And the seven seas, from which we once sprang, are filled with our carelessly disposed detritus.
The last of us. For, in destroying the wondrous well from which we emerged long ago, we hasten our own extinction.
And creatures that once swam, and flew, gloriously free in and above pristine waters, are now trapped in a suddenly alien environment.
We seal our own doom.
Killed by our waste, our plastic, our frivolous carelessness, our arrant stupidity.
And who will hear the cries of the remnants of us who will curse those who didn't heed the voices of the ones that warned them....
For, when the last bird flies hungry over an empty sea.
All those years ago.
Stan Phillips is a poet, musical podcast maker, part-time wannabe male model, and occasional stand up comedian. “I used to be a psychotherapist/counsellor when I had an honest job. I was born into prewar London, and attended 17 schools (my father believed they couldn’t hit a moving target) and I eventually finished up here in Ireland. Still wondering what I will be when I grow up — but enjoying writing my quirky poetry as I do so.” Discover more about Stan on Mom’s Favorite Reads website: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/stan-phillips - 31 -
Caterpillar By Alison Rasmussen The farmer had cut his crop. With singing hearts and shining eyes, we looked on in wonder. There was so much hay! Planning out our evenings adventure began in earnest. It was going to be so much fun! We felt so lucky to have a house on the edge of the estate – overlooking a farmer’s field that went on and on until it reached the tree line of the woods and the farmer’s cottage beyond. Such a wonderful playground - speaking to us in seasons – its colours changing with the crops.
Racing across the field, I was feeling slightly terrified. We were, after all, trespassers. Our crime was immediately forgotten with the first hay fight of the summer. Racing and dancing, howling, flinging handfuls of hay at each other. We were positively wild! The plan we had made to build hay hills, no… haystacks, was a success and we used them as trampolines and crash mats– catapulting and somersaulting with running jumps as terrifying human projectiles – practically screaming with laughter. I don’t think we’d ever tried this before, and probably never would again, (but we had planned to), on that fine and lovely day. Such fickle children living in a shining moment forgetting that tomorrow was another day. Having played until it started getting dark, the streetlamps flickering from across the field were now telling us it was time to go home. I didn't want it to end and perhaps the others thought so too, judging by the bereft looks on their faces. It had been so much fun!
It had been a hot day but also rainy, so we decided to wear our cagoules. The front pockets of those raincoats were amazing! Not only did they store the raincoat itself, but it was great for carrying sandwiches in, and once the sandwiches were eaten, we would fold them and compete for the star prize of “prestige” for the tidiest packet pocket. I think that’s what we used to call it, anyway. Having met at the arranged time, just after tea, we climbed with well-practiced skill over the green mesh fence. It was about a metre high, but it was not in the slightest bit stable so choosing the right foothold and momentum to lift yourself over was quite important. The foothold needs to be not too high and not too low – swinging as the fence bent with our weight from a high foothold was terrifying but not being able to climb over from a low anchor would lead to scratches and possible failure.
A little dishevelled, I was surprised when my return was not met with too much commentary, but the next day was a different matter. Somehow, I’d managed to bring a million caterpillars back in my raincoat. They were everywhere and causing all kinds of upset from the cupboard under the stairs where we hung our coats and kept the vegetable rack. It was initially received with humour but in the end, it became clear that I would be scolded all that morning when enough was most definitely enough. The thing is the caterpillar problem just would not even try to die down as a new caterpillar would rear its hairy head every other minute. It was as if that cupboard
We scrambled gracelessly over to the other side, landing on the furrowed edge, and stepped up on to the slightly higher flats of the field. It smelled delicious. Dry and grassy, yet hot and damp – earthy and humid and buzzing with insects and faint whispers of dust that had yet to settle after all the hectic harvesting. - 32 -
was haunted by caterpillars, and it became draining. My mother was huffing, and my older sister was puffing – deep down glad it wasn’t her who created such a drama for once. Because she often did, I can tell you!
https://paynesgreyillustration.com/ https://folksy.com/shops/PaynesGreyArtShop www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PaynesGreyArtShop
But it was worth it. I still remember the absolute joy for that haystack adventure and the caterpillars who came, too.
Alison Rasmussen is a self-taught illustrator who also loves to write. She creates fantasy creatures and whimsical gothic art and is writing a ghost story where lots of her characters go to play. She’s done illustration work for children’s stories and a zombie series, and is now illustrating her own story, just for fun.
Alison has a young son and works at home, running her online art shop and creating art to go in it. When she isn’t writing about her imaginary world of ghosts, she works on improving her drawing with traditional media - mainly graphite, soft pastels, and coloured pencil. She gets inspiration from Asian art, anime, fairies, and folklore. https://paynesgreyillustration.com/ - 33 -
The Fourth of July Submitted by Hannah Howe Bringing cheers from John the tailor and Richard the barber.
Written by Rhys Age 14
They taxed us on everything, As the fireworks explode,
Whether it be a simple deck of cards or an antique novel,
We recall the day of independence,
We craved a Declaration of Independence,
The day when the Founding Fathers laid their road,
We determined to fight and not to grovel.
Which ultimately led to the Red Coats’ repentance. Oh, how we’ll never forget the brave men, Those heroic troops who chased the Red Coats away,
In defiance of the imperialist oppression, We dumped their tea into the harbour,
No other document will mark true liberty again,
We created a great commotion,
Though it still lives on in the hearts of freedom today.
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Living With Crohn’s Disease by Sylva Fae Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis are Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBDs). Both can cause painful sores (ulcers) and inflammation in your gut, and both are lifelong conditions. Chances are, you’ll be investigated for both of these IBDs before a final diagnosis is reached. Crohn’s is inflammation anywhere in the gut, from your mouth to your anus. Although Crohn’s is called an Inflammatory Bowel Disease, any part of the gut can be affected, not just your bowel. All layers of the gut can be inflamed.
sorrows. I worked hard all week at a demanding job, and partied all weekend. I basically had an unhealthy mix of sadness, stress, lack of sleep, poor diet and excessive alcohol, something had to give, and I started to suffer with excruciating stomach cramps.
Ulcerative Colitis is inflammation and ulcers in the large bowel. It can be anywhere from your colon to your anus. Only the inner lining is inflamed. ‘Crohn’s Colitis’ is a type of Crohn’s Disease where only the large bowel is inflamed. This is because ‘colitis’ means inflammation of the large bowel.
At the beginning, I did go to the doctor, who suggested it was just menstrual pain and to take a paracetamol. I felt like I hadn’t been listened to and struggled on for another few months. I was going through boxes of paracetamol and they did little to ease the pain. The stomach cramps worsened to the point where I’d be curled up around a hot water bottle, counting down the minutes until I could have another painkiller. Then the diarrhoea started. Every morning I would wake with an urgent need to run to the toilet, the same after every meal, and sometimes even during a meal. I would sit on the toilet doubled over in agony, sometimes up to a dozen times a day. The fatigue that followed would wipe me out but I tried to struggle on – at 26 you are invincible, right?
My Story – Pre-Diagnosis, The Doom and Gloom Bit
I need to point out that this is my story, and is not indicative of every Crohn’s sufferer, but I’m sure many people will see similarities to their own conditions. I had never heard of Crohn’s before I got my diagnosis, hardly surprising as it’s not exactly polite to discuss one’s toilet habits publicly. It’s that very avoidance of indelicate subjects that led me to suffer in silence for a couple of years before I was finally referred to the hospital for tests. If you are of a delicate and genteel nature, read on with caution… Twenty-three years ago (I was 26), my dad died and I suffered terribly from bereavement. I was young and silly, so alcohol was an easy way to drown my
I went back to the doctor but was told it was probably just food poisoning. Over the next six months, I went back to the doctors several times, only to be - 35 -
told the same over and over. I knew something was wrong with me but nobody seemed to listen to what I was saying.
I accepted my plight and fell into a routine. I’d get up early to use the toilet before I had to leave for work, get the bus to the train station half an hour earlier than necessary so I could use the toilet there, then I would pay more for the fast train as there were toilets on board. I would run from the station to work, use the toilet again, then, already exhausted, I’d start my day’s work as a college lecturer. And after a year or so of this routine, I had a stack of plausible excuses to enable me to run out of the classroom – “I just need to go photocopy another few sheets of this…” – my classroom assistant must have thought me the most disorganised teacher ever, but it was preferable to explaining the real reason to a class of young adults. It took a holiday away with my mum for me to
finally accept that I needed to do something about the situation. Staying together, it was unavoidable to hide my extreme toilet habits, and my mum gave me the ultimatum that if I didn’t go back to the doctors, she would take me herself. I did as I was told, and actually broke down and cried on the doctor, begging her to send me for tests – not my finest hour, but it made her listen, and more importantly book me in for further investigations at the hospital.
Diagnosis Diagnosis can take many forms: •
• •
•
Blood test – check for inflammation, signs of infection, and low iron levels. They can also show if you are getting enough nutrients and vitamins. Examination of stool sample – checks for blood and mucus, inflammation and infection. Endoscopy – checks your gut with a tiny camera on a long, thin tube (endoscope). The tube goes through your mouth (gastroscopy) or your bottom (sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy). Tissue biopsy – tiny pieces of your gut can also be taken to check for inflammation.
The first round of tests gave a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis, a very grumpy doctor handed me a prescription for strong painkillers, told me I was far too ill to work and I’d never be able to have children or a normal life! I was devastated. - 36 -
Later that week, I moved house and had to start the process again at the new hospital, as the previous hospital had lost all my notes! I went through all of the tests several times over, but more importantly to me, I now had a nurse who listened to me and supported me throughout. The new diagnosis showed it was Crohn’s Disease, which was later updated to Crohn’s Colitis. My lovely new nurse explained that there was absolutely no reason why I couldn’t work, have children or lead a normal life, and it would just take time finding the right treatment and learning how to live with it. She promised we would work through it together, and she has stayed true to her word.
Triggers Even in remission, Crohn’s can be troublesome. Throughout this time, I also had my own experimenting to do. Doctors can do so much but with IBDs, you have to help yourself too. I knew I needed to improve my destructive lifestyle, I needed better sleep patterns, a better diet and to manage my stress levels. Having taken care of the basics, I was then able to ascertain which foods / situations triggered a painful flare up. Of course, everyone is slightly different, but these are mine:
Treatment There is no easy one fit cure unfortunately. It took several years of experimenting with different drugs and therapies before I reached the stage where my Crohn’s was in remission. I believe this is true for most IBD sufferers, though the timing changes from person to person and depends on the severity of the flare up – I was in a pretty bad way when I started treatment.
• • •
Initially treatment aims to reduce the inflammation in the gut to ease the symptoms and bring about remission. Once the condition is under control, drugs are prescribed to maintain the remission and prevent a relapse. This is the stage I’ve been in for the last fifteen years or so.
• •
•
Some people also need surgery, but thankfully, I’ve not needed this.
My nurse, Liz was a constant support, and is still my nurse to this day. She has been my anchor throughout all of this process, and just being able to offload my Crohn’s worries to someone who understands, and to be able to speak plainly about things one wouldn’t normally talk about, has been a godsend.
Spicy foods, garlic, raw onions, green peppers – sadly ingredients I loved. Red meat Alcohol, especially red wine – perhaps for the best. Chocolate, especially dark chocolate – I can still eat Jelly Babies though. In addition, being around cigarette smoke – thankfully, changes in smoking laws have lessened this trigger. Stressful situations or anxiety – ironically, the fear of being late used to cause me great anxiety, which would trigger a sudden urgent need to get to the toilet, (I call these ‘Crohn’s attacks’), and then that would make me late.
Some of the triggers were instantaneous, I would get a sudden griping pain, and knew I had seconds to make it to a toilet or have an accident. Other triggers were slow burners, they would start with discomfort, which would develop into a grumbling pain, which grew in intensity over a few hours. - 37 -
Either way, a period of fatigue was guaranteed to follow. In the past, I’d said, “I’m exhausted!” many times without realising what true exhaustion feels like.
Other Side Effects – but don’t despair, there is a reprieve in sight… Having a severe illness, especially while you are going through the long process to reach remission and stability, has an impact on your mental health. Physically, you feel weaker, frequently you miss a night’s sleep writhing around in pain leaving you mentally weaker generally. Then there’s the fear of not being able to get to a toilet in time – what if you have an accident in public? There’s also the embarrassment of having to go to the toilet when you are out in public, and people noticing and commenting on the length of time you were in there. And again, something we don’t usually talk about in public, it’s inevitable that it will be smelly, and there’s always some joker who will point this out loudly. All these things make an impact and the anxiety they cause exacerbates the problem. Sometimes, it’s just easier to avoid any social occasions or public places, and for a time that is exactly what I did, but becoming a recluse doesn’t help. I’ve mentioned diarrhoea and the urgent need to rush to the toilet, but Crohn’s can also cause long periods of constipation as well. This is uncomfortable in any situation, but imagine still having those urgent needs to rush, then being unable to go, over and over throughout the day. The hours you spend sat on the toilet leads to other discomfort like back ache and more fatigue.
Living With Crohn’s – Light at the End of the Tunnel Writing this makes me realise just how far I’ve come. Compared to others, I may not seem normal, but I’ve overcome a lot to now live my new normal life.
Thinking back to the grumpy doctor at the first hospital, he had no time for me, he was happier to write a prescription than look at me as a young person with hopes and dreams. He told me I’d never have children, I now have three happy, healthy girls! If the doctor you are seeing isn’t helping, it’s worth seeing how a different doctor can manage your condition. For me, my nurse, Liz made the difference in me starting on the road to recovery. Rethink your diet, and listen to what your body is telling you. You still have choices – sometimes I do go out for a meal and indulge in all of my trigger foods. I savour every mouthful, and accept that I will have a rough day ahead – but I have that choice. Taking time to prepare meals using fresh ingredients is healthier anyway, but if you don’t have time to do that every day, just being aware of what is in processed food, can help you avoid discomfort. Be confident to tell people you have Crohn’s Disease. When people know, they are sympathetic and understanding. It takes away the embarrassment of having to run to the toilet, and stops the annoying quips from the joker in the room. It helps to remove some of your anxiety surrounding it, and that in turn eases frequency of ‘Crohn’s attacks’. I’ve also become a little less self-conscious about going to the toilet in public, and that also helps. Instead of hiding it at work, I was upfront about it with new classes. I did get the occasional joker, but mostly, my students were curious and respectful – these discussions resulted in several young people plucking up the courage to go speak to their doctor about similar symptoms. Be prepared! If you assume the worst and plan for it, it takes away a little of the worry. I always have some toilet tissue and emergency clean up stuff in my handbag. Being a mum actually helped with this, and I’ve never got out of the habit of carrying packs of wetwipes (flushable, environmentally- friendly ones, of course). I also have a mental map of where every public toilet is, graded by cleanliness down to ‘only use in absolute emergency’ – also useful with kids! - 38 -
Keep fit! Fresh air and time out in the countryside never fails to rejuvenate me when I’m feeling low. Whether it’s physical or mental issues that I’m dealing with, exercise outside helps; it calms anxieties, it aids with constipation, it lifts my spirits and gives me some escape from real life.
like I’m not wasting time being ill. Actually, as I write this, I’m having a bad Crohn’s day. I’m wearing a heated belt (so worth it of you suffer with abdominal / back pains) and I’m typing to block out the pain – it works. And finally, but most important, cherish the family and friends who support you because it’s so much easier if you’re not dealing with it alone.
Be positive and try to see the positive in a bad situation. If you only read the pre-diagnosis bit of this, my life looked pretty dire, but having Crohn’s has actually made me a healthier and happier person in the long run. I do spend a lot of time each day in the bathroom, but that’s great reading time. There are days when I am too fatigued to do any physical tasks, but my brain is still active. I started writing not long after I was diagnosed, as it was an activity I could do in those down times – it enables me to feel
So, that’s my story and if any bits of it resonate with you, please check things out with a local healthcare professional. If you want to do any reading yourself, I find the Crohn’s & Colitis UK website easy to use and very informative. Any factual bits in this article came from this site: https://crohnsandcolitis.org.uk/
Sylva Fae is a married mum of three from Lancashire, England. She has spent twenty years teaching literacy to adults with learning difficulties and disabilities, and now works from home as a children’s writer and illustrator. Sylva has published several children’s books and also writes a blog, Sylvanian Ramblings. Her debut book, Rainbow Monsters won the Chanticleer Best in Category award. Discover more about Sylva on Mom’s Favorite Reads website: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/sylva-fae/ - 39 -
Around America in 50 Books by Wendy H. Jones
Connecticut
Description Childhood friends Mackensie, Parker, Laurel and Emmaline have formed a very successful wedding planning business together but, despite helping thousands of happy couples to organise the biggest day of their lives, all four women are unlucky in love. Photographer Mackensie Elliot has suffered a tough childhood and has a bad relationship with her mother, which makes her wary of commitment. But when she meets Carter Maguire, she can't stop herself falling for him, although his exgirlfriend is prepared to play dirty to keep him. Mackensie soon realises she has to put her past demons to rest in order to find lasting love . . .
A Vision in White by Nora Roberts Our literary trip around the United States sees us settling in Connecticut this month, with Vision in White, a romance by Nora Roberts.
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Review I don’t usually read romance, I’m more a thriller type of girl, but I’m trying to expand my reading horizons and this book is set in Connecticut which was the next stop on my tour. So, I decided to give it a go. I am jolly glad I did as it was a cracking book from the first word to the last. The characters are extremely well drawn, even the one I felt should shuffle off this mortal coil with great haste, giving everyone some peace. But this is a romance, not a mystery, so she stayed alive and kicking. The story is well written – one would expect nothing less of Nora Roberts. I loved the main characters and was rooting for them every step of the way. The story unfolds beautifully and held me enthralled, the sign of a captivating tale. What of Connecticut, did I get a sense of what it was like. Yes, I did, although not in an in-your-face type of way. The setting is woven in gently and I found myself gradually being immersed in it. I now want to visit Connecticut. Would I recommend this book? Wholeheartedly. Grab it now, you won’t regret it. Wendy H. Jones is the award winning, international best-selling author of the DI Shona McKenzie Mysteries, Cass Claymore Investigates Mysteries, Fergus and Flora Mysteries, Bertie the Buffalo children’s books and the Writing Matters books for writers. She is also a writing and marketing coach and the President of the Scottish Association of Writers. As copy editor for Mom’s, she works hard to ensure content is appropriate and free of grammatical and spelling errors. You can learn more about Wendy on her website: https://www.wendyhjones.com/
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Flash Fiction — Flexibility by Allison Symes Flash fiction has more flexibility than might appear to be the case. Yes, sure, the upper word count limit is 1000 words, but you don’t have to write to that count. I’ve written across the spectrum which is fun and offers differing challenges to the writer. The one thing you don’t do is to pad the story out to make it fit a word count.
readers to remember) but allowing ten words like this ensures I am covered and have word count room to spare!
My favourite is the 100-word story, which is also known as a drabble. These are how I started in flash fiction. CafeLit, with whom I’d had short stories published, issued the 100-word challenge, I responded, became addicted to flash fiction writing, and here I am writing about it.
The other way in which flash is flexible is in genre. As flash has to be character led, due to the lack of room for anything that might slow the pace down such as description, I can set those characters wherever and whenever I want.
A good challenge is the 50-word story, also called the dribble. The stories at this length (or less) would be good to share on Twitter. Indeed there is a category called Twitterature, which has a maximum limit of 280 characters. This works out as somewhere between 40 and 90 words, depending on whether the spaces are counted as characters. Some places do count them. They’re also likely to include your titles in the word count.
So I have great fun here. I’ve written historical flash pieces, crime ones, what I call fairytales with bite (humorous fantasy), character studies, and I’ve set pieces forward in time and on alien worlds. I’ve also written about the inside of a ping pong ball and from the viewpoint of a mother dragon! Mind you, the good thing about being character focused is it does make you concentrate on what the reader has to know - nothing more, nothing less.
Do look out for that in competitions incidentally. What I do here is take ten words off any official word count issued and save those words for my title. I never write a long title (they’re harder for
I’ve also written in the first and third person for flash. I’ve written far more in the first person for flash which is not something I expected to happen but I love the immediacy, which works so well for this short form of storytelling. Flash Challenge So that is the challenge for this month. Write a piece in the first person up to 300 words maximum as usual. And here is my contribution. - 42 -
If If I could change anything, they would do the housework. I’d study. I’m told I don’t have brains so I leave my sisters, who do have them apparently, to go that route in life. I’m to work.
My idea works though I still don’t know why pumpkins were needed for the vehicle transformation. I’m sure that’s a wand fault. Still I haven’t done badly for a trainee fairy godmother who learned her trade unofficially.
When I can, I sneak into their rooms, discover what they’re studying, and get my own copies. “Borrowing” my sisters’ stuff would cause trouble. At least I get paid for my work and the bookshop lady is always pleased to see me.
The girl was grateful. Didn’t mind smelling of stewed squash for a week. That was good of her. The bonus came when she married Prince Charming. She gave me a wedding invite, a huge bottle of pumpkin scented shower gel (she likes a laugh), and a free pass to the Magical Training College here with everything paid for.
Wind the clock forward a bit. I’ve learned loads. I need to demonstrate my skills. The chance comes. I grab it. The wand purchased from a second-hand magical equipment shop a week ago will be handy. I spotted the girl at the book shop. We chat. She too is not having a fabulous time with her family. I say I can help. I say I’m her fairy godmother. She gives me a funny look. I’m not surprised. I’m only five years older but needs must and she is desperate. Can’t say I blame her. I’ve seen her stepmother and daughters. My lot only whinge.
My lot were dumbstruck. I said I’ll show them all. Why shouldn’t fairy godmothers have their own happy ending?
Allison Symes, who loves reading and writing quirky fiction, is published by Chapeltown Books, CafeLit, and Bridge House Publishing. Her flash fiction collections, Tripping The Flash Fantastic and From Light to Dark and Back Again are out in Kindle and paperback. She has been a winner of the Waterloo Arts Festival writing competition three years in a row where the brief was to write to a set theme to a 1000 words maximum. Website: https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com/
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First Person
“I can’t,” I say, shrugging. “I need to get this done.”
The Blank Screen By Joe DeRouen
“Suit yourself,” she says, sounding annoyed. I turn back to the screen, intending to write, but then I see a Facebook notification. Someone liked my post about my cat, Biscuit. I smile - 153 likes and counting. I decide to post another photo. After all, I have hundreds. This one is of Biscuit reaching his little paw out from behind my monitor, like he’s wanting a high-five. He’s a cute kitty.
I stare at the screen, unsure of what to write. I have to write something. Not putting fingers to keys is not an option. This needs to get done and I need to do it. The phone rings but it’s another spam call. No. I don’t want an extended warranty on my car. Are you kidding me? I stare at the phone, almost wishing I hadn’t let it go to voicemail. Instead I answered and cursed them out. But it was probably a robocall anyway. Aren’t they all these days? I set the phone aside and go back to staring at my screen. Word count is zero. Why can’t I get this down? Why is it so difficult?
Why am I avoiding this? I minimize Facebook and go back to Microsoft Word. Enough delaying, it’s time to type. It only needs to be 300 words, give or take. Why am I making this so difficult? A thought occurs to me and I know what to do. I’ll just write about what’s happening, in real time, right here and right now. Truly, that’s the only way to get this flash fiction finished. It goes fast, down to seven words. And I’m done.
“I’m going to run to the store,” my wife says, “do you want to come along?” - 44 -
many terror-stricken, lifeless eyes. Currency of Fools By James T Mather
Again, I called out to my lady wife, never once taking my eyes off the window slot high above. "Come to the window, my love. We must leave this place at once." Only the silence answered.
As the crooked tower finally came into view, every shred of hope evaporated from my weary, unsettled mind. Still, I drew in a sharp breath and pushed through the undergrowth, grasping the blood-soaked hilt of my long-sword a little tighter.
Shimmering red light from a dozen fiery torches danced up the lower walls of the tower to make every crag and split appear like scars, oozing thick black blood. The breath left my body as a silhouette stepped out on to the window ledge, tottering precariously in light satin slippers.
"Keira, my love… are you here?" The wild, dark woods gobbled up the words, to leave me to wonder if they had even left my lips at all.
"Keira…" Hope rose, until the heavy scarlet hood of her shawl slid back, and I looked upon the face of my Keira, or what remained at least. The tales were all true. Blood dripped from the twin, pin sharp fangs in her ragged face, moving ever closer as my lady wife swooped down to take me in a final, cold embrace.
Phantom whispers tormented my every step, creeping unseen from the shadows to taint my thoughts and challenge my sanity. I shuffled around a chaotic heap of rusting armour, and on, past the brave, rotting corpses of those I had sent before me. Brave men, every one. Each lay face down, sprawled among the swaying long grass. It was a blessing I could not look upon their faces, to surely see so
Love; surely the currency only a fool trades in. - 45 -
Oh wow, another car of cops has turned up, or are they forensics? It’s hard to tell from up here with that tree in the way. Still, I’ve got a few good photos for the local Facebook group... Hmmm, I wonder if I can see better through the spare room window? That’s better, I can see everything now. Oh what a shame, Gloria, they’re digging up your precious roses... guess you won’t be bragging about beating me at the show this year. Serves you right! You always did think you were better than the rest of us with that fancy boyfriend, half your age – where is he now, eh Gloria? Blimey, they’re making a lot of mess, glad it’s not my garden they’re digging up. Ooh that’s a good shot, the look on your face... that’s definitely going on Facebook later, it’ll go viral. Come on Mr Policeman, dig to the left a bit... just a little more...got it!
That crime-scene tape frames the pic perfectly – another great shot of your demise, eh Gloria? Not so posh now are you being dragged away in handcuffs? Well that was entertaining. Time for a cuppa, I think, while I post these pics. Ooh, I can just imagine the news tomorrow:
Her at Number 7 By Sylva Fae
‘Local Psychic Arrested Following an anonymous tip off, police have discovered a weapon buried in the backyard of psychic, Gloria Day. An investigation into the suspicious disappearance of her toyboy lover is ongoing...’
I never did like her at number 7, not since she gave me that awful reading, not to mention her condescending reassurance she was sure I would be able to overcome the “difficulties” ahead of me – smug cow!
There’s always a way to “overcome difficulties”, Gloria – bet you didn’t see this in my reading, did you?
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Paul’s Puzzles By Paul Godding The Main Challenge
The Mathematically Possible Challenge
You have SIX each of 7puzzleland‘s brandnew 4p and 7p coins. Your task is to try and make various amounts from 20p and above with these coins.
Using 2, 4 and 12 once each, with + – × ÷ available, which TWO numbers is it possible to make from the list below? 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49
As shown here, the first few have been done for you: •
20p can be made from 5 × 4p coins,
•
21p from 3 × 7p coins,
•
22p from 2 × 7p coins and 2 × 4p coins . . .
#NumbersIn40s
The Lagrange Challenge Lagrange’s Four-Square Theorem states that every positive integer can be made by adding up to four square numbers.
From 20p upwards, what is the lowest amount you CANNOT make from your 12 coins?
For example, 7 can be made by 2²+1²+1²+1² (or 4+1+1+1).
The 7puzzle Challenge
There are EIGHT ways of making 126 when using Lagrange’s Theorem. Can you find them all?
The playing board of the 7puzzle game is a 7-by-7 grid containing 49 different numbers, ranging from 2 up to 84.
The Target Challenge
The 2nd & 4th rows contain the following fourteen numbers:
Can you arrive at 126 by inserting 2, 3, 6 and 9 into the gaps on each line?
3 8 10 17 28 32 35 44 48 54 55 60 63 64
• • • • •
What is the difference between the highest multiple of 11 and lowest multiple of 7? *** Solutions: http://7puzzleblog.com/answers/
◯×◯×(◯–◯) = 126 ◯×(◯×◯–◯²) = 126 ◯²×◯+◯×◯ = 126 ◯³×◯–◯²×◯ = 126 ◯²×◯+double(◯×◯) = 126
Hello, my name is Paul Godding. I am a full-time professional private maths tutor based in the south-east of Wales who delivers face-to-face tuition locally as well as online tuition to students globally. It would be lovely to hear from you, so feel free to click paul@7puzzle.com if you wish to secure maths tuition for you or your child. Alternatively, you can ring/message/WhatsApp me from anywhere in the world:
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Europe by Book by Hannah Howe
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova Late one night, exploring her father’s library, a young woman finds an ancient book and a cache of yellowing letters addressed ominously to ‘My dear and unfortunate successor’. Her discovery plunges her into a world she never dreamed of – a labyrinth where the secrets of her father’s past and her mother’s mysterious fate connect to an evil hidden in the depths of history. In those few quiet moments, she unwittingly assumes a quest she will discover is her birthright – a hunt for the truth about Vlad the Impaler, the medieval ruler whose barbarous reign formed the basis of the Dracula myth. Deciphering obscure signs and hidden texts, reading codes worked into the fabric of medieval monastic traditions, and evading terrifying adversaries, one woman comes ever closer to the secret of her own past and a confrontation with the very definition of evil. Elizabeth Kostova’s debut novel is an adventure of monumental proportions – a captivating tale that blends fact and fantasy, history and the present with an assurance that is almost unbearably suspenseful – and utterly unforgettable
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What Is Climate Change? by Gail Herman (Author), John Hinderliter (Illustrator) Learn more about what climate change means and how it’s affecting our planet. The earth is definitely getting warmer. There’s no argument about that, but who or what is the cause? And why has climate change become a political issue? Are humans at fault? Is this just a natural development? While the vast majority of scientists who study the environment agree that humans play a large part in climate change, there is a counterargument. Author Gail Herman presents both sides of the debate in this fact-based, fair-minded, and wellresearched book that looks at the subject from many perspectives, including scientific, social, and political. Grade level 3 – 7
Hannah Howe is the author of the Sam Smith Mystery Series, the Ann's War Mystery Series and the #1 international bestseller Saving Grace. Hannah's books are published by Goylake Publishing and distributed through Gardners Books to over 300 outlets worldwide. Her books are available in print, as eBooks and audiobooks, and are being translated into ten languages. Discover more on Mom's Favorite Reads website: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/hannah-howe
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Stormy Romantic Getaway By Chantal Bellehumeur It had been a while since Samantha and her husband Jeff spent some quality time away from home together. Having two young children, intimate moments between them had become rare and they both felt they deserved to focus entirely on each other for their upcoming anniversary.
booked. The few accommodations remaining were luxury suites beyond their budget. They settled for a basic room within a chain hotel about half an hour away from the capital city.
Jeff's parents happily came from out of town to take care of their grand-children for the couple's romantic getaway. The five-month old baby did not appear bothered in the least by his parents going away, but the two-year old made it emotionally hard for Samantha and Jeff to leave after saying bye. Samantha could still hear her daughter's epic cries ringing in her ears when she was finally seated in the car with Jeff. When she realised she had forgotten to pack the black skirt she had ironed that morning, Samantha decided it was best not to go back inside the house for it.
With the Covid pandemic not being quite over, the uncertainty of venues and restaurants staying open was a major concern. The couple put off making reservations of any kind until only a week before they were to celebrate their three years of marriage.
Samantha and Jeff had decided on driving to Ottawa from Montreal for the annual tulip festival, but by the time they started officially looking for a hotel everything in the downtown area was almost fully
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Samantha could not remember the last time she had gone shopping for herself, and the lack of a fancy skirt to go along with the blouse and high heel shoes she had packed gave her a good excuse to spurge on herself. When the couple arrived in Ottawa after a two-anda-half-hour car ride, they found their way to a large indoor parking garage attached to the Rideau Center. This three-level shopping center had many clothing stores Samantha could browse in, but she knew Jeff hated shopping and would become impatient quickly if she spent too much time going from one place to another trying on different things. She quickly located a map of the Rideau Center’s shops, and immediately headed to her favorite clothing store. Before entering, Samantha noticed an elegant black cocktail dress on a mannequin and asked the nearest salesperson to help her find her size. The only dress left of that design was the one on display, so the young woman undressed the mannequin and gave the dress to Samantha to try on.
soaked nursing pads, Samantha made the decision to go lingerie shopping after, half scolding herself for having only brought her cotton nursing bra on this romantic getaway.
Samantha looked at herself in the changing room mirror with a satisfied smile. The dress fit perfectly, shaping her slim figure and showing just enough cleavage. She was quite pleased with herself at having lost all the baby fat so quickly after giving birth.
As Samantha was changing back into her faded blue jeans, she suddenly heard a few little screams as she found herself in the dark; the power had gone out.
Happy to be wearing something other than her old casual clothing which was often stained or smelling like her baby’s spit up, she decided to briefly model the dress for Jeff. When she opened the door and stood in a sexy pose, Jeff gave her an approving nod and told her she looked gorgeous.
Samantha felt absolutely stunning, until she realised she was leaking milk from not having breastfed. For a brief moment, she deeply missed her baby boy as well as her daughter. Slight guilt overcame her, but it soon passed. Her and Jeff absolutely needed time together without the children. As she changed her - 51 -
It took a few seconds for Samantha to adjust her eyes, after which she pulled her t-shirt over her head in hopes it wasn't inside out. She then managed to find her running shoes and left the cabin holding the black dress, bumping right into Jeff. The laughing couple held onto each other and blindly made their way to the cash, trying not to crash into any clothing racks. Unfortunately, Samantha was unable to pay for the dress because the interact machines were down and neither her nor Jeff had enough cash on them.
parking garage, and it did not seem to move. Many drivers impatiently honked their horns or shouted from their open windows, but that didn’t help matters. Samantha saw a few cars returning from the front and wondered if they were all trapped inside the gloomy parking garage. In a way they were. The old attendant would not let anyone leave unless they paid for their parking in exact cash. He had no change to give. At first Samantha and Jeff were irritated, but they finally decided to make the best of the situation. Back in a parking space, Jeff turned his phone on to play some music. A few songs into his personal playlist, he told Samantha to get out of the car with a smug look on his face. Samantha looked at her husband curiously and followed his lead. She watched as Jeff walked to her side of the car and placed his phone on the hood. Her heart soon melted.
Samantha figured the bank machines would be down too, so she disappointedly left the dress at the counter. At least the saleswoman said she could put it on hold for the rest of the day. The couple discovered that the rest of the large shopping center was dark too, aside from the faint red emergency lights, and most stores were lockingup due to the power outage. They originally planned on going to the Byward Market and walk along the Rideau Canal before checking out the tulip festival, but it was raining hard so their only logical option was to stay indoors.
"The Best Part of me" sung by Ed Sheeran and Yebba started playing. It was the song Samantha and Jeff had adopted as their own when they first heard it back in 2019; the one they had danced to first as husband and wife shortly after at their wedding reception. As they slow-danced in the parking lot, they sang the chorus together off-key. Samantha became emotional, making her teary-eyed.
Jeff suggested getting special coffees, so the couple searched for a Starbucks in the food court. They couldn’t get their desired drinks because none of the coffee machines were working. Realising they were hungry, they ordered bagels with cream cheese to go instead and stopped by the Tim Hortons hoping they had freshly brewed coffee left in their pot. There was just enough for a small cup, so the couple decided to share.
Jeff sensually whispered the last line of the duet in his wife's ear: “Baby I'm so in love with you.” It made her shiver. Ironically, the next song that randomly started playing on YouTube was "Shiver" by Ed Sheeran. Jeff made Samantha laugh with his attempt at singing it without knowing most of the lyrics. He awkwardly danced as he vocalised a word or two in between gibberish. He threw in a few pronounced “oooh's” and “oh's”, pretending to hold a mic during those moments. It gave Samantha an idea.
After twenty minutes of waiting for the power to go back on, the couple headed back to their car. They figured they could visit a museum during the unexpected storm. There was a long line-up of cars near the exit of the - 52 -
crème brûlée as dessert. They enjoyed being able to eat their food warm and be able to converse as adults. Samantha enjoyed her first glass of wine in over a year. The power went out again as the relaxed couple was finishing their delicious meal. Jeff thought he could partially fix the problem by lighting vanilla scented candles he had brought, but realised he had no lighter. The couple spent the rest of the evening in the dark, but that did not bother them in the least. With no children around to potentially interrupt their intimacy, they fully enjoyed each other and fell asleep in each other's arms. The next morning, they woke up much later than usual and lazed around until they were hungry for breakfast.
For the next two hours, the couple sang Karaoke inside the car. They weren't any good, but they had fun and shared some good laughs. They even came up with a name for a potential band; The Howling Wolves. Samantha had suggested it because she thought she had sounded like one during her more serious attempt at singing along with Jeff to their official couple’s song.
They arrived at the hotel’s dining room too late for their buffet, so headed to a nearby breakfast place right after checking out.
Finally, the power was back and they were able to leave the parking lot. It was still pouring out though and museums were closing soon, so they just headed straight to their hotel.
It was another rainy day and Samantha was yearning to breastfeed her son, so the couple headed home earlier than planned. Although their anniversary trip had not turned out as expected, Neither Samantha nor Jeff saw it as a failure. They had found each other again, and the stormy romantic getaway would not soon be forgotten.
It was only after checking in that Samantha remembered the dress she had placed on hold. Rather than go out to a fancy restaurant that evening as planned, Jeff and Samantha cancelled their reservation and ordered room service; steak and fries with
Chantal Bellehumeur is a Canadian author born in 1981. She has several published novels of various genres as well as numerous short stories, poems and articles featured in compilation books, magazine, plus a local newspaper. For a complete list of publications, including free reads, visit the following website: https://author-chantal-bellehumeur.webnode.com/products-/
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Coloring Page By Adrian Czarnecki Though I love dreaming up and putting together my Siberian Husky themed children’s illustrated picture story books, Adventures of Hot Rod Todd, I don’t think of myself as an ‘author’ or as a ‘writer’. ‘Story teller’ sounds better. My books are so dependent upon the illustrations. That’s where illustrator Cameo Anderson http:// www.cameoanderson.com/ comes in. Cameo really can see into my mind’s eye interpreting my often rambling page descriptions into works of art; there’s a saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words” and with a children’s book that is so important and Cameo nails it every time and then some. So, for your enjoyment, here is a page from the Coloring Book featuring some of the characters and scenes from the books.
Coloring Book FREE PDF download available via website www.adventuresofhotrodtodd.com
Adrian S. Czarnecki is a semi-retired writer of Siberian Husky oriented children’s books based on an actual litter of 6 puppies born to his Dam Empress Maya and Sire Damien Czar on March 14th 2019. Born in Huddersfield, England, Adrian has travelled the world extensively pursuing careers in journalism, photography, PR / Marketing as well as print and sales. Adrian now lives in Idaho, USA with his wife Meta and their Siberian Huskies who keep them on their toes. - 54 -
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Genealogy: Meet My Ancestors by Hannah Howe
The Howes in America
My ancestor Cecilia Howe was born on 13 September 1840 in Wick, Glamorgan. Cecilia was a very popular Howe name that featured over many generations. She married Lewis Griffiths on 14 November 1863 in Bridgend, Glamorgan and on 6 April 1867 she gave birth to twins, Lewis and William. Sadly, Lewis died a day later and William died a day after that.
Jane Jenkins was born on 24 August 1806 in Marcoss, Glamorgan. A seamstress, she married William Howe, brother of my 4 x great grandfather John Howe, on 7 May 1833 in St Brides, Glamorgan. The couple produced five children. William, a shopkeeper, died on 1 August 1848, and Jane’s life took a dramatic turn.
Cecilia’s husband, Lewis, died on 16 August 1867 when she was two months pregnant. She gave birth to the exotically named Lorenzo Louis Griffiths on 19 March 1868. Thankfully, he survived. A widow with a baby, Cecilia didn’t allow the grass to grow under her feet. She decided to join her mother, Jane Jenkins, in America, arriving in New York on 28 July 1868 before travelling to Salt Lake City.
On 15 December 1851 Jane married William Williams. In February 1866 Jane’s mother, Ann David, died and this appears to have been the catalyst for the dramatic change because, aged sixty, Jane set off for a new life in America. On 6 July 1866 on the ship Arkwright, Jane set sail for New York. She travelled with her husband, William Williams, William’s grandson, William (Billo) Johns, Eliza Davis, Mary Gibbs, Hugh Morris, John Tardy, William Lewis and his wife Rachel.
Cecilia married John Davis Reese on 20 December 1869 in Salt Lake City and in eleven years the couple produced six children. A Welshman from Merthyr Tydfil, John was twenty-five years older than Cecilia.
From New York, the company travelled in cattle cars to Canada and by boat to Niagara Falls, Chicago, then on to Wyoming and Utah. They departed New York on 25 July 1866 on ‘Daniel Thompson's Church Train’ and followed the pioneer trail before arriving at Salt Lake City on 27 October 1866.
John Davis Reese was a blacksmith and a Mormon. His first wife Mary Morgan had a stillborn child when changing steamers from the Constitution to the Highland Mary. He also married Jane Morgan in 1852, Zillah Mathias in 1857 and Cecilia Howe in 1869. Between his four wives he fathered twenty-seven children.
Jane’s husband, William Williams, died on the journey, on the plains near Old Fort Kearney. A widow for the second time, she married David Evan Davies on 22 June 1867 in Salt Lake City. Jane lived a further twenty-two years in Utah before her death on 22 December 1889.
John returned to Wales as a missionary in 1868. He died on 19 March 1880 in Malad City, Oneida County, Idaho making Cecilia a widow again.
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John Davis Reese
Cecilia didn’t remarry. She died on 7 August 1932 in Benson, Utah aged ninety-one.
Anne Howe 1864, probably taken to commemorate her twenty-first birthday
My ancestor Anne Howe, sister of Cecilia, was born on 6 February 1843 in Wick, Glamorgan and baptised in Wick on 5 March 1843. Her father, William, died when she was five. At sixteen, she worked as a servant for a solicitor, Thomas Stockwood. Many solicitors moved to Glamorgan in the 1840s to deal with coal mining and railway contracts.
she set sail with George and his children on 30 June 1868. The family sailed from Liverpool on the SS Minnesota and arrived in New York on 13 July 1868. George, at a young age, was left alone in England when his parents emigrated to Galt, Canada. They decided that their son should remain in England and complete his apprenticeship as a painter and glazer.
In the 1860s Anne Howe found herself in London. What was she doing there? I believe she was working as a governess for George Crane, a schoolteacher, painter and glazer. George was a widower with four children.
In 1854 George married Emily. The couple lived in London where George worked. Emily died when her youngest child was six weeks old. Grandparents looked after George’s children until he established his relationship with Anne Howe.
Anne married George Crane on 1 February 1868 in Chelsea, London. Exactly nine months later she gave birth to her first daughter, Mary Ella, in Salt Lake City. Anne was five months pregnant when - 57 -
In 1868 upon their arrival in America, Anne Howe, her husband George Crane and his children were given berths in cattle cars for their trip west. Each family was allotted beds and a space to prepare their meals. They travelled with the John R. Murdock Company and completed their 430 mile journey from Laramie, Wyoming to Salt Lake City in covered wagons and on mules and foot. Anne was seven months pregnant at the time.
On 28 October 1868 Anne gave birth to a daughter, Mary Ella, the first of six children. Sadly, only Mary Ella and her sister, Maud Estella, survived into adulthood. The family stayed in Salt Lake City that winter. George worked on the Utah Central Railroad and the Union Pacific until Leland Stanford drove the Golden Spike on 10 May 1869. Then George moved his family to Kanosh, Utah, where he resumed his career as a schoolteacher. George was a member of the Church of the Latter Day Saints. In 1879 he was called on a mission to England. He returned home to Anne in November 1880.
Anne Howe and George Crane
Part of Main Street, Salt Lake City, Utah 1890 — Photo Public Domain https://kutv.com/news/local/gallery/slideshow-73-old-photos-show-salt-lake-city-from-1850-to-1964?photo=10 - 58 -
Chief Kanosh
George held many offices in Millard County including county commissioner, and president and director of the Kanosh Store. Active in the church, he also acted in plays and organised a dramatic society in Kanosh.
Idaho 1918, Cecilia Howe with her son, grandson and great grandson
Anne and George were prominent members of their community and a newspaper report carried news of Anne’s ill health. Sadly, the newspaper’s good wishes were in vain and she died on 2 July 1895 aged fifty-two.
As pioneers, one wonders what Anne and George’s relationship was like with the indigenous population. Apparently, it was good because George befriended Chief Kanosh and spoke at his funeral.
Hannah Howe is the author of the Sam Smith Mystery Series, the Ann's War Mystery Series and the #1 international bestseller Saving Grace. Hannah's books are published by Goylake Publishing and distributed through Gardners Books to over 300 outlets worldwide. Her books are available in print, as eBooks and audiobooks, and are being translated into ten languages. Discover more on Mom's Favorite Reads website: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/hannah-howe
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Remembering the Wesley Brothers by Father Ian Maher Charles shared with his brother John the buildingup of early Methodist societies, as they travelled the country. His special concern was that early Methodists should remain loyal to Anglicanism. He married and settled in Bristol, later in London, concentrating his work on the local Christian communities. His thousands of hymns established a resource of lyrical piety which has enabled generations of Christians to re-discover the refining power of God’s love. They celebrate God’s work of grace from birth to death, the great events of God’s work of salvation and the rich themes of eucharistic worship, anticipating the taking up of humanity into the divine life. John Wesley died on 2 March 1791 and Charles on 29 March 1788.’
Mark 6.30-34 On 24.05.22 in the calendar of the Church of England we commemorate the lives of two brothers who have been hugely influential in the life of the Church: John and Charles Wesley. The publication Exciting Holiness (Canterbury Press, 2012) says this about them.
The Wesley brothers connected with the ordinary, everyday people of their age, many of whom were distant from, or disillusioned by the institutional church, even though they never set out to establish a new denomination. They were driven by a passion to share the good news of Jesus Christ, and compassion for all who had never heard about or
‘Born at Epworth rectory in Lincolnshire, John Wesley was the son of an Anglican clergyman and a Puritan mother. He entered Holy Orders and, following a religious experience on this day in 1738, began an itinerant ministry which recognised no parish boundaries. This resulted, after his death, in the development of a worldwide Methodist Church. His spirituality involved an Arminian affirmation of grace, frequent communion and a disciplined corporate search for holiness. His open-air preaching, concern for education and for the poor, liturgical revision organisation of local societies and training of preachers provided a firm basis for Christian grown and mission in England.
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experienced the love of God. In that respect, they followed directly in the footsteps of their Lord, of whom Mark says this:
As we commemorate John and Charles Wesley, thanking God for the great witness of their lives and ministry, may we be encouraged by their example of faithful service. We may never be able to emulate the eloquence of John’s sermons, or the profound theology of Charles’ hymns, but we can share in their passion to share God’s love with others who we meet along the way.
‘As he (Jesus) went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.’
I am a priest and minor canon at Sheffield Cathedral. My last post prior to retirement from stipendiary ministry was as the Multifaith Chaplaincy Coordinator and Anglican Chaplain at Sheffield Hallam University, where I worked for 12 years. https://imaherblog.wordpress.com/ Twitter @IanMaher7 - 61 -
Magic by Becky Hemsley
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Magic A poem by Becky Hemsley, taken from the book Talking to the Wild Talking to the Wild is a poetry collection, the bedtime stories that we were likely never told as children but that can bring us comfort, joy, healing, peace and gentle reminders as we grow. Some days you’ll need comfort, some days you’ll need joy, and some days you’ll just need to feel heard. Validated. Seen. And I hope that’s what this book gives to you. I hope you get lost in the words and find yourself.
You can hear Becky reading her poems on TikTok. @talkingtothewild https://vm.tiktok.com/ZM87scaJe/ Or see more on her Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/talkingtothewild/ https://bookgoodies.com/a/B09JM7KJRQ
Becky Hemsley is an empowered romantic with a hint of magic. She is from middle England and writes her poetry with her own accent in mind. Wherever, or however you read her poems, the message is the same; the story is about you.
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Writing Prompt By Angela Abraham I will always be a writer, it was imprinted into my soul. My art it pours out of me, as if my heart wishes to sing all day and all night. It is such a chatterbox, this heart of mine. It dances in the words as if it were performing a ballet, loving each tiny movement. It comes as a river, often gentle, yet with a flow that appears to have a sense of where it is going. It comes to be born rather than moulded, to show itself for what it is. It is a lot of me and a lot of divine inspiration, or that is how I see it when an artist truly loves, when the art is the proof of the loving heart.
Descriptionari Quotes and Descriptions to Inspire Creative Writing
Discover, Share, Connect
By Angela Abraham, @daisydescriptionari, February 15, 2019.
***** On Descriptionari there are over 19k ideas all free to check out (taking the pun bow now, tee hee).
Creativity is the weaving of random into a new and wonderful dish. Descriptionari helps you to fill up your idea cupboard with new ingredients, unleashing your inner Masterchef! And so, in keeping with our fantastic flash fiction theme ‘first person’, tongue firmly in our extended-pun-cheek, here are a few nibbles!
https://www.descriptionari.com/
Happy writing!
In my craft I fashion a thing that time cannot wear down, a product no person may consume; yet my craft elevates the soul by consuming the poison of emotional indifference and medicating with love. My words are part of our societal immune system and that makes me proud to call myself a writer.
Angela spent the past 10 years building Descriptionari one flash of inspiration at a time. She is now focusing on the creation of fiction novels. Her dog Oliver says it is all a complete waste of time and can he go for a walk now?
By Angela Abraham, @daisydescriptionari, October 9, 2019.
***** - 64 -
Coming Back By Penny Luker Lily walked up the steep hill to her parents’ home. She hadn’t been back for seven years. Her backpack, containing only a flask, a book and a few essentials, weighed heavily, as she trudged through familiar lanes, noting that nothing much had changed.
Lily stepped into the living room and her father gave her a friendly wave, but didn’t get up from his chair.
She was nervous about seeing everyone again, but she wanted to get on with her life, without all that unfinished feeling hanging over her.
‘Good to see you, love. Are you back for good?’ ‘Just visiting,’ Lily replied.
Tiger was sitting on the fence when she arrived. He’d been little more than a kitten the last time she’d seen him. Now he was a solid, well-rounded cat. He responded to her ear tickle with a loud purr. Well at least someone was pleased to see her.
Her sister, Rose, stood awkwardly in the corner of the room.
‘Martin’s out playing golf. He thought it best for your first visit, to give you some space,’ Rose said. Lily relaxed. This would be the only visit, she thought. ‘How are you Rose, Happy?’ She didn’t look happy. I suppose living with your parents when you’re a married adult, must be difficult, thought Lily. ‘I’m fine,’ said Rose. No-one introduced her to the child sitting on the floor, staring at the computer with his mouth slightly open, bit Lily knew her nephew’s name. Lily went over and asked, ‘What are you playing, Mick?’
At that moment the door opened and her mum beckoned her in. ‘Did you have a good journey? Oh, you’re looking well. Perhaps a little thin. Have you been eating properly?’ Lily smiled and gave her mother a quick kiss on the cheek. This was the mother who’d shown her so little sympathy when her world had crashed around her all those years ago. - 65 -
‘Roblox, I don’t suppose you want to play.’ ‘I’d love to,’ she replied and sat down next to him. His smile lit up the room, as he changed the game for two participants. The tension eased. It was only an hour until Adam came with the people carrier and they’d be on their way. She was happy to sit and play with Mick. Lily knew there was no point dwelling on the past. Not that she had done, but she always remembered the little boy she’d lost, who’d have been a few months older than Mick, by the same father. And with the loss of her baby, Rose had convinced Martin to end his engagement to Lily, so that her own baby would have two parents. The shock of finding out that Martin had betrayed her with her own sister, when she’d just lost her baby had overwhelmed her, but her parents had pointed out that it would be better for the living baby to have both parents. It felt like a double betrayal so she’d taken herself away from the entire family. What a good decision that had turned out to be. Now she sat with their little boy, who the family had so longed for, but couldn’t be bothered to play with and realized that it was lucky that he was a resilient young man, who had to entertain himself, a lot of the time.
under Alan and stood up. There was Adam standing in the doorway holding baby, Annie. He was strikingly handsome and tall, looking smart, even in his casual clothes. His eyes sought hers and he smiled. ‘I thought they’d better come in and go to the toilet before we set off again. I hope that’s okay.’
Her mother made them all tea and to an outsider they might have looked like a normal family.
‘Of course it is,’ Lily said, taking Annie in her arms.
‘You’re really good at this, aren’t you?’ said Mick, smiling happily.
‘Well, who is this gorgeous man?’ asked Rose, making her way towards Adam. For just a nano-second Lily feared losing Adam to her predatory sister, but the fleeting feeling passed. Adam wasn’t looking impressed. He looked Rose up and down and then stuck out his hand towards her and backed away slightly. He shook her hand and said, ‘You must be Rose. I’ve heard all about you.’
‘I’m not too bad,’ said Lily. ‘My twins like this one.’ Lily’s mum was about to ask about the twins, which she knew nothing about, because of the family rift, when suddenly the front door burst open and in they ran. ‘Mummy, mummy is this where you lived? said Alice, as she slung her arms around Lily’s neck.
Rose looked quite taken aback and Lily hid a smile. Adam then went over to each of Lily’s parents and shook their hands, apologized for landing on them, but explained they had to catch the ferry, so
Alan climbed on her lap and took over the game, playing with Mick. Lily shuffled herself out from - 66 -
‘Yes, that would be great. It would give us a chance to all get to know each other,’ said Rose, looking directly at Adam. Lily and Adam made themselves busy ushering the children into the van. ‘Smart move marrying a rich husband,’ joked Lily’s dad with a big smile on his face.
Lily opened her mouth to reply, but before she could get a word out, Adam said
couldn’t stop long and finally introduced himself to Mick. Now her parents were taking notice, Lily thought.
‘Oh, you’ve got that all that wrong, Sir. It’s Lily who earns the mega bucks in our family, designing computer games. That’s why the twins know them all and it looks like young Mick takes after his aunt.
As soon as the twins had used the bathroom and Lily had fed and changed Annie they said their good-byes and made their way to the people carrier. ‘We’re off to Spain,’ chanted Alice, ‘to our other home.’ ‘How nice to have a holiday in Spain,’ said Rose.
‘It’s where we live when it’s school holidays,’ said Alan ‘We like it ‘cos it’s near the sea and the mountains.’ ‘How lovely,’ said Lily’s mum. Perhaps we could visit sometime.’
Penny Luker is a writer and artist from Cheshire. She writes novels, short stories and poetry for adults, and also writes children’s stories. You can find her work at www.pennyluker.wordpress.com or http://author.to/PennyLuker
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Bridal Veil Falls, Utah by Melanie P. Smith © MPSmith Publishing
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https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/melanie-p-smith/
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Birthstone Crystal Grids by Lisa Shambrook July — Ruby This crystal grid is simply made for Love and Rubies are the epitome of love and passion, the gem once known as an inextinguishable flame. This grid is centred with a velvety Charles-De-Mills old English rose which represents love and romance, and surrounded by Lavender for purity and devotion. Garnet and Amethyst offer love, and the latter adds protection and healing. Rubellite Tourmaline, another stone of passion and love, and Purple Fluorite give protection and harmony. The grid is finished, top and bottom, with three Ruby gems, a stone for courage and passion. Feel the love!
Crystal Grids made by Lisa Shambrook for mindfulness, meditation, and art. Prints of some grids are available at:
www.amaranthalchemy.etsy.com.
You can find out more about the sensory author and artist, who will lift your spirit, steal your heart, and ignite your imagination at: www.lisashambrook.com. She also loves dragons and squirrels.
Lisa Shambrook is an author, artist, and dreamer who loves dragons. Born and raised in vibrant Brighton, England, living by the ocean heavily influenced her lyrical and emotional writing. She now lives in Carmarthen, West Wales, another town rich in legend and lore. A sensory writer, Lisa delves into sensitive subject matters that will lift your spirit and steal your heart.
Find out more at her website lisashambrook.com and her Etsy shop
amaranthalchemy.etsy.com - 70 -
Chess Supplied by Chess.Com Exploiting the back rank. A four-move puzzle. White to move.
Supplied by https://chess.com the #1 chess website. Used with permission. For more chess puzzles please visit https://chess.com
You can find answers for this activity on Page 83 - 71 -
Mom’s Favorite Reads Author Ronesa Aveela Ronesa Aveela is “the creative power of two.” Two authors that is. Nelly, the main force behind the work, the creative genius, was born in Bulgaria and moved to the US in the 1990s. She grew up with stories of wild Samodivi, Kikimora, the dragons Zmey and Lamia, Baba Yaga, and much more. She’s a freelance artist and writer. She likes writing mystery romance inspired by legends and tales. In her free time, she paints. Her artistic interests include the female figure, Greek and Thracian mythology, folklore tales, and the natural world interpreted through her eyes. She is married and has two children.
Connect with Ronesa Aveela https:/ronesaaveela.wordpress.com/ https://www.facebook.com/RonesaAveela/ https://twitter.com/Ronesa_Aveela https://www.youtube.com/channel/ UCdf9kHx_fERZzyi58ZdlnFg
Rebecca, her writing partner, was born and raised in the New England area. She has a background in writing and editing, as well as having a love of all things from different cultures. She’s learned so much about Bulgarian culture, folklore, and rituals, and writes to share that knowledge with others. Their writing goal is to make people aware of a culture rich with traditions that date back thousands of years to the ancient Thracians who inhabited parts of Greece, Turkey, and Bulgaria, and other Slavic nations.
Dragon Village (Zmeykovo) Series https://ronesaaveela.wordpress.com/ronesaaveelas-books/dragon-village-zmeykovo-series/
Mystical Emona: Soul’s Journey https:// ronesaaveela.wordpress.com/ ronesa-aveelas-books/ mystical-emona-soulsjourney/
Spirits & Creatures (A Study of) Series https://ronesaaveela.wordpress.com/ronesaaveelas-books/spirits-creatures-a-study-of-series/ - 72 -
77½ Magical Healing Herbs
This unique herbal book is an essential guide for tapping into the power of herbs. It highlights centuries of lore and historical facts about healing and magical uses of herbs from Slavic and other traditions.
Venture into the magical, healing world of herbs and embrace the power of nature. The book is an introduction to herbs found in a special Midsummer’s wreath. This is an especially enchanting time of year. Among the Bulgarians, the day is called Eniovden. You may think herbs are only for spicing up food and healing the body and mind, but they have other uses, as well. Herbs can: •
Help prevent hair loss.
•
Eliminate turkey neck.
•
Repel insects.
Plus, it includes rituals, herbal remedies, and simple recipes. Not only that, you’ll learn about several renowned Bulgarian healers throughout history—from St. Ivan Rilski to Baba Vanga. One or two high-quality color photos, as well as a full-page botanical illustration, accompany each plant, so anyone can use the book as a field guide in their backyard or when they go foraging. An index identifies some of the more interesting medical and magical abilities and the herbs that fall under them.
And did you know herbs have magical properties? Here are a few: •
Attract love or repel it.
•
Provide protection from curses and unseen forces.
•
Help an individual find favor in court or success with money matters.
•
And so much more.
With more than 200 color images and fascinating information, 77½ Magical Healing Herbs is certain to entertain and enlighten you. ORDER NOW... https://ronesaaveela.wordpress.com/ronesaaveelas-books/77-1-2-magical-healing-herbs/ - 73 -
Conspiracy Test Card 5 by T.E. Hodden
An Audience Of Ghosts Shall we begin with a magic trick?
Imagine, for just a moment, that I was a trustworthy sort, and I was taking you into my confidence, as I told you of my supernatural experience. Let’s say… I was telling you of the one time, I was on a school trip, to see the rock opera Tommy, in London. Now keep in mind, as I tell you this story, that this happened in a theatre, before an audience of several hundred people. So, you don’t have to take my word for it, this has many, many, witnesses. At the end of the first act, as the last echoes of the guitar faded away, and the applause died down, the curtain dropped, and the house lights went up. There was a strange babble of confusion from the audience. I looked up from my programme and there, stood on the sage, starkly lit by the house lights, was a young woman, maybe in her twenties, wearing a quaintly old fashioned shirt waisted dress and cardigan, pale, wide eyed, and terrified. She was clutching a growing blood stain in her side, and whimpering for help. She ran off the stage, and into the wings, where she was never seen again? Do you believe me? Well, why don’t you go and ask somebody else from the audience? Oh… yeah… because they don’t exist (and the story never happened).
Sorry about that. You see there’s a trick that conspiracy theories, and other such legends adopt, over time, as they are told and retold. Somewhere down the line, the appearance of vast numbers of witnesses are added to the story, while there only actually remains one witness, or at least, one person claiming to be a witness. So, for example, when reading about the Philadelphia Experiment, we should be wary that being told the entire crew of a ship saw something materialise from nothing, or phase through time, or some such… is not the same as having hundreds of witness claiming to have seen that. What we actually have are one or two people, claiming that many others saw something. This illusion works for good reason: there is a lot of power in the idea that so many people can’t be wrong, and the appearance of a consensus. I am writing this month’s column in early March, and as a side effect of the terrifying situation in Ukraine, there is currently a growing pressure on the UK Government to finally release the report into Russian interference in our democracy. Put frankly, a lot of people are no longer treating the influence of Russian money, and Russian hackers, on the likes of Brexit, Trump’s election, and the “Culture War”, as purely theoretical boogeymen, but instead scraping away the paint and wallpaper, to see exactly how deeply rooted the rot is. As scrutiny is applied to the interference it seems - 74 -
very likely that one of the key factors we will see exposed is that Hackers have been driving the so called “Culture War” through the same old trick; by creating the illusion of a vast and popular support, to sway opinion, inflating apparent support to give the impression that the extremes of our politics represent a majority view.
It is no easy thing, to let go of an idea, especially those with an emotional impact, but I trust the weight and momentum of current events will be enough to make even the most entrenched question why there was such a push to oppose racial equality, trans rights, other faiths, and why the discussion was pushed so far towards outright hate.
It seems that thousands of the accounts that appeared to support the divisions torn in the fabric of society were fakes, phantoms and bots, echoing the same opinions and comments, artificially giving certain posts the traction they needed to spread through social media, and of course, making it appear as though everybody already agreed.
I do not expect prejudice to vanish from existence, but I see good reason for many to stop, and reassess, to ask how such division builds towards a better world. If we understand how, and why, conspiracy theories are used to reduce the other to a monster or bogeymen, we can learn to avoid such trickery in the future.
I choose to be hopeful.
I choose to believe that as more people become aware of how and why conspiracy theories, false information, and distrust in experts and valid information, were manipulated, and the phantom accounts are stripped away, people will take another look, and see the bigotry and hate for what they are.
So, I will repeat my usual mantra. In the coming weeks, whichever way the world turns, use your sceptical toolset before sharing a post: check the sources, check the facts, and look for ties to iffy website.
T.E. Hodden trained in engineering and works in a specialized role in the transport industry. He is a life long fan of comic books, science fiction, myths, legends, and history. In the past he has contributed to podcasts, blogs, and anthologies. Discover more on Mom’s Favorite Reads website: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/t-e-hodden/
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The Acquisition By Joy Margetts The bay mare was as fine as she had been described and Cenred smiled to himself. He checked the leather purse hanging from his belt and felt it reassuringly bulge with the coin Sir Robert had entrusted him with. He would pay a fair price for the horse. He knew from rumour that this particular dealer would haggle, but no-one knew horses better that Cenred. And he would not be duped into paying more than she was worth. He approached confidently, his face set to do business.
Cenred stared back, shifting the edge of his cloak so that it covered the purse from view.
The horse was tied to a rough fence post, and stood passively amidst the hustle of the busy crowded street. Hawkers were shouting, selling their wares from overflowing stalls to bustling, gossiping housewives. Horse- pulled carts rattled by, narrowly missing small children running wild. And with the sounds and sights came the stench. Cenred thanked God above that he did not live in Ludlow, with its filth strewn streets. He longed to return to the quiet green of his home at Brampton. The sooner he bought this horse the sooner he could take his leave. It was good that the bay stood composed amidst all the clamour; that bode well. It was then Cenred noticed the figure of a young girl, also standing quiet and composed, half hidden behind the horse’s head.
‘I will give you what the bay is worth and nothing more.’ He named his price. The dealer let out a guffaw and stepped back his hands raised in a gesture of mockery. ‘I know you are Sir Robert de Brampton’s man, so I know you can afford more than that. I also know the quality of this beast. You can see it for yourself.’
Cenred had moved over to the horse, speaking softly, and was purposely running his hands over the horse, noticing the thin flesh on her ribs, the telltale scars from excessive whipping. All the time he was examining the horse the girl stood unmoving, examining him with her startling green eyes. ‘I will give you no more than I have offered you. You are right that I know my horses and this horse may be a fine specimen but she has not been well tended to. Yet she has potential, and may do my master well.’
Into his path a large figure suddenly loomed, wearing a filthy tunic and untrimmed beard, and smelling strongly of stale ale. ‘What takes your eye, sir? The horse or the girl? Both yours for a fair price,’ the man’s lips turned into a semblance of a smile, but his eyes were hard and seemed trained on the money purse dangling from Cenred’s belt.
The dealer narrowed his eyes at the slight, but his attention kept straying to the purse Cenred carried. He licked his lips. - 77 -
‘Will you take the girl as well? She is stronger than she looks and works hard… with a little encouragement from a well aimed lash,’ he sneered.
marks of this man’s cruelty. Her face was fine boned and her skin pale.
Cenred bristled. It was one thing to mistreat a horse, but the thought that the brute also used the whip on a child was sickening.
‘Not bad looking is she? Perhaps Sir Robert is ready to have his bed warmed after so many years a widower? What say you? I’ll give her to you for a few silver pieces more. She is no more use to me.’
He glanced over again to the girl, who stood proudly, her eyes saying little.
The girl had reddened and was struggling to free herself from his grasp, her emerald eyes ablaze.
‘Surely a fine man like you could find a use for her?’ The dealer moved quickly and grabbed the girl roughly by an arm, pulling her forward, and in the same movement tugging the veil from her head.
Cenred swallowed hard, his emotions at war. He had no desire to involve himself in the tawdry business of trading coin for human flesh. It went on, true enough, but was not something either he or his master would countenance. Sir Robert was an honourable man who treated his tenants and household well. No-one was bought and sold, noone forced to comply with demands, no-one punished unfairly, no- one treated as a slave, chattel, or worse. But as he watched the young woman in
Cenred could not help the gasp that escaped his lips. The cascade of red hair that was released was breath-taking. Now he could see her more clearly she was definitely not a child. He was surprised to see she bore the form of a woman, if a small and slight one. He wondered if that frail body bore the - 78 -
front of him compose herself and stand erect under his gaze, he knew he had to do something. Like the bay horse, he had no doubt that with the right treatment and care she would blossom. Away from the cruel existence she was living. Before he really thought about what he was doing he had handed over the whole purse, including the extra he had not actually offered for the horse. It was the exact amount he had been willing to pay, if pushed, and now he gave it all up willingly. A few coins more and he had both a horse and a woman to take back with him to Brampton Barre. He led the bay, alongside his own horse, through the congested streets of the town, surprised to see that the woman followed compliantly behind them. Both horse and girl had been swiftly handed over before the dealer had disappeared into the nearest tavern, laughing with triumph. As they left the town and the path cleared of people and carts, Cenred slowed his pace pulling the horses to a halt beneath the shade of a roadside oak. He wanted a moment to assess his new purchase, to see how she would fare with the ride home. Before realising that he had his other acquisition to also consider. He had no idea what he was going to do with the young woman.
‘I am Hild,’ it was softly spoken. ‘How did you come to be…’ Cenred paused, feeling the embarrassment flooding his face. ‘A slave?’ She laughed a sad little laugh. ‘By tragedy and accident of birth. That man back there was my late mother’s brother.’
She had come to a halt too and stood looking at him, as if trying to assess just who she had been sold to. Why hadn’t she run when she had the chance? He would never have tied or tethered her, she could have slipped away into the crowds at any time. He half wished she had, then he wouldn’t have the problem he had now. How could he explain coming back to Brampton with a female slave?
‘Your uncle? Your own flesh and blood and he was willing to sell you for a few pieces of coin?’ Cenred’s loathing for the man deepened. He composed his face to hide his frustration and tried instead to smile reassuringly at her. She lifted her chin and her eyes scanned his face for a moment before she spoke again.
He realised he had not heard her speak yet.
‘I had outgrown my usefulness to him. For three years I have kept home for him, for the sake of a roof over my head and food in my stomach. Now he
‘Do you have a name? I am Cenred, horse master to Sir Robert de Brampton, of Brampton Barre.’ - 79 -
has found himself a new woman, one he wants to marry, and she will not share her home with me. Although I am no threat to her. Thank God, Rodric has never touched me as a man touches a woman. He had his tavern whores for that. I think that I looked too much like my mother for him to be tempted, and he prefers his women mature and compliant.’ They had continued walking, the horses trotting beside them. The bay tossed her head occasionally as if to try out the feeling of being free. Cenred whispered soothingly to her from time to time and the mare seemed to calm. She must have sensed she was safe. ‘You did not run, when you could?’ he turned his attention back to Hild. ‘Where could I go? If I stayed in Ludlow, Rodric would no doubt have found and reclaimed me, to sell me on again, no doubt. And I prefer my chances with Fauvelle here,’ she indicated the horse. ‘She has been a good companion to me. I wanted to make sure that wherever she goes she is treated as she deserves to be. I think she will be content with you,’ she glanced over at Cenred, a shy smile on her face. ‘You seem a kind man,’ she added in a halfwhisper. And what about you? Cenred thought. Don’t you deserve to be treated kindly too? He turned his attention back to the road. Ludlow’s buildings were becoming small in the distance behind them. It was time they mounted and made some ground towards home. He helped Hild up onto Fauvelle’s back, neither rider or horse seemingly concerned as to the lack of saddle. It was as if the two were made for each other. He looked over at her sitting proudly on the horse. Free of it’s covering, her glorious hair streamed about her shoulders. She was lovely, beautiful even, but so delicate, vulnerable, and young! Too young.
She deserved a better life than to be someone else’s lackey. She deserved care and attention and a place to live safely. Could he offer her that? He did not need or want a slave. He lived simply, alone in his small house within the castle grounds, with his beloved horses in the stables close by for company. And if he took her home with him – no, he could not take the chance of her being branded with a reputation she did not deserve. What would Sir Robert say? Would there be work and bed for her in his master’s household, perhaps? Somehow he could not picture that as her future either. She seemed too delicate and frail for heavy work, and yet he sensed she carried a strength and a dignity beyond her years. As they rode on in silence, his mind went to another time and another woman.
Berta could not have been any more different to Hild. She had been loud and brash and sensuous, with her dark hair and wild eyes. She had seduced him into her bed, when he had been too young and inexperienced to resist her. She had used him, he had discovered that later. Married to a much older man, and wanting the son her husband had failed to give her, she had selected Cenred to provide her with one. Nine months later she had birthed a daughter, and blamed him for the child being the wrong sex. She had discarded him as her lover without a second thought as she moved on to another who might serve her purpose better. He realised, with a twinge of guilt, that his daughter would be around Hild’s age now. The daughter he would never know. She was out there somewhere and he had no idea if she were safe, happy, protected. He had been denied the chance of fathering her. The thought brought him up short, and instinctively he reined his horse to a standstill. Hild drew Fauvelle alongside him, a puzzled look on her face. - 80 -
He knew then what he must do. He closed his eyes briefly and took a steadying breath. ‘You deserve to be well treated, cared for and protected, Hild. You, like Fauvelle, deserve to have a life where you are free to be all you were made to be. I wish I could offer you a father’s love and protection, but you are not my child and sadly I am not your father.’ He paused. ‘I cannot offer you much, I live very simply. But I can offer you a home, security, and my care. I believe you have not known kindness for a long time, and I will promise you kindness. I will demand nothing of you, Hild. Nothing,’ he emphasised, ‘that you are not willing to give from your heart.’ She was still looking at him, her eyes questioning. He reached across and took one of her small white hands in his large calloused one. She did not try to pull it back, which was all he needed to give him courage enough to speak again. ‘Will you marry me, Hild?’ This short story was inspired by characters that feature in the upcoming second novel by Joy Margetts. ‘The Pilgrim’ is due for publication on 22nd July 2022, and will be available to buy from all the usual places.
For more information go to www.joymargetts.com
Joy Margetts has loved writing for as long as she can remember. A retired nurse, mother of two, and a new grandparent, she also has a lifelong interest in history, and loves nothing better than visiting ancient monuments or burying herself in archive material. She was brought up in the South of England but for the last twenty five years has made her home on the beautiful North Wales coast. More information on Joy and her writing, and her personal blog, can be found here www.joymargetts.com
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Flowers by Sylva Fae
https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/sylva-fae/
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© Sylva Fae
Editor In Chief—Hannah Howe The Editor-in-Chief is the key figure in every publication. Hannah Howe works closely with the editorial staff to ensure the success of each publication. She is the author of the Sam Smith Mystery Series, the Ann’s War Mystery Series and Saving Grace. Get to know more about Hannah, her projects and her work on Mom’s Favorite Reads website here: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/hannah-howe/
Executive Editor | Graphic Designer—Melanie P. Smith The Executive Editor / Graphic Designer is responsible for developing the layout and design of MFR eMagazine. She also works hard to create new covers each month that captures the essence of each publication. In addition to the editorial staff of Mom’s Favorite Reads, Melanie P. Smith also produces Connections eMagazine. She is a multi-genre author of Criminal Suspense, Police Procedural, Paranormal and Romance novels. Get to know more about Melanie, her projects, and her work on Mom’s Favorite Reads website here: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/melanie-p-smith/
Managing Editor, Art Director & Proofreader —Sylva Fae Our Managing Editor oversees the physical content of the magazine and coordinates the production schedule. She administers the day-to-day operations of the publication, manages submissions, sets realistic schedules and organizes each edition of the magazine. Sylva is is responsible for the amazing graphics that appear throughout the publication each month. She works hard to ensure the images capture the spirit and message our author's convey in their articles and stories. In addition, As Copy Editor, Sylva works hard behind the scenes to correct any grammatical, typos and spelling errors throughout the magazine. Sylva Fae—Mum of three, fairy woodland owner, and author of children’s books. https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/sylva-fae/
Copy Editors / Proofreaders — Wendy H. Jones and Sheena MacLead Our Copy Editors for Mom’s work hard to ensure content is appropriate and free of grammatical and spelling errors. Wendy H. Jones is also our Feature Editor and works hard to provide content that is interesting, informative and professional. She’s the award winning, international best-selling author of the DI Shona McKenzie Mysteries, Cass Claymore Investigates Mysteries, Fergus and Flora Mysteries, Bertie the Buffalo children’s books and the Writing Matters books for writers. She is also a writing and marketing coach and the President of the Scottish Association of Writers. You can learn more about Wendy on her website: https://www.wendyhjones.com/
Sheena Macleod lectured at the University of Dundee, where she gained her PhD. She now lives in a seaside town in Scotland. Reign of the Marionettes is her first novel. She currently has two additional books: Tears of Strathnaver and Women of Courage—A Forgotten Figure—Frances Connolly. You can learn more about Sheena on her website: https://www.sheenas-books.co.uk/
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Story Editor—Allison Symes Allison Symes works diligently each month to generate flash fiction writing prompts that will stimulate creativity in our authors and entertain our readers. As Story Editor, she also ensures each entry is professional and polished. Allison
Symes is an award winning, published flash fiction and short story writer. She also writes a weekly column on topics of interest for writers for online magazine, Chandler's Ford Today. Allison's fiction has appeared in anthologies (CafeLit and Bridge House Publishing) over many years. Allison judges competitions, runs workshops, and is always happy to talk/write about flash fiction writing. https://allisonsymescollectedworks.com
Marketing Director—Grant Leishman Our Marketing Director, Grant Leishman, oversees marketing campaigns and social media engagement for our magazine. After an exciting career in accounting and journalism, he now focuses on his true calling—writing. Get to know more about Grant on Mom’s Favorite Reads website here: https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/grant-leishman/
Our Content Writers are freelance authors who contribute articles, short stories, etc. to the eMagazine on a regular basis. They work hard to make our magazine interesting and professional. Get to know our Content Writers here: Poppy Flynn — https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/poppy-flynn/ T.E. Hodden — https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/t-e-hodden/ Stan Phillips — https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/stan-phillips/ Father Ian Maher — https://imaherblog.wordpress.com/ Alison Rasmussen — https://paynesgreyillustration.com/ Chantel Bellehumeur — https://author-chantal-bellehumeur.webnode.com/products-/ Joy Margetts — www.joymargetts.com Angela Abraham — https://www.descriptionari.com/ Lisa Shambrook — www.amaranthalchemy.etsy.com. Becky Hemsley — https://www.facebook.com/talkingtothewild/
Discover amazing authors… https://moms-favorite-reads.com/moms-authors/
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