NOVEMBER - Transitioning to Winter

 by Judy Ann Davis

                                          HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

It’s November—our transition into winter. Bare tree limbs shiver in stiff winds. Wayward leaves scurry across the chilly ground, and clouds gather in gray skies. Inside, people search closets and drawers for wool and flannel clothing, and warm shoes and boots.

It’s the time when everyone dashes outside to get their homes battened down and ready for the first snows to fly. The bushes and trees have been trimmed, and perennial plants are leveled to the ground for a spring rebirth. Leaves from trees, now drab brown, wet, or maybe crispy and dry, have been raked or swept up in lawn mowers. In our small development here in Central Pennsylvania, when one mower roared to life, another followed shortly, and the race was on to see which house finished first.

November brings back many memories from childhood in Northeastern Pennsylvania. I remember school days when we watched out the windows in our classrooms to look for the first snowflakes. For farm kids, snow meant outside fun as we rode sleds, shovels or saucers down a slippery slope. There were outside chores, too. Clearing snow from the front porch, sidewalk, back steps and entrance were unspoken activities after every storm. Almost daily, we hauled stacks of wood from outside into our cellar to dry and feed our hungry, wood-fired furnace.                                     

I loved our cellar furnace. The light sweet smoky smell of wood still reminds me of a toasty warmed-by-air ducts ending at metal floor registers above. In high school and before bedtime, I would find a register, grab a blanket and wrap it tent-like around me to trap the heat while I did my homework.

And I’ll never forget the tasty winter foods of November. Falling temperatures brought warmer hearty dishes to our table—roasts, ham, meatloaf, stuffed cabbage, and stews, to name a few. Delicious scents from homemade soups like chicken noodle, beet, creamy potato, or vegetable beef wafted through the rooms. Hot chocolate, cider, tea, and coffee made winter meals even more savory and inviting. Thanksgiving was a feast. If we didn’t have a turkey, we enjoyed a chicken or roast. Mother froze or canned every imaginable vegetable, so cranberries were our only purchased item for the holidays.

As the eleventh month of the year, November can rightfully boast it’s the transition from fall to winter. It also announces we are approaching the end of the year. For children who love and wait for winter, it's so much more as they ask the curious and often blissful question swirling in their heads and hearts—will it snow today?  

JUNE ~ The Pianist

(Book 1 of the Musical Christmas Series)
NOW ON SALE $0.99

99¢ SALE--AND AN ANECDOTE!

 By Caroline Clemmons

When we purchased our first home, we threw ourselves into landscaping. Hero planted a large garden that included a row of Thompson seedless grape vines. The trees we planted were silver maple and sycamore. We’d been there about two years when Hero received a lucrative job offer from a firm in California. A coworker in Hero’s office bought the house. We moved to Cupertino, near San Francisco and San Jose. We only stayed in CA a year, but that’s another story.

Several months went by and Hero called the man who’d bought the house. “Hey, Lynn, how are you liking the house?”

“We love the house really well, but not the yard. Those trees you sold us died.”

Hero was incredulous. “How could they have died? They were in really good condition when we left.”

“Well, you might have thought so, but all the leaves fell off and the branches are bare as skeletons. I’ll have to dig them up and replant.”

Hero said, “Lynn, it’s winter. That’s why the leaves fell off. They’ll leaf back out this spring.”

Lynn sounded petulant. “That’s what your neighbor said when I roto-tilled the grapevines. She came over and took some of the roots home with her.”

One of the most common trees in the Dallas-Fort Worth area is the live oak. If you’re familiar with this tree, you know that, although it is deciduous, it grows new leaves all year so the branches are never bare. I think Lynn must have lived around live oaks all his life—or maybe he never paid attention to the trees until he had a mortgage.

If you’re in the mood for a bargain read, MURDOCH’S BRIDE, book 3 of my Loving a Rancher Series, is on sale for 99¢ through Thursday. Most of the book takes place in a couple of snowstorms and freezing cold. Isn’t that what you need to cool off during this hot weather? Here’s the url in case you haven’t read this book yet https://www.amazon.com/Murdochs-Bride-Loving-Rancher-Book-ebook/dp/B07G2JY77F/

 

WISHING FOR A MERRY LITTLE CHIRISTMAS

                                                    by Judy Ann Davis

This year, there was nothing my husband or I wanted for Christmas. My only request, since we decided to stay in Central Pennsylvania this year and not winter in Florida, was to get a real wreath for the back door so I could smell the pine every time I entered the house from the back door. I’m a farm kid, and real pine scent brings back warm memories.

I think, when we all look back at Christmas next year, we’ll remember how important our lives, our family members’ and friends’ lives, our warm homes and nourishing food, and all those things we took for granted were far more important than any physical gifts in 2020.

So on Christmas Eve, instead of a long post, I leave you with a few lines from “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” by Dr. Seuss. How spot on it is for this Year 2020!

…So he paused. And the Grinch put his hand to his ear.
And he did hear a sound rising over the snow.
It started in low. Then it started to grow.
But the sound wasn't sad! Why, this sound sounded merry!
It couldn't be so! But it WAS merry! VERY!
He stared down at Whoville! The Grinch popped his eyes!
Then he shook! What he saw was a shocking surprise!
Every Who down in Whoville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any presents at all!
He HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming! IT CAME!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!
And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,
Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?"
"It came without ribbons! It came without tags!"
"It came without packages, boxes or bags!"
And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store."
"Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!”…

~ * ~

"Have yourself a merry little Christmas…let your heart be light. 

From now on, (let’s hope) our troubles will (soon) be out of sight!"

 My Musical Christmas Series is a fun, light read that will keep you in the holiday spirit!

JUNE ~ The Pianist        ADELENE ~ The Violinist       LUCY ~ The Clarinetist - $0.99

Thanksgiving and a "A Musical Christmas" - by Judy Ann Davis

Thanksgiving, a national holiday in our United States, originated as a harvest festival. The first Thanksgiving was celebrated by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World in October 1621. As a farmer’s kid, I especially like the idea of celebrating the fall harvest. It means all the hard work in the fields is done for the year.

Thanksgiving has been celebrated on the last Thursday of the month since the time of Abraham Lincoln. In 1941, President Roosevelt made the final permanent change by signing a bill making Thanksgiving Day fall on the fourth Thursday of November, regardless of whether it is the last Thursday of the month or not. This year it falls on November 28^th.

I’m a fan of Thanksgiving. It’s a day of celebration where gifts are forgotten and the food is plentiful. I love the smell of a turkey roasting with the scent of sage and spices filling the entire house. And I am a huge fan of pumpkin pie piled high with whipped cream.

Now Available

In the northern states, Thanksgiving also is a reminder that Old Man Winter is on his way with flying fat snowflakes and sparkling white snowbanks. For many, the national holiday also heralds the start of the holiday season as stores and shops blare carols, hymns, and contemporary songs of Christmas from their speakers.  And Christmas music is something I can get behind, even if I dislike shopping for presents.

Releasing Soon!

This year, I created a “Musical Christmas Series,” consisting of three novellas. My first one, JUNE ~ The Pianist, was released the end of October. Each female main character plays a musical instrument and has a story to tell. I’m excited to reveal that ADELENE ~ The Violinist is also releasing at the end of this month in time for the Christmas season. LUCY will be released next year. What is her instrument? It’s a secret. [wink, wink]

Wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy the holidays. The next time my post comes up, it will be Christmas Eve.

LINKS:    JUNE on Kindle   JUNE  on Nook      

ADELENE on Kindle
Amazon Author Page    

Facebook      Twitter       

My Blog    Website   

 

Snow in Pennsylvania

by Judy Ann Davis

This year, winter snowflakes arrived in Central Pennsylvania on November 15^th without giving advanced notice. If you didn’t get all your outdoor chores finished, like trimming the shrubs, storing or covering the patio furniture, or shoving the barbecue grill undercover, you’ll now have to wait for a sunny day and first melt. Luckily, at the Davis house, we were able to get most winterizing finished. 

I’m a fan of November. It’s the month when we celebrate the first Thanksgiving of the Pilgrims as well as offering our gratitude for all we have. We gather with our family and friends together, without the hassle of presents, and enjoy good food and friendship.

It’s the month when we can snuggle down and enjoy the many smells of the season from the cinnamon and sugar in an apple pie baking in the oven to luscious, rich scent of a steaming cup of hot chocolate. Squash of all varieties become a staple fall accompaniment to a pork or beef roast. Cooked, baked, and roasted root vegetables such as carrots, turnips, beets, and potatoes, stored for winter use, appear on our holiday tables. These are our comfort foods. And they remind us as the temperatures fall that winter is around the corner.

My favorite dessert during November and December is pie. Pumpkin, apple, and pecan pies show up on our table during the holidays. Here is my favorite recipe for pecan pie:

Pecan Pie

4 eggs

2/3 cup sugar

l cup light corn syrup

½ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons melted butter (or margarine)

2 ½ tablespoons dark rum

1 cup (about 7 ounces) shelled pecans

1.    Beat eggs lightly in a large bowl. Stir in sugar, corn syrup, salt and butter, mixing just to blend. (Do not over beat.)  Stir in rum and pecans. Pour into a prepared, unbaked, 9-inch pastry shell.

2.    Bake in moderate oven (375 degrees) for 40 minutes or until filling is golden brown and firm to the light touch. Serve at room temperature with a bowl of lightly sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Do you have a favorite winter pie or dessert?

 If so, please share your seasonal choice in the comment box below. 

This month, I'm featuring my anthology of short stories:

UP ON THE ROOF AND OTHER STORIES

https://www.amazon.com/Roof-Other-Stories-Judy-Davis/dp/0999089609/ 

This is a collection of nineteen humorous and serious

short stories exploring the lives and relationships

of the young and old. 

These are clean, contemporary stories 

for an audience of all ages.

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Judy-Ann-Davis/e/B006GXN502/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JudyAnnDavis4 
Twitter ID:  JudyAnnDavis4 
Blog Link: “A Writer’s Revelations” ~  http://judyanndavis.blogspot.com/
Website: http://www.judyanndavis.com/
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4353662.Judy_Ann_Davis
Yahoo Groups:  wrppromo@yahoogroups.com and ahachat@yahoogroups.com and pennwriters@yahoogroups.com