TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Making Christmas Traditions

December 23, 2019December 23, 2019Donna L

With Christmas just two days away, it’s time for me to reflect on other Christmas memories. I realize those memories provide an insight into the kind of writer I want to be in the future…

Circa 1971…The Ghosts of Christmas Past

When I was small, Christmas was probably the happiest time of my life. We were extremely poor, but my mother always managed to make Christmas magical to me. We had some family traditions back then that laid the foundation of how I celebrate the season today. There was always the trip out in the country to hand pick our real Christmas tree. Then came the stringing of popcorn and red berries, along with handmade ornaments to decorate it. Huge globes of colored lights twinkled in the darkness as we sat looking at our work of art on cold December nights. Homemade hot cocoa and decorated treats made by my mother are so real to me that I can almost taste it today. My brother even got good at learning how to unwrap and then rewrap our gifts on Christmas eve without our parents ever finding out. And I can’t forget the antique musical church that had a wind up key in the back. How I used to beg to wind up that church. I would sit for hours as Away In The Manger played and the doors of the church swung open to display the lighted nativity inside. One Christmas I had strep throat and my mother forbade me to speak but when she left the room I would whisper sing that song because even at that age I was starting my own holiday traditions. That church still holds a place of honor by every Christmas tree I display today.

Circa 1991…The Ghosts of Christmas Present

My son is about 4 years old and wants a baby doll for Christmas. He is old enough to get caught up in the excitement of the holidays and I am a single mom on a very tight budget. We have no money for a Christmas tree so he and I take green poster board and draw a tree. We tape it up on our wall and color homemade ornaments to tape to it (thanks, Mom, for the memories of homemade ornaments from Christmases past). I drape the only store bought item I have, gold tinsel, all over the tree and I set a small table under it for our meager presents. On Christmas Eve we drive around to look at the pretty Christmas lights on other people’s houses, and my son is worried Santa will come before we get back. We arrive back at our small apartment to see the lights of an airplane overhead and my son is SURE this is Santa. He becomes upset because we are not asleep in bed yet. I reassure him that Santa has many stops to make before he gets to our place. We race up the stairs to put out cookies and milk for Santa, carrots and peanut butter/raisin treats for the reindeer and tumble into bed so we can fall asleep before the big guy arrives. I even promise my son Santa will be able to get into our apartment even though we have no fireplace because we leave the front door unlocked for him this night. I will never forget the surprise on my son’s face when the next morning he discovers grass clippings on the floor leading to the door and all the treats half eaten. But I will carry with me the wonder of the holidays always as my son unwraps his present from Santa to find the baby doll he names Fred…paid for from many pennies saved over the previous year.

Circa 2019…The Ghosts of Christmas Future

My son is grown up now, married, and works as a traveling nurse. I have tried to teach him about the magic of Christmas and the strength of tradition but he is young and is more tied to the techno world of today than the traditions of the past. For myself, this past year has been a year of surprises and growth for me as a writer. I have made new friends, learned new lessons, and set new goals for the upcoming year. But I have not forgotten what my mother taught me so many years ago. Traditions create a foundation families can cling to if the future turns dark. And I can hold my own holiday traditions close to me, my Christmas Memories, to help flavor all the writing I do in the future. And who knows? Maybe one of my stories will help create someone else’s Christmas Memories in their future!

Merry Christmas to all my online friends and may the new year be one of fabulous wishes coming true for us all…

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If you’re looking for that last minute gift, check out my books on Amazon and on other online retailers. From picture books to chapter books, young adult fantasy to inspirational journal essays, there’s something for everyone on your Christmas list!

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Best selling, award-winning author, Donna L Martin, has been writing since she was eight years old. She is a 4th Degree Black Belt in TaeKwonDo by day and a ‘ninja’ writer of children’s picture books, chapter books, young adult novels and inspirational essays by night. Donna is a BOOK NOOK REVIEWS host providing the latest book reviews on all genres of children’s books, and the host of WRITERLY WISDOM, a resource series for writers. Donna is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators and Children’s Book Insider. She is a lover of dark chocolate, going to the beach and adding to her growing book collection. Donna’s latest chapter book series is called HISTORY’S MYSTERIES. Book One, Ship of Dreams, is available in eBook and print form from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books A Million, and other online retailers. Also, coming to the Titanic Museums in Branson, Missouri, and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Book Two, A Chocolate Train Wreck, was released in November.

TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Gifts To Remember

December 16, 2019Donna L

As we move closer to Christmas Day and edging toward the end of the year, I’m thinking back to my childhood and some of the Christmas gifts that made a lasting impression on my young mind.

The earliest Christmas gift I remember was when I was about three or four years old. Santa brought me a large plastic frog attached to a long yellow tube with a bulb at the end of it. If you squeezed the bulb, air was forced through the tube and the frog jumped. I loved that frog, thought it was the coolest toy ever, and spent many hours playing with it.

When I was about 5 or 6 years old, I received a baby doll I named Billy. With movable arms and legs, I loved on him for many years. I remember the time a dog got ahold of Billy and he ended up with one less leg than he arrived with. Not to be undone, I simply tore off his other leg and let him move around by bouncing on his butt. Long after I grew up and moved, Billy was stored away, just waiting for me to return. When my parents died and I became the executor of the estate, I uncovered my old friend tucked away in a box upstairs in the attic and took him back with me to Dallas. Unfortunately, Billy wasn’t able to travel with me when I later moved to Tennessee and I hope he found a new forever home where a child would love him as much as I did.

But my favorite Christmas present from my childhood was the year my sister and I received matching blue bicycles. I was about 9 years old and all we wanted to do was be able to sail down the road on those things. We ended up crashing them and bending the frames on our very first solo rides, but THAT is the topic of another story. Simple to say that bike allowed me a greater sense of freedom than walking ever would, and my favorite destination, of course, was our local library.

I’m not a child any more and I’ve seen a lot of Christmases, but I still get excited with unwrapping each gift which comes my way. It never matters what is inside each package. The monetary value means nothing to me. It’s the thought the giver put into each gift that touches my heart more than words can say. It’s probably why I put my heart and soul into each story I write…to share a little magic I found during this time of the year, whenever I can…

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If you’re short on time, just remember books make great #stockingstuffers! My books are available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online retailers. #StoryCatcherPublishing #books #christmas

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TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Keeping the Awe

December 9, 2019December 9, 2019Donna L

tree

When I was growing up in the swamps of Louisiana, this was about the time my father would load my mother and the four kids into the car to go in search of THE CHRISTMAS TREE!

My father owned a small tract of marsh land outside of town and there were some trees on it. Every year we would make that trip to select a sturdy tree, chop it down, and bring it back home. There, mother would hammer the red and green tree stand to the bottom of it, toss a couple of aspirin into the water to help prevent the needles from shedding and then she would let us loose with the decorating.

Children today would not be impressed with our cut out decorations wrapped in shiny foil and tied to the branches with bits of yarn. They wouldn’t spend hours threading popcorn and holly berries on string before laying it on the branches. And they wouldn’t have created color garlands from strips of construction paper stuck together from vats of homemade glue paste.

Finally came the strands of tinsel that would clump together if you didn’t throw them around the tree just right. I was in awe of how a simple tree cut down from the swamp could be turned into a magical stopping point for Santa Claus every year.

I hope as I grow older, I continue to remain in awe during this time of the year. To drink in all the magic of the season and hang on to the simple memories of what is important during Christmas…sharing the magic and making memories…

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!

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Amelia is traveling the world to let everyone know HISTORY’S MYSTERIES: Ship of Dreams and HISTORY’S MYSTERIES: The Chocolate Train Wreck is on sale right now…just in time for Christmas! But hurry, only 16 more days until Christmas!

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TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Turkey Day Means Turkey Tails

November 25, 2019November 25, 2019Donna L

I consider Thanksgiving week to be about the middle of my holiday season. It starts with the month of October and hopefully cooler weather, leading into Halloween. Then comes November with the dip in temperature, frosty mornings, and the sense of time running out before the big man in the red suit arrives come December.

Friends close to me know I’m rather touchy about Thanksgiving. Some people gloss over celebrating during this month, saying, “Thanksgiving’s only one day”. I would argue Halloween is “only one day” as well, but I know a lot of people who decorate or celebrate that spooky holiday all throughout October.

When I was growing up in Louisiana, I would wring out every ounce of holiday celebrating I could so the more reasons to celebrate…Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas…the better my childhood!

My mother really threw herself into the holidays…allowing us to celebrate each month in it’s own way. Turkey day on the bayou would include traditional side dishes like mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, green beans, etc. However, you could also find things like jambalaya, or dirty rice on the menu. But the one thing you would ALWAYS find at our table is the turkey tail.

My father and I were the main enjoyers of this particular part of the bird. We would have a yearly debate over who would get the prize and most of the time I would win. Even as an adult today, I get excited when November comes around. I go to one of the grocery stores in my area that actually carry multiple turkey tails in a package…just like they knew I was coming!

There may even be some people out there reading this post in horror at the mere thought of trying that poultry delicacy, but the way I look at it, I’d trade you a leg for that turkey tail any day…

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books

They make great stocking stuffers!

HISTORY’S MYSTERIES: Ship of Dreams
HISTORY’S MYSTERIES: The Chocolate Train Wreck

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TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Don’t Rain On My Parade

November 11, 2019November 10, 2019Donna L

Fall cocoa.jpg

Fall is probably my favorite time of the year. I’m far enough north to enjoy the beautiful fall colors. Far enough north to have to wear a jacket to ward off the crisp autumn breeze once the season changes. And Fall always reminds me of growing up in the swamps where my mother performed the same ritual every school year when the weather changed from muggy, humid summer to cooler, wetter Fall.

I love rainy weather. The steady drum of raindrops on tin roofs. The drip, drip of droplets off leaves and gutters. And the sidewalk puddles to dance around or stomp through. But the further into Fall, the greater the chance my mother would have to prepare for her “babies” to slosh into the house after battling wind and rain on the way home from school.

There were three things I could always depend on after a long, rain drenched walk home on a chilly Fall afternoon…

HOT TOWELS

Our houses always had space heaters. Those clunky…take up a lot of space…heaters that could burn a layer of skin off your backside if you got too close, but offered little other warmth outside it’s immediate vicinity. But the one thing those heaters COULD provide was super toasty warm towels Mother would wrap us in once we shed our wet clothes, steam rising from shivering bodies as we dried off.

HOT COCOA

Cooler weather always meant the arrival of Mother’s homemade hot cocoa. Using a large gumbo pot, she would always have a vat of that chocolate deliciousness ready for us once we were in dry clothes again.

A WHOLE HEAP OF LOVE

My mother wasn’t a person to shower her children with words of love. She was a no nonsense woman who fiercely protected her children and did everything in her power to provide for their health and well being. To me, those towels and mugs of hot cocoa wrapped me in more love than words ever could. Even now, decades later, all I have to do is close my eyes during a November rain to bring back the warmth and love of my childhood homecomings…

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The winners of the Ship of Dreams Amazon reviewers contest have been selected. Congratulations to all the winners! I only have “handles” for many of you. Please private message me with your names and addresses so I can send you your prizes!

@thewytchinghourblog

@drdeacondog

@bryanlunsford3425

@aliciafreeman40

@shayleenem

@roseharrydawson

@deerwood

Carrie Belaire

Holly McCoy

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TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Wash Your Troubles Away

November 4, 2019November 4, 2019Donna L

If you look in most homes today, you will probably find a modern washer/dryer combination tucked away in some corner of the house. For those, like myself, who either don’t have adequate room for those modern conveniences, or don’t have the financial ability to pay for a set, there is always the local laundrymat. But go further back in time…to my childhood…and you wouldn’t find even those luxuries at my house.

My earliest memories of laundry day is my mother pulling out a large metal tub and wash board like this one. She would scrub until her knuckles were red and raw, before ringing out each piece by hand and then taking each load outside to hang on the clothesline. Backbreaking work for my mother but necessary when you have a husband and four active children to look after.

Next came the wringer washing machine…a contraption with two huge rollers ran by a crank positioned over a tub. Mother still had to use the washboard but at least it saved her hands from the wringing. She still used the clothesline but by then, I was old enough and tall enough to do the clothesline work for her.

Finally came the day when my mother had saved enough money to buy an actual washing machine. Wedged between our old bathtub and the linen closet in our narrow bathroom, Mother worshiped at its rattling, clanging alter for most of my teenage years. She never did save up enough for a dryer, but at least she was able to retire from rapping her knuckles on that metal washboard.

These days I use the convenience of a local laundrymat, but a part of me misses the days of hanging clothes out in the fresh air and later watching dragonflies flit from clothespin to clothespin in the summer sunshine. I did most of my daydreaming during that time…creating poetry I would chant to myself before dashing back inside to write them down. I enjoyed walking between the rows of drying wash, hiding from the world around me and letting my imagination carry me off to distant lands where knights and dragons awaited to save this damsel in distress.

Writers have a knack for creating stories, no matter their surroundings, and even a steamy, old-fashioned wash day can carry an aspiring future author away on a grand adventure…

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STAR CATCHER YOUNG WRITER’S CONTEST PRIZES

*** I’m WAIVING THE ENTRY FEE!!***

It’s now FREE to send your short stories in for a chance to be published in an anthology. 25 winners and 25 prizes! Tell all your young, writerly friends from ages 10-18 to check out the contest rules by clicking on the STAR CATCHER YOUNG WRITER’S CONTEST tab above.

Hurry…entry deadline is Friday, November 15th!

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TALES FROM THE BAYOU: My Porch Sanctuary

October 28, 2019October 27, 2019Donna L

I had the long-awaited opportunity to sit on my backyard patio yesterday. For someone allergic to the sun and who becomes violently ill from the heat/humidity found in East Tennessee, I take solace in the fact Autumn is finally here, and with it the chance to seek out my patio sanctuary whenever I get the chance.

Growing up in a small, swamp town in southern Louisiana, every porch or patio on every rental house I lived in while growing up held a special place in my heart. Even the long, enclosed porch of the house my parents were finally able to buy on a poor cook’s salary, is forever etched in my heart for different reasons.

Back in the early 70’s when I was much younger, the porch of each rental house was a place where my sister and I could play with our dolls…not cooped up inside, but still under the watchful eye of our mother. I could drag out chairs and blankets to build a fort or clubhouse where I entertained my stuffed toys with grass tea and mud cookies. My sister and I even used those porches as our stage as we sang to an imaginary audience sitting patiently on our front lawn…cheering us on as we gave them everything we had in the way of fashion shows and singing talent.

But it was the last house I lived in before moving to the big city of Lafayette that stays with me the most. It was there I shucked a mountain of corn so that my family wouldn’t go hungry during winter time on the bayou. It was there I could swing on that rickety wooden contraption my mother called a porch swing…squeaking to the rhythm of my toes pushing my self back and forth while buried in the mesmerizing story of my latest library treasure.

So many memories from so many porches…they were all my sanctuaries where I could turn my back on the stark reality of my family’s poverty, or even the cruelty of being ostracized at my school. There, I was the queen of my front porch palace…the ruler of my young writing destiny…and I could imagine a world of MY choosing…all for the cost of a little push of a worn out swing on a well-loved porch…

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STAR CATCHER YOUNG WRITER’S CONTEST PRIZES

*** I’m WAIVING THE ENTRY FEE!!***

Hurry…entry deadline is Friday, November 15th!

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TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Smells Like Fall

September 23, 2019September 23, 2019Donna L

This hot, Tennessee September does nothing to remind me of growing up in the swamps of Louisiana, except for the humidity.

Septembers in the swamps were usually wet. If you weren’t running away from hurricanes, then you are wearing galoshes and raincoats as you are dodging downpours walking the mile or more to school every day. We didn’t have the pretty fall leaves like you do around here most years. Our trees went from green to brown and there was nothing fun about having to rake up a bunch of dead brown leaves from the yard…especially when you never knew what critters might be buried under that pile of wet, rotting leaves.

But despite all of that, it was my favorite time of year back then and now. The weather starts to get a little cooler. Mornings get a little chilly…sometimes even with a bit of frost on the windows or leaves and it won’t be too soon before you can see your breath fogging up things on your way to school.

It also meant it was almost time for the annual Fall Festival at the Catholic Church in town. My father was Catholic, although not a practicing one until very near his death and my mother was Methodist. Mother raised her children in the Methodist faith, but to her, church was church and the summertime meant Vacation Bible School at both Methodist and Baptist churches, and carnivals at the Catholic Church come the Fall.

There always seemed something mysterious about the Catholic church in my hometown. It was built in an almost Spanish mission style and whenever I walked inside those gates, I always wondered if a tribunal sat somewhere on the other side, just waiting to hear my confessions. Despite my nervousness, the Fall Festival was a time for music, dancing, carnival games, good Cajun food, and my favorite…bingo!

I never played more than a card at a time, but watched in fascination other people who scattered six or more cards in front of them at one time…brooding over them like a mother hen as they covered each number with a colored tile until the excitement of being able to shout “BINGO!” propelled them from their chairs in search of the prizes they had won. I only remember winning one year and it was a beauty. A robin egg blue porcelain lady’s cologne bottle in the shape of a high laced boot, with a dark round blue velvet pincushion on top. To this day, I still don’t know what sewing had to do with the perfume in that bottle but back then, my 9 year old mind thought I had won the French lottery!

Writing was a bit like playing bingo. Putting all your cards out on the table and playing the best way you can. Investing your blood, sweat, and tears in the possibility you might have a winning story. And when you finally hear those sweet words “SOLD”, it’s like winning the bingo jackpot and you float to the stage to accept your prize of a publishing contract and go home happy you were brave enough to even be in the game at all!

Ahhh, don’t you just love Fall?

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HM-SHIP-OF-DREAMS (cover)

Amelia Earmouse travels back through time to uncover little known secrets. You may THINK you know your history, but wait until you see what Amelia uncovers in this latest volume of HISTORY’S MYSTERIES!

In Book One, Ship of Dreams, ten-year-old Margaret can hardly wait to see the largest ship ever built visit Southampton! Life is already hard for her family in the spring of 1912, but the coal workers’ strike could turn a bad situation into a deadly one. Margaret hopes to see the great Titanic leave on its maiden voyage, but will the strike prevent it from happening?

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Best selling, award-winning author, Donna L Martin, has been writing since she was eight years old. She is a 4th Degree Black Belt in TaeKwonDo by day and a ‘ninja’ writer of children’s picture books, chapter books, young adult novels and inspirational essays by night. Donna is a BOOK NOOK REVIEWS host providing the latest book reviews on all genres of children’s books, and the host of WRITERLY WISDOM, a resource series for writers. Donna is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators and Children’s Book Insider. She is a lover of dark chocolate, going to the beach and adding to her growing book collection. Donna’s latest book, HISTORY’S MYSTERIES: Ship of Dreams, is available in eBook and print form from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books A Million, and other online retailers. Also, coming soon to the Titanic Museums in Branson, Missouri, and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee!

TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Shucking Time

September 16, 2019September 16, 2019Donna L

It’s days like today…hot, sultry, last days of summer days…that reminds me of summer time in the swamps of Louisiana. When you come from a poor family and grow up in a small Cajun town, you have to be creative to keep food on the table.

And my mother was as creative as they come..

Poverty and pride do not work well together, so my mother had no problem haggling with the local farmers who would come through town, driving up and down our little streets, calling out what they had for sale. If you were interested, you would simply flag them down. The farmer would stop , pull out an old-timey scale and the bargaining would begin.

Mother usually had one or two farmers who would come by our house at the end of their routes. The two of them would haggle and before you know it, money exchanged hands and Mother would basically scoop up the “rejects” of the day for pennies on the dollar. This might be where I inherited my “treasure-hunting” spirit.

There would be bruised tomatoes where my mother would cut away the bad and can what was left. I remember one time in late summer, one of the farmers stopped by the house with what amounted to a truckload of corn. He was tired and wanted to go home while my mother knew how much that corn would help stretch our food budget in the coming winter months. A few minutes of haggling and our closed in front porch was literally overrun with fresh corn waiting to be shucked.

If you’ve never shucked corn, here’s a little bit of advice…

WEAR GLOVES!

Those leaves surrounding the ears of corn have razor sharp edges and can slice up your fingers real quick. But the thought of munching down on a fresh from the garden that morning ear of corn topped with my mother’s hand churned butter was a great incentive. All I have to do is close my eyes and that mountain of corn comes back to me.

I tackle my writing like I did that corn and tomatoes. I shuck away the unnecessary parts of each story and trim away the dead weight. All that’s left, hopefully, will be a tasty story to share with my readers…

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Best selling, award-winning author, Donna L Martin, has been writing since she was eight years old. She is a 4th Degree Black Belt in TaeKwonDo by day and a ‘ninja’ writer of children’s picture books, chapter books, young adult novels and inspirational essays by night. Donna is a BOOK NOOK REVIEWS host providing the latest book reviews on all genres of children’s books, and the host of WRITERLY WISDOM, a resource series for writers. Donna is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators and Children’s Book Insider. She is a lover of dark chocolate, going to the beach and adding to her growing book collection. Donna’s latest book, HISTORY’S MYSTERIES: Ship of Dreams, available now in eBook and print form from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books A Million, and other online retailers. Also coming to the Titanic museums in Branson & Pigeon Forge soon!

TALES FROM THE BAYOU: Dodging Mother Nature

September 10, 2019September 10, 2019Donna L

hurricane

I’ve always had a connection with hurricane season. Growing up in the swamps of Louisiana, it always surprised me that our school year began when it did. The first day of school almost always matched up with the arrival of the latest hurricane or tropical storm that chose to stop by.

I would miss the first days of school…like everyone else in my hometown…as we battened down the hatches and weathered Mother Nature’s fury. I always knew when the old kerosene lanterns came out and my mother started filling up the bathtub with fresh water, a major storm was about to hit our little abode.

Mother had a knack for keeping four young children calm during the howling winds and torrential rains by making the fact the electricity went out more of a game than something to be nervous about. As I got a little bit older, there were even times when she would take us outside when the eye of the storm was overhead so we could see the beauty and power of the elements. Then it was a mad dash to get back inside before the howling started up again when the backside of the hurricane passed over.

I feel for the people in the Caribbean. There were many years we were trapped in our house with no way out because Mother didn’t drive and my father was stuck in the middle of the Gulf on an oil rig. And there were other times when my entire family stood huddled in the high school gymnasium as my father lifted me up to look out the windows just in time to see rooftops and trashcans go sailing across the street from us. Later, he would drive us back home, taking a very long detour because of the aftermath of flooding, and even to my young eyes, I recognized the devastation Mother Nature could bring to one tiny town on the bayou…

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Best selling, award-winning author, Donna L Martin, has been writing since she was eight years old. She is a 4th Degree Black Belt in TaeKwonDo by day and a ‘ninja’ writer of children’s picture books, chapter books, young adult novels and inspirational essays by night. Donna is a BOOK NOOK REVIEWS host providing the latest book reviews on all genres of children’s books, and the host of WRITERLY WISDOM, a resource series for writers. Donna is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators and Children’s Book Insider. She is a lover of dark chocolate, going to the beach and adding to her growing book collection. Donna’s latest book, HISTORY’S MYSTERIES: Ship of Dreams, will be available in eBook and print form from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books A Million, and other online retailers on October 14th, 2019.

Circa 1971…The Ghosts of Christmas Past

Circa 1991…The Ghosts of Christmas Present

Circa 2019…The Ghosts of Christmas Future

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!

HOT TOWELS

HOT COCOA

A WHOLE HEAP OF LOVE

***WINNERSS***WINNERS***WINNERS***

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