Getting set for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I love the way families gather close, bound by shared love and history. One of my favorite parts of the holiday happens after the meal has been eaten and the dishes cleared. We sit around the long table talking and laughing. Invariably the conversation shifts to a "Do you remember when...?" mode and we reminisce about days gone by.

Every family has a history. I love to hear about other people's family stories. As a writer I'm lucky enough to be able to create families, and histories for them. And I'm fortunate that I can put my characters in my favorite spots in history.

Proclamations, a short American Rose story I wrote a few years ago, combines my love of history, romance and Thanksgiving. It's a sweet story, and shows that while not every Thanksgiving was easy, they are all memorable in some way.

Click TWRP- Proclamations to find the story.

Here's the blurb:

The War Between the States has been raging for two long years. In Virginia in 1863 Jolene Crane misses her fiance, Nate, more than words can say. Every moment that she's not busy taking care of household chores or working at the hospital, she's consumed by her longing for the man who holds her heart.

When Abraham Lincoln signs a proclamation declaring the fourth Thursday in November a day to be celebrated joyfully and thankfully, Jolene is determined not to celebrate the day. After all, what has she got to be thankful for? And the only proclamations that come to mind have all to do with the losses they've suffered and little to do with celebrating.

But when a new wave of soldiers arrives at the hospital on the day before the holiday, Jolene just may find that she does, in fact, have something to celebrate.

And a short excerpt:

Virginia, 1863

The breeze held a chill as it touched her cheek.Shivering, Jolene Crane pulled the knitted cotton shawl closer around her shoulders as she rocked more vigorously on the front porch. Twilight deepened, the violet hues of the late October skyline pulling every house on the lane beneath its cloak.

If they were lucky the night sky would remain dark,free of the glare of distant gunfire. That had been the case for the past fortnight and every person in town hoped the silence would continue.
But she wasn’t thinking about any of that. No, she had different things on her mind, things of a more personal nature. Things that were more important to her than battles, gunfire, and food shortages. More important,even, than the threat that the war brought to the very existence of the only life she’d ever known.

Oh Nate, where are you tonight? What are you doing?

Where is the Army of the Potomac camped right now? If I knew the answers to those questions I’d find a way to come to you. To see you with my own eyes and to bring you home. I’d hide you in the root cellar or out in the barn—I don’t care anymore about who wins this rotten war. I just want you back here with me. Two years is such a long time to miss someone.

How much more can I bear?

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! I hope it's filled with laughter and love. And I hope you make a few memories that will become part of your family's history!