Part 31 If Oak Trees Could Talk

19 Feb

Part 31 If Oak Trees Could Talk!Books

Hello again dear friends! Welcome back to my video blogs of If Oak Trees Could Talk! I am so glad that you chose to join me again today. I hope that you are having a wonderful week. Can you believe that we are already into the middle of February? When I began doing the video blogs of my Romance/Suspense novel If Oak Trees Could Talk last summer, I really had no idea how long they would take or how many, so I am so grateful that many of you have hung in here with me to read or “tune in” each week! This week we finish up Chapter 15 The Cruise!

Chapter 15

The Cruise!

Henry looked carefully before backing up. He looked both ways and then pulled out, but just as he did, he could see the Sheriff coming right toward him.

            “Get down loves, Get Down!” Henry shouted.

            Helen and Amelia obeyed but weren’t for sure why? They could only assume that Henry saw Eugene, which he did. When Henry passed the Sheriff, he looked down a little as to not look him straight in the eye and threw up one finger from the steering wheel as to speak when passing. This was the right thing to do because, again this was the South. Every one speaks whether they know you or not. So Henry actually did this to keep the Sheriff from becoming suspicious. It had been a long while since Henry had even seen Eugene, so they hoped that Sheriff Eugene wouldn’t recognize him. As far as Henry was concerned, he had no clue as to who Eugene was either. He only knew he was the Sheriff because he had seen Eugene’s sheriff’s car. He kept driving and tried to not cause suspicion but all of a sudden in his rear view mirror, he could see the Sheriff do a U-turn in the middle of Harper Street! This could only mean one thing and even Henry knew what it meant. They were recognized!   The Sheriff knew who they were or at least who Henry was. Henry had a decision to make, either to stop or to drive faster!

            “Hold on Loves, we’ve been made!” Henry Shouted!

            “What do you mean, Daddy…..What in the world are you doing? You have to stop! You can’t out run a Sheriff. We are in enough trouble the way it is! Pull over Daddy and stop the car!” Amelia shouted as if her Dad couldn’t hear her yelling at him.

            “Calm down Dear Amelia, he is not deaf. He just does not remember every event in his life yet?” Helen said rather calmly considering that she was in the front seat with a man who may or may not even know where he’s going.

            “Okay, this has gotten crazy! Daddy you have to pull over somewhere! Let me take over the driving! I am the one who promised I would get you both back this morning. I should have insisted that I drive to begin with!” Amelia demanded as she could feel herself panic. When she glanced back she saw that Sheriff Eugene was still quite a distance behind them, but still he was back there. By this time the Sheriff’s lights and siren were flashing and blaring so that every citizen of Mason Creek would know that there was a Sheriff in hot pursuit of criminals.   Rarely did an occurrence like this one escape the attention of the Mason Creek’s residents, for there was very little that happened in this lazy Southern town!

            “Amelia, sweetie, just stay calm, I know exactly where I am and where I am going! Let him follow me, I bet it will be the first Police Escort ever to Glenview’s Residential Home for the Elderly!” Henry said as both he and Helen chuckled.

            “Are you telling me that you both find this to be humorous?” Amelia asked as she realized that this scenario could only end badly. “We’ve got to pull over and let the Sheriff know that we are on our way back to Glenview. He needs to know that we are not trying to escape again Daddy!” Amelia spoke sternly. However, it was to no avail. She watched her Daddy wink and then he smiled at her Momma with that all too familiar impish grin that Amelia had seen thousands of times. Henry cranked up the radio that was playing some country song by George Jones and patted the dashboard of his car.

“Oh baby, don’t fail me now!” He shouted, when all of sudden he pushed the gas pedal as far down as he could and peeled down the street burning his tires. The smell of rubber burning filled the car.   A huge cloud of smoke boiled behind them. It wasn’t long until Amelia could hear the sound of a siren getting closer.   Henry drove like he had done this many times. He squealed tires as he made a sharp turn into a side street that lead down past The First Baptist Church of Mason Creek. He darted into another side street that lead down the street that Glenview was on. As he sped down this street to where Glenview’s Residential Home for the Elderly was, Henry whipped the car into the parking lot which was practically empty. He proceeded to squeal tires and wheel his car around in circles until the image of several figure eights had been burned into the parking lots pavement. After making such an entrance, Henry suddenly whipped his car into a parking space. He put the car in park while quickly handing Amelia the keys!

“And that my Dears is how it’s done!” Henry boasted.

             Amelia was in total disbelief at what had just happened!   She was speechless and as pale as a sheet. Her Daddy got out of the car and went around the side of the car to open the door for her mother. He acted the perfect gentleman as he helped Helen out of the car. He pushed the lever to the back seat so that Amelia could peel herself out of the car as well. Just as they were all out of the car, they heard more tires squealing as a car barreled into the parking lot where they all stood.   Sheriff Eugene’s sirens rang out and lights flashed while he practically fell out of his police car and raced toward them!

            “Ms. Amelia, what in the world do you think that you are doing? Do you know that you could have gotten someone killed driving like that? Oh excuse my manners, hello Mr. and Mrs. Tyler.” Eugene shouted as he took his sheriff’s hat off to be polite. He was shouting quite loudly because his siren was still blaring. In the south it is an understood rule that you are to always respect your elders! He then ran back to his car to turn the siren and lights off.

            Amelia listened as the Sheriff was scolding her, but then suddenly she looked at her watch. It was exactly twelve noon. She answered him without letting on that it was her Daddy instead of she that was doing the driving.

            “Well, Eugene, I promised I would get my parents back to Glenview this morning! It is just now noon so I kept my promise. We’ve been here about five minutes or so, wouldn’t you say Momma?” Amelia asked with Henry’s same wink and smile.

            “Now Ms. Amelia, when I was behind you with my lights and my siren going you should have pulled over. You can’t just go speeding in and out of these side streets like you have just done!” Eugene stated.

            “Excuse me for interrupting you Eugene, I know that you’re trying to do your job, but I wanted to ask about your folks before we go back inside. How are Ed and Immagene doing?” Helen asked. “It has been entirely too long since we’ve seen them. The next time we spend time at home we really should have them over for some of Henry’s famous Barbeque.” Helen continued.

            “Uh thank you Mrs. Tyler. My parents are doing fine. They would truly enjoy Mr. Tyler’s delicious Barbeque. It is surely famous around these parts, Mam.” Eugene replied. He was holding his Sheriff’s hat in his hand as he showed respect to Mr. Tyler.     

            “Well, no since prolonging our return. Thank you, young man for escorting us to Glenview. We really appreciate it Sheriff.” Henry said as he grabbed Eugene’s hand and shook it.

            Eugene didn’t know what to do as the Tyler’s and Amelia left him standing in Glenview’s parking lot holding his sheriff’s hat.

            “Dang, I am sure going to hear about this when I get to the sheriff’s office!” Eugene said as he could see Mr. Hodges watching the shenanigans from his office window.

 

Thank you once again for “tuning in” or reading along with me! It is my hope that you have been enjoying my Romance/Suspense novel, If Oak Trees Could Talk!, for it has been my pleasure to share it with you! As always I would love to hear from you. I want to thank all of you that have begun following my WordPress blogs. Please continue to “tune it” as we are moving right along through the book.

If you are interested in obtaining your own copy of If Oak Trees Could Talk or any of my other books, please visit my Amazon Author Page here! Also If you are new to my Video Blogs and would like to catch up on the story from the beginning please check out the archives in this blog or simply subscribe to my Youtube Videos as they are numbered and in order! I am also a weekly contributor to The Lakeview Times.   All of my videos are published each week at http://www.lakeviewtimes.com

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Part 30 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

12 Feb

Source: Part 30 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

Tags:

Part 30 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

12 Feb

 

Books

Part 30 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

Hello again! I hope that you’ve had a great and productive week since the last video blog post of my Romance/Suspense novel If Oak Trees Could Talk. My week has been very productive! I am thrilled to say that I have been making some really great progress on a sequel to my Juvenile fiction novel Caleb’s Cereal!   People ask me all the time about being a writer. Probably the number one question is “Why do you write?” I would love to have some deep answer for them, but honestly my main reason is that I personally get to go on journeys and do things through my characters that I probably would never get to do in real life! That is why I am doing these videos blogs each week! I hope to take you with me on a few of my characters adventures. It is my hope that you will come along with me and enjoy the journey!

Today we pick back up in Chapter 15 The Cruise!

Chapter 15

The Cruise!

Henry began whistling, Amelia had not heard her Dad whistle since before her Momma’s fall. He was truly coming back, Helen thought and a peace like a robe simply came over her. She listened to her Mom and Dad talk about this neighbor and that neighbor as he drove them down their neighborhood street. He honked the horn at this one and at that one when he would see them out in their yards.   He knew perfectly well where he was going and had no problem maneuvering the car. He then turned right onto Harper Street. His face beamed when he saw his beloved Hardware store. He whipped the car into the side street and threw it into park.

“Let’s just drop in here for a minute okay Amelia?” Henry said.

Amelia knew that this trip was totally out of her hands. What could she do about it anyway? She only prayed that Sheriff Eugene would not see them out on their cruise through the town when they needed to be back at Glenview.

Amelia and Robert ran the Hardware store very efficiently. With everything that had happened with Amelia’s parents they hired a very loyal worker to help them out in the store. Mr. Dewey Thomas was a close friend to Henry and loved helping the family out. He was an older gentleman and appreciated the fact that he could go to work and be useful. He had been a good neighbor who had grown up on the same street as Amelia and her parents. When Amelia was busy outside of the store with her parents or children, Mr. Dewey Thomas helped keep things running. When Henry, Helen, and Amelia walked into the store, Henry was very surprised to see his friend and neighbor behind the counter. His old friend was just as surprised to see Amelia and her parents walk through the door. He ran from behind the counter and shook Henry’s hand and hugged Ms. Helen.

“Oh my, when I saw you people coming through that door, I thought I was hallucinating. It made my legs get all wobbly. Man, my old friend you are looking good! When are you coming back to work?” Mr. Thomas went on. “Goodness, where are my manners ladies? Hello Ms. Amelia, please, you and Ms. Helen come behind this counter and have yourselves a sit down right here. I will visit with my old buddy!”

Henry was a little overwhelmed with Dewey. He knew him, but yet he didn’t know him.

“Amelia didn’t tell me that we had someone helping out in the store.” Henry stated. “I am glad that she does though.” Henry continued as he stared intently at Dewey. He was trying to place who he was. He wondered how he knew him. Had he worked at the store before when he ran it? The answers seemed not to come.

“Ah, it’s nothing Henry. I was glad to do it. How are you Ms. Helen? You sure are looking fit?” Dewey stated. He still had not realized that Henry didn’t know who he was.

“I am just wonderful Dewey. How about Dolores, how is she faring these days?” Helen asked.

“Oh she is doing pretty well. We can’t complain. The Lord’s been good to us Ms. Helen.” Dewey replied.

“Yes, he’s been good to us as well, Dewey.”   Helen stated. Finally Helen thought she would try to refresh Henry’s mind about who Dewey was.

“Henry, do you remember when you and Dewey were in the service together? You were the two locals from Mason Creek that were placed together. He and Dolores always come over to our house and played Canasta. Do you remember?”

“Yes, I think I might, at that! Weren’t you the one that bought that old motorcycle with the sidecar? When we were in the service, they let you drive that old thing and I could ride in the sidecar. I remember all of the dust you made me eat because of that piece of junk! Thank the Lord we had on a helmet and goggles or I would probably be blind today!”

“Yep, Henry that was me!” Dewey said with a deep chuckle. “Man, I had not thought of that cycle for ages!”

“I don’t blame you, that fool thing was a death trap waiting to happen!” Henry said as he grabbed Dewey and gave him a big old hug. Henry became rather emotional because, again this just proved that he was coming back, he felt like he had just gotten another breakthrough.

Both of the veterans stood in the middle of the store until other folks started coming in. One by one the crowd lined up shaking Henry’s hand and welcoming him back. Some he recognized and some he didn’t. Henry fed on the atmosphere of his Hardware store. It gave him back some of his pride that he felt that he had lost.

            Amelia was getting nervous. Who else was going to walk through that door? She was sure that the word had gotten out that her Daddy was in the Hardware store.   She feared that Eugene would come walking through the door at any moment. If Sheriff Eugene came in, then what would happen? Would she be carted off to jail and her parents hauled back to Glenview? She loved seeing her Daddy in his element again, but knew that she had to get him out of the store as soon as possible. She told Eugene that she would have her parents back to Glenview this morning. Time was running out. It was almost Eleven o’clock and she had not produced them. She then told her mother about Eugene.

            “Oh, how are Eugene and his parents? They are such sweet people. They’re just like all of these folks coming in here today showing such love to me and Henry. We just live in a wonderful little town. Don’t we, Amelia?” Helen said as she watched the line of people gathering into the store to say hello to them.

            “Folks, Folks, I need to get your attention, please! Amelia shouted over the roar of men and women laughing and talking. Listen, I was ordered to get my parents back to Glenview before Noon today. If I do not get them back in time, I may possibly get into more trouble than I am already in. So, no offense to anybody, for we are so thankful that you all came out, but we need to cut this reunion short until next time okay?” Amelia shouted!

            “Yes Ms. Amelia, we understand!” The crowd all agreed! They then made a path, some on the right and some on the left of the main aisle to the door for Amelia and her parents to walk through to the front door. As they made their way through the aisle, the crowd smiled and patted them on the back as if they were heroes that had come home from a war. Amelia would not necessary describe what her parents had been though as a war, however, she would say that they had fought a fierce battle. They deserved every cheer and every pat on the back that their neighbors and friends had to give to them.

            “Well that was fun!” Helen said when the three of them had gotten back into the car.

            “Hurry get down, get down now!” Amelia shouted, as she saw Sheriff Eugene drive by. She prayed that he didn’t recognize Henry’s car. It had been a long time since it had been out of the garage. On the other hand, Amelia thought that Henry’s car may be the very thing that would stick out like a sore thumb and gain them the unwanted attention. She slowly raised her head up to see if she could see where the Sheriff had gone. She did not see him, but was sure that he would be back. There was way more cars parked in front of the Hardware store than usual which also drew suspicion.

            “Daddy, I hate to tell you this, but you’re going to have to get out of here rather quickly before the Sheriff circles around to check out why all of these cars are here! Would you please just let me drive us now?” Amelia pleaded.

            “Are you kidding me? I can surely out run the Sheriff if I had too. Let’s just hope that it will not be necessary.” Henry stated as if he weren’t the least bit concerned about going back to Glenview. Maybe he seriously wasn’t. He treated his escape from Glenview like it was a summer vacation. He had definitely had a busy twenty-four to thirty-six hours of freedom. If he kept a record of all he had done since walking out of Glenview’s doors it would read as follows: He walked naked up and down streets to get home, climbed an Oak tree, had a romantic picnic, danced with the love of his life in the moonlight, swung in a swing, walked through gardens and the yard, ate lots of his favorite food, slept in his own bed, spent time with his daughter, grandsons, and son-and-law, and finally, Henry was united and visited with most of his friends and neighbors at the hardware store which was one of his favorite places.   What better way to spend time on the outside of Glenview?

Thank you once again for “tuning in” or reading along with me! It is my hope that you have been enjoying my Romance/Suspense novel, If Oak Trees Could Talk, for it has been my pleasure to share it with you! As always I would love to hear from you. I want to thank all of you that have begun following my WordPress blogs. Please continue to “tune it” as we are moving right along through the book.

If you are interested in obtaining your own copy of If Oak Trees Could Talk or any of my other books, please visit my Amazon Author Page here! Also If you are new to my Video Blogs and would like to catch up on the story from the beginning please check out the archives in this blog or simply subscribe to my Youtube Videos as they are numbered and in order! I am also a weekly contributor to The Lakeview Times.   All of my videos are published each week at http://www.lakeviewtimes.com

 

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Part 29 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

3 Feb

Source: Part 29 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

Tags:

Part 29 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

3 Feb

Part 29 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

Wow, can you believe that we are in February already? What does your mind automatically go to when someone says “It’s February.” When I think of February I automatically think of spring being on its way and Love being in the air!  I hope that if you are reading along or “tuning in” each week to my video blogs, that you’ve realized that If Oak Trees Could Talk is truly a love story. Maybe it is sometimes the story may seem a little too mushy and sentimental, but I honestly know real people who love each other like my characters Henry and Helen love!

True Romance and unconditional love does exist! It hasn’t died. Because love is alive, I choose to pursue it with a passion! After all, what were we put on this earth for? My answer is….So that we can love and be loved.

Today we will finish Chapter 14 The Family Gathering and continue to cruise right into Chapter 15 The Cruise!

 

Chapter 14 The Family Gathering!

“Lovely, it will be just lovely.” Helen agreed.

Henry was right! As he visited the Oak tree it was as though a flood of pleasant memories came rushing back to him. He found himself pushing the swing gently as he remembered his little Amelia shouting “Higher, Daddy, higher!” He smiled with the remembrance of how brave she was. Then he whispered, “She’s still a brave little thing!” He also remembered the day that Amelia walked him to the tree and told him about Robert. She sat in the swing once again and her Daddy pushed her gently. She was so confident and sure that Robert was the one for her. When Henry stopped pushing her in the swing and walked around in front of her, he looked straight into those pool blue eyes.   He saw the same sparkling light that was in his Helen’s eyes. He could never put that light out, so as heartbreaking as it was to admit that his little Amelia had grown up, he realized at that moment that she had grown up right before his eyes and was in love! Henry’s only wish was that she would find the kind of love that he and his Helen had found. He knew it was a rare kind of love, but when he looked into Amelia’s innocent face that day, he was assured that she had found it! He went on to remember her beautiful wedding in the gardens and how it was so hard for him to turn her over to Robert that day. He was so afraid that Robert would whisk Amelia away to some other state and that they wouldn’t get to see much of her. But that wasn’t the case, instead Robert and Amelia went in partners with him at the Hardware store and Amelia helped him run it every day. As the swing made a gentle creaking sound it reminded him of the day that he placed Dylan in the swing for the first time, then Robbie. So many of the life events that were precious to Henry happened right here, right under the old Oak tree. While Henry’s memories came flooding back he became so overwhelmed with gratitude. He stopped to honestly thank the one who he felt was responsible for his breakthrough!

“Now God, it’s me Henry William Tyler. Now I know that you haven’t heard from me as often as you should have, but Lord I am grateful to you. I am grateful for my Dear sweet Helen’s recovery and my loving Daughter’s family. Dear Lord, I am also grateful for my old friend here! I’m sure glad that you helped me make my get away to come to see her. I ask that you help me to come back home soon. I thank you for the memories that my old friend helps me to remember! You have always been here for me and my family and again Sir I am grateful. I thank you that my old friend here is like one of your angels, if I may say such things.   She has been stationed on this property for over a century guarding this place. Thank you for keeping her strong for my family to enjoy. Only you know what will happen when I return back to Glenview so I won’t worry about the future. I just want to thank you for now, so Lord, thank you in Jesus name!”

 

Chapter 15

The Cruise!

Amelia went to the garage to pull the car out when Henry and the boys came around to the front of the house. When Henry saw the car he was elated. He was totally under the assumption that Amelia intended for him to drive them to Glenview. When Amelia had gotten out of the car to tell all of her goodbyes to the boys and Robert, she then helped her mother to get down the steps. She walked her mother down the walkway and helped get her into the passenger side of the car.   In the meanwhile, Henry moved quickly as well.

He hugged the boys, shook Robert’s hand and yelled to them, “Will see you soon!”   He stood on the driver’s side of the car as he had reached the car before Amelia and Helen did

“Love you boys! Your old Gramps and Gramma will be back really soon. So I’m not going to say good-bye but instead I’ll see you soon!” Henry said as he climbed into the driver’s seat of the car. He might have forgotten a lot of things but he was sure that he could remember how to drive.   The thoughts of driving his car into Mason Creek thrilled him. He thought of all the places that he would like to drive to. The first stop would be to his Hardware store. It just dawned on him that his Amelia had probably been running the place since he had left. It would be good to drop in the store to see some old friends he had not seen in the past months. He smiled as he remembered how the crowd used to gather around the counter to hear his wild and embellished stories.

When Amelia saw her Daddy get into the car, she glanced quickly at Robert. He just smiled and shrugged his shoulders. Robert knew that this was between Amelia and her Daddy.

“Now Daddy, I am not for sure that you should be trying to drive. I really think that I need to drive. I will take you anywhere you would like to go okay?” Amelia said desperately knowing that she was probably wasting her breath.

“Amelia, I’ve been driving ever since I was nine. Do you remember when I told you about me driving my father to that house that time when I was little and he hit that deer? Now I think if I drove at nine years old that I can drive now, don’t you?”

“Yes, but Daddy…..that was….” Amelia stopped. She couldn’t bring herself to say it. She wanted to say “but Daddy that was when you were well,” but she knew that he wasn’t as ill as he had been. Maybe he was well for all she knew.

“Momma, what do you think?” Amelia asked.   She thought if Helen objected than Henry would surely listen to her. However, Helen did not back her up at all. Instead she scooted right up against Henry like they were teenagers on a date and waited for him to cruise them down the road!

“I think it will be fine, Sweetie. Just sit back and enjoy the beautiful ride!” Helen commanded.

Amelia just stood beside the car totally speechless. She couldn’t believe what was happening but knew that she had lost. She looked over at Robert and mouthed to him “Pray for us!”

“Come on Daughter! Don’t worry, get in the car! I could drive this car with my eyes closed.   Have you forgotten that I am the one who taught you to drive? I think a cruise through town will not be too awfully dangerous for any of us, now will it?” Henry argued so convincingly.

“No I guess not…” Amelia mumbled as she slowly entered the backseat of the car.

“Okay, everyone in?” Henry asked as he simply was beaming like a teenager taking his first drive. He put the car in gear and off they went. He backed the car up just fine and proceeded forward.

“See nothing to it!” He assured Amelia.

 

Thank you once again for “tuning in” or reading along with me! It is my hope that you have been enjoying my Romance/Suspense novel, If Oak Trees Could Talk!, for it has been my pleasure to share it with you! As always I would love to hear from you. I want to thank all of you that have begun following my WordPress blogs. Please continue to “tune it” as we are moving right along through the book.

If you are interested in obtaining your own copy of If Oak Trees Could Talk or any of my other books, please visit my Amazon Author Page here! Also If you are new to my Video Blogs and would like to catch up on the story from the beginning please check out the archives in this blog or simply subscribe to my Youtube Videos as they are numbered and in order! I am also a weekly contributor to The Lakeview Times.   All of my videos are published each week at http://www.lakeviewtimes.com

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Part 28 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

28 Jan

Source: Part 28 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

Tags:

Part 28 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

28 Jan

Part 28 If Oak Trees Could Talk

Hello Again! Well we are moving right along as we read If Oak Trees Could Talk! I hope that if you have been following along that you are enjoying the journey! If you’ve just found us, then it is my hope that you will take the time to either listen or read the archived blogs to where you do not feel like you’ve missed out on any of the mushy stuff! Today we are nearing the end of Chapter 14 The Family Gathering! However, we still have a little ways to go.   You might as well pour yourself a nice cup of coffee or tea and get all comfy as we continue reading.

Chaper 14

The Family Gathering!

“It’s wonderful, Daddy. I always love it when you tease me. I love your stories. The boys love them as well. Daddy, they have missed you so much. They were excited and thrilled to be at Gramps and Gramma’s last night because we were together again! They told me that you always did special things with them, such as your yard trips.   They miss all of those times with you. They had not been in this house for months, but last night when they were here, they really enjoyed it. It was only because you and Momma were home and down at the Oak tree. Both of you are the life of this house and this place. It’s you and Momma that makes this place a home.” Amelia said as she began to tear up.

Robert and the boys pulled up in the driveway just as Amelia was speaking of them. The boys flung open the car doors and ran into the house. They ran to Gramps and hugged him and then on to Gramma. Amelia stepped out to see if Robert needed a hand with the food. He was so prepared he had paper plates and plastic forks, the works just so that they could spend time together instead of cleaning up the kitchen after the meal. He also had a thermos of piping hot coffee just in case there was none.

“Baby, you thought of everything! I love you so much, let me take that thermos.” Amelia said as she leaned in and gave Robert a quick kiss. “Momma and Daddy are going to love this!”

When Robert stepped inside the house, Helen grabbed him and squeezed him tightly. He still had his hands full of food when Henry moved forward and extended his hand for a warm hand shake, but then he just grabbed Robert and gave him a big bear hug.   Robert unloaded all of the bags onto the counter and then shook Henry’s hand.   Everyone was so thrilled to be back together.

“Oh man, I smell Elma’s don’t I?” Henry asked.

“Yep,” Dylan said as he began pulling food from the bags. “Sausage gravy, biscuits, eggs, grits, and bacon, yummy, breakfast is served! Just like you always served it for us Gramps!”

“Man I think I will run away more often,” Henry said with a smile.

“I wish you could Gramps!” Robbie said. “We have missed you and Gramma so much.”

“Don’t encourage him, Robbie,” Helen stated. “He would be over here every day when the nurses at Glenview turn their backs!”

All of the family chuckled, but deep down Helen knew Henry would escape again if he felt he had reason to. It was good for all of them to be together. They each took their regular places at the dining room table as they’ve done numerous times before. Even though this was Elma’s food, you would have thought it to be a home cooked Thanksgiving meal, which indeed it was! The table seated Gramps and Gramma side by side of course at one end, Amelia and Robert side by side at the opposite end and Dylan and Robbie in the middle of each side. As they ate, they laughed, and appreciated every second of the last minutes together before Henry and Helen went back to Glenview. Each of them pretended that the dread of the Patriarch and Matriarch of the family leaving wasn’t weighing heavy upon them. The time came, however, sooner than any of them wanted it to, for Gramps and Gramma to return to Glenview.

“Amelia do you want me to drive you and your parents back to Glenview?” Robert whispered while Amelia was cleaning up the dining room table.

“I really thought about it Honey. I think I will drive Daddy’s car. It probably needs to have someone drive it anyway. What do you think?” Amelia asked.

“Sounds good, but are you going to be okay?” Robert comforted.

“I will just have to be okay, now won’t I?” Amelia stated with a sigh.

“Well, if you get there and need me, I am going to stick around the house today with the boys. I think it will be good for the boys just to have a day with their old Dad.”

“That sounds great. You can make the day a fun day for them. I wish I could spend the day with you guys,” Amelia replied. “But soon, we will all be together again.”

Helen walked into the kitchen. She did not appear to be half as upset about going back to Glenview as Amelia was. She and Henry had resolved to go back and do what they needed to do.

“Well, Daughter, let’s get this show on the road! Your Daddy and I have decided to take Glenview by storm Sweetie! They won’t know what hit them! We will be home in a few weeks and all will be well! Are you ready?” Helen asked impatiently.

“Yes, Momma, I guess I am ready if you and Daddy are. Where’s Daddy?” Amelia asked.

“Oh, he and the boys have gone out in the yard for a bit,” Helen said with a tender smile at having mentioned the boys.   “He probably just wants to reassure them that we will be a family again. We do love those two more than life!” Helen said softly. “He also wanted to go see his friend one more time before we left today. He thought maybe that the Oak tree could help him remember a little more before he left!”

“Well, okay, I will go get the car out of the garage. I thought we would drive Daddy’s car if that is okay. It really needs to be driven and this beautiful Sunny morning would be a perfect opportunity. What do you think?”

“Lovely, it will be just lovely.” Helen agreed.

 

Thank you once again for “tuning in” or reading along with me! It is my hope that you have been enjoying my Romance/Suspense novel, If Oak Trees Could Talk!, for it has been my pleasure to share it with you! As always I would love to hear from you. I want to thank all of you that have begun following my WordPress blogs. Please continue to “tune it” as we are moving right along through the book.

If you are interested in obtaining your own copy of If Oak Trees Could Talk or any of my other books, please visit my Amazon Author Page here! Also If you are new to my Video Blogs and would like to catch up on the story from the beginning please check out the archives in this blog or simply subscribe to my Youtube Videos as they are numbered and in order! I am also a weekly contributor to The Lakeview Times.   All of my videos are published each week at http://www.lakeviewtimes.com

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Part 27 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

20 Jan

Part 27 If Oak Trees Could Talk

Hello everybody! Welcome back to my video blogs of If Oak Trees Could Talk! I hope that you’ve had a great holiday season and that your New Year is off to a great start. If you’ve been following along, I appreciate your patience as I’ve taken a few weeks off. But as we jump right back into my video blogs, we will pick back up in Chapter 14 The Gathering!


  The Gathering!
She asked Sheriff Eugene, “So, what are you going to do Eugene? I would do what I done last night again and again. I would go with my mother from Glenview to search for my father a million times if I had to. I am not apologizing for my behavior to Mr. Hodges or to anyone else. He can kiss my….well never mind! My parents are my main concern and their wellbeing. My mother was going to leave Glenview with or without me, so I went with her!”
“What do you mean Ms. Amelia? Was Ms. Tyler driving and you rode along as a passenger in her car?” Eugene questioned. “It was my understanding that you were driving and carried your Momma away from Glenview.” He continued to interrogate.
Amelia thought about the question and immediately without pondering answered, “No, I did not drive. So what you’re telling me is that Mr. Hodges had no clue how my parent’s left Glenview! I think it would be very interesting to see what Mr. Henderson down at the Mason Creek Times Newspaper would do with a story like this one, wouldn’t you?” Amelia asked as the idea just came to her that Mr. Hodges would not want the reputation of Glenview’s Residential Home for the Elderly to be tarnished. She also was telling the truth, she wasn’t the one who drove the getaway car, her husband Robert drove.
“As a matter of fact, Eugene, if you would let Mr. Hodges know…..No, that’s okay, I will tell him myself that I intend on reporting to Mr. Henderson that my parents simply walked out of his precious Glenview without the slightest resistance from Glenview’s staff! I think he would be more than glad to drop all of the charges. Wouldn’t you agree with me, Eugene?” Amelia said slyly as she knew that Eugene would drive like a maniac to Glenview’s Residential Home for the Elderly to tell Mr. Hodges what she was threatening.
“Now, Ms. Amelia, think about what you’re saying. You don’t really want to hurt anyone now do you?” Eugene stated rather pathetically, for it had been rumored that he had been used to do Mr. Hodges’ dirty work for several years.
“Well, I will have to think about it long and hard before I contact Mr. Henderson, but I am considering paying him a little visit.” Amelia continued to threaten as if she pretended not to know that the Sheriff was somehow in cahoots with Mr. Hodges and every other type of dirty dealings that went down in Mason Creek. She knew that the only reason that he was being nice to her was that his parents had been friends with Amelia’s parents for years. Also he always had a flame burning for Amelia when they were growing up, but never asked her out. Eugene’s mother would not stand for him being anything but nice to the Tyler family.
“Okay then, Ms. Amelia, we will expect you to carry your parents back to Glenview in a little while.” Eugene stated. “I will assure Mr. Hodges that your parents will be back as soon as they eat a decent breakfast.”
When Amelia had gotten off the telephone with Eugene, she immediately called Robert. She told Robert about speaking to Eugene and about threatening to go to Mr. Henderson with a story if Mr. Hodges insisted on pressing charges against her.
“I just feel like there is something that is very wrong going on at Glenview. Mr. Hodges is so worried about his reputation. Oh well, forget about all that stuff, now on to more important things! Will you please bring my parents a good breakfast from Elma’s Biscuit Barn?” Amelia asked with a chuckle.
Elma’s Biscuit Barn was just a little Country restaurant but Elma Simpson was a third generation owner and one of the best Southern cooks in Mason Creek. No one made homemade biscuits and sausage gravy like Elma or real Southern grits oozing with butter and bacon. Going to Elma’s Biscuit Barn was Henry’s thing to do when he was well. He would go and buy breakfast almost every Saturday morning for the whole family. It was a normal Saturday routine, so Robert knew exactly what to order and pick up for each of them.
“Crazy question, but do you want the usual?” Robert asked also with a little chuckle.
“Yes, Sir, I can’t wait until Daddy and Momma gets a good whiff of what you’ve brought them this time to eat! I am sure that the smile on Daddy’s face will be even bigger than it was last night when he was eating his favorite hamburger and onion rings.” Amelia whispered with a chuckle so as not to spoil the surprise for her parents. “Also we can all gather around the dining room table and eat the way that we used to. It will be wonderful! Thank you Babe!” She continued.
“Good morning my sweet Daughter,” Helen said as she was practically beaming. She walked from the gardens, straight through the house, to the kitchen and was barely using her walker at all. Dear I believe we have some ground coffee in the big freezer, if you would like to go get. I will get the coffee pot ready for us.
“Good morning Momma! How did you and Daddy sleep?” Amelia asked as she noticed again that her mother was so chipper.
“Oh, like little babies! It was simply heaven on earth! I am sorry to be so joyous when obviously you’ve not had too much sleep. Stop worrying Amelia, everything is going to be alright!” Helen ordered.
“Will it be alright Momma?” Amelia asked to be reassured.
“Things are good Amelia. Your sweet Daddy and I will return home in a few weeks. We will have our lives back and our family will be complete again. What is there to worry about?” Helen explained just as Henry came walking through the kitchen.
“Well, look at these beautiful girls in the lunchroom. Boy I am sure glad that I came today!” Henry said with an ornery little grin,
“Stop it Henry, Amelia is really worried about us!” Helen ordered.
“Yes Dear, I was just teasing sweet Amelia!” Henry said with a wink.
“Daddy, so you meant to call us girls. Did you mean to call the kitchen the lunchroom too?” Amelia asked in total surprise that he was sound enough in his mind to tease her like this. For this is the way he had talked for months now.
“Yes my sweet Daughter. It’s the Tyler sense of humor. I am sorry, I will be more serious.” Henry said apologetically.
Henry reached out to Amelia with open arms and she ran to get into them. She loved the comfort of her Daddy’s arms. They always made her feel loved and safe. As she embraced him tightly she finally believed that he was indeed almost back to his old “normal self.”

Thank you once again for “tuning in” or reading along with me! It is my hope that you have been enjoying my Romance/Suspense novel, If Oak Trees Could Talk!, for it has been my pleasure to share it with you! As always I would love to hear from you. I want to thank all of you that have begun following my WordPress blogs. Please continue to “tune it” as we are about half way through the book.
If you are interested in obtaining your own copy of If Oak Trees Could Talk or any of my other books, please visit my Amazon Author Page here! Also If you are new to my Video Blogs and would like to catch up on the story from the beginning please check out the archives in this blog or simply subscribe to my Youtube Videos as they are numbered and in order! I am also a weekly contributor to The Lakeview Times. All of my videos are published each week at http://www.lakeviewtimes.com

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Part 26 If Oak Trees Could Talk

20 Jan

Part 26 If Oak Trees Could Talk!

Welcome and thank you for visiting my blog. This will be my last video blog of If Oak Trees Could Talk for the year as Christmas is next week and then Wow, the ringing in of a brand new year!

I wish every one of you the Happiest and Healthiest New Year Ever! Thank you so much for being such a wonderful part of this year for me! I’m excited about the year to come as I’ve been working on several new book projects and can hardly wait to go forward with them. I hope that you will continue to join me and come along for the ride.

Today we begin reading in a new Chapter 14 The Family Gathering!

 

Chapter 14

The Family Gathering

            Amelia sighed with dread of the very thought of her parents going back into Glenview’s Home for the Elderly.   Even though she knew that they had really thought everything out and made the decision for themselves, it would not be easy, but she would drive them both back in the morning.   She had no idea what Mr. Hodges had planned for her parents upon their return. Henry had explained to her that it was Mr. Hodges who had told him about her mother’s early release in the first place. Surely, as the head of Glenview, Mr. Hodges should have known the reason that her father had come to be at Glenview’s Home for the Elderly to begin with. The thoughts of Mr. Hodges telling her Daddy about her Momma just did not sit well with Amelia, but again she would honor her parent’s wishes.

            She helped her parents rise up from the picnic blanket to their feet.   Between her and Robert they helped walk both Henry and Helen up the long front lawn to the house. She sent the boys down to get all of the picnic supplies. Amelia waited until they came into the house before making the announcement that she was driving her parents back to Glenview the following morning.   Although both of the boys were very crushed and upset, they pretended all was well. Through everything the boys had become brave and strong young men. Their grandparent’s house felt like home again just because Henry and Helen were there. It didn’t matter that they were down at the Oak tree having their own private picnic the whole time, the boys still found comfort in knowing that they were on the property.

            Amelia kissed Robert and the boys good night as she stayed with her parents through the night. She checked on them several times by peeking through their bedroom door which she was very cautious to do considering the most recent romantic encounters that her parents had while at Glenview. When Amanda peeked in, she saw two peaceful parents cuddled together sleeping safe and sound in their bed. It was a precious sight to behold. This was an image that Amelia would carry with her to help her focus on getting them back home permanently, once they were back at Glenview.

            The morning came way too soon. Amelia had not slept but a little while before the sun came up. The first thing she felt she needed to do was to talk with the Sheriff.   However, it was as though the morning was ordered with all of the most wonderful things that a summer day would hold. She postponed her plans just briefly to take in the wonderful day.   Amelia found herself opening up the French doors leading to the Gardens and several more windows throughout the beautiful house she felt she was home. The birds sang their beautiful songs of praise to the one that made them. A soft breeze blew gently through the gardens and aromatic scents of Lilac and Lavender filled the air and blew through the opened windows. The house was beginning to once again smell like her parent’s home.

Amelia thought that she was the first to arise, but she then heard voices in the gardens. When she walked outside onto the patio, her parents were down in the gardens and her mother was carrying a beautiful bouquet of fresh cut flowers in her hand. Amelia also watched as her Daddy who was fully dressed, placed a beautiful flower in her Momma’s free flowing hair.   As they meandered through the gardens holding hands, laughing, and talking, Amelia knew without doubt that this was what they needed. Her parents needed one another. Henry and Helen also needed their family, their home and even their beautiful gardens, to get well.

While watching her parent’s behavior since being home, Amelia resolved at that moment to bring them home regardless of the consequence. She turned from such a beautiful picture of her parents in the garden to go back into the house. Her parents had decided to go back to Glenview and Amelia would honor their wishes and take them.   However, before she took them back, she was determined to make it clear to Mr. Hodges that it was a temporary arrangement this time. She immediately telephoned Sheriff Eugene that her parents had chosen to return to Glenview temporarily.   Amelia also informed him that she would be driving them back after they had eaten a good breakfast. She let him know that she was bringing both her parents back to their home as soon as she could, regardless if Mr. Hodges from Glenview agreed with her decision or not.   Sheriff Eugene agreed to her plans and simply cautioned her that Mr. Hodges was still insisting that she be arrested for kidnapping.

 

Thank you once again for “tuning in” or reading along with me! It is my hope that you have been enjoying my Romance/Suspense novel, If Oak Trees Could Talk!, for it has been my pleasure to share it with you! As always I would love to hear from you. I want to thank all of you that have begun following my WordPress blogs. Please continue to “tune it” as we are about half way through the book.

If you are interested in obtaining your own copy of If Oak Trees Could Talk or any of my other books, please visit my Amazon Author Page here! Also If you are new to my Video Blogs and would like to catch up on the story from the beginning please check out the archives in this blog or simply subscribe to my Youtube Videos as they are numbered and in order! I am also a weekly contributor to The Lakeview Times.   All of my videos are published each week at http://www.lakeviewtimes.com

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Recycled Antique Window!

10 Dec

authorartistmomof2's avatarFrom Junk to Fab

Nativity window

Treasure on the Inside!

To look on my outward appearance

You may not be impressed,

There may not be much beauty, poise,

or gracefulness.

But take another look, please, look

deep and look wide,

For what I may lack on the outward

is hidden treasure  inside.

No longer hidden though

is my greatest heart’s desire,

I want to live from the inside

out for others to admire.

For inside this vessel a living treasure

Not acquired by myself,

But hidden on the inside is a kingdom

of infinite wealth!

A priestly King from Heaven, a Holy seed

Born through virgin loins,

To demonstrate the Father’s love

That many children could be born.

A holy child given unto the world on a starry Christmas night

Hark the herald angels sing praise in abiding shepherd’s hearing

A Heavenly Father’s greatest present freely was in sight

A celebration in my heart as I…

View original post 97 more words

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →