Lately, I’ve begun doing something that I should have done years ago – asking my mother and aunt about their lives growing up. It never occurred to me that their lives were all that different
from my own and they’ve never offered many details. But, oh,
how I wish I had asked earlier!

… I did not grasp the significance of the fresh oranges, nuts and chocolates that filled our Christmas stockings. In addition to our stockings, my parents delivered wicker baskets with fruits and candies for their friends.

Over the last few months, I have signed the remaining copies of The Best Doctor in Town at area holiday festivals. I love to learn about the people stop by an have found unexpected connections to Southwest Virginia.

I am honored to tell you that one of my short stories was chosen for These Haunted Hills, the fifth anthology of Appalachian bone chilling short stories. In fact, my story is one of only eight original pieces selected. Therefore, I am truly humbled.

Food, wine and a good book. That’s the recipe for Cooks and Books – St. Paul, Virginia’s annual fundraiser for the Lyric Theater and Friends of the J. Fred Matthews Memorial Library.