Winter Blogfest: Nancy M Bell

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win an ecopy of Dead Dogs Talk either EPUB or PDF.

Rafter Christmas

Childhood memories seem to grow sweeter as the years pass and those who participated in them leave us. The Rafter Family Christmas Eve was always a variation of the same theme. 

My parents would pack up the two youngest children, myself and my sister Wendy, and set off in the car to visit my Dad’s sisters who lived in various parts of Toronto and the outlying area.

My Aunt Ola and Uncle Bunny lived near Whitevale, Ontario with my cousins Rose and Fred. They lived on a farm and had the most amazing white farmhouse. The floors always were polished to diamond brilliance and I loved their kitchen The adults would visit and we would play with Rosie and Freddy our cousins, either outside in the snow or inside on the floor. We would drop off our gifts and receive the ones that went home to go under our tree.

After eating Christmas goodies, we would all pile back into the car and head off to the next aunt’s house.

Auntie Joy and Uncle Norm lived in the west end of the city with a house full of our cousins. Glennie, Charlie, Suzanne, Wayne, Billy, Dennis and Brenda. There was always lots to do at Auntie Joy’s. There was great food and the cousins always had the latest in games and toys to play with. 

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Aunt Loral had a very small house and it always seemed so crammed full of Christmas. The living room was usually quite dark, and she had the most amazing tree topper that was all the colors of the rainbow and it sent the colors all over the room. As this was our last stop Wendy and I were both tired and didn’t spend too much time actually playing with Debbie and Lori. It was also getting late and near bedtime so that Santa could come and leave his gifts for us. There was always time for yet more goodies and more pop. Aunt Loral had a zillion of the little statues that used to come in Red Rose Tea. They were lined up on the top of the door frames in her kitchen and just about anywhere that you looked

My Aunt Gloria and Uncle Tommy and Cindy and Tammy Lori lived in Caladar, which was up near North Bay, we would go and visit them on New Year’s Day every year. Later years they moved to Toronto and we stopped there on Christmas Eve as well. Aunt Irma and Uncle Wally lived near Ottawa and we did not get to see them as often, or our cousins Gary and Scott. 

The years pass and some memories fade, but there are those that remain imprinted on my heart. Those days of innocent youth and Christmas magic surrounded by the love of family. I can still hear my dad laughing and singing, the smell of turkey cooking, my grandmother carefully folding all the wrapping paper from the gifts, my grandfather’s smile. The house full of family and lovely chaos. My heart yearns back for those bygone days and the sweet innocence of not realizing the passing of the years would carry us all away from those golden moments.

Wishing you and yours the most wonderful holiday season. May all creatures, human and animal, have love and warmth and food in their day to day lives. May the joy and peace of holidays remain with you throughout the coming year.

Little did Laurel Rowan know where the discovery of an injured dog would lead her. The dark world of dog fighting rings and the unsavoury characters who surround them are a stark awakening for the Alberta teen. Volunteering at a local animal rescue helps her come to terms with some of the things, but Laurel won’t stop until she’s done all she can to rescue those animals in danger. She’s horrified to find out her childhood friend Chance is involved up to his neck in the mess, but now he’s trying to get out and help Laurel all he can. Trouble is lurking around each corner.

Nancy lives near Balzac, Alberta with her husband and various critters. She is a member of the Writers Guild of Alberta. Nancy has presented at the Surrey International Writers Conference, at the Writers Guild of Alberta Conference, When Words Collide and Word on the Lake. She has publishing credits in poetry, fiction and non-fiction. Recently her work has been included in Tamaracks Canadian Poetry for the 21st Century and Vistas of the West Anthology of Poetry. Her poetry is also being included by the University of Holguin Cuba in their Canada Cuba Literary Alliance (CCLA) program. Her latest book Dead Dogs Talk released in September 2020.

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