Life finds a way part 2

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During the years after WWII the Raven family, while in many ways typical for the era, was anything but normal. The backstory began in the early spring of 1944. Then 20 year old Chuck Raven’s unit had just completed paratrooper training, allowing him to come home on leave before shipping out to Britain. Lorraine Rees, a stubborn and feisty 17 year old high school junior, had been forbidden to go out with a grown man. After arguing and sent to her bedroom, she locked her door and climbed from her bedroom window to the front porch roof, then eased over the edge to shimmy down a porch column to go out with him. Lorraine dropped out of school at the start of her senior year, giving birth to a son, Leroy, in January 1945. Since Chuck had been sent to Europe, a shotgun wedding had been impossible. Chuck’s parents lived on a farm a mile outside the town of Grantsport, 8 2/3 miles north of Reading, where Lorraine lived. When the weather turned warmer in the spring, she’d bundle her baby and walk the mile long dirt road out to the farm so the infant could meet his grandparents, 2 uncles, and a great grandmother.

This year Rose and Steve Greene are hosting the family with a Christmas Eve dinner and gift exchange as is the family tradition. What will be different is that for the first time it will be Rose and Cindy hostessing the family gathering. Rose has conferred with their children Jane and Michael and been reassured that this will be fine with all.

The Secret Gift By Teek © 2021 Chapter 6 Dad

Summary: Suzy takes on more and more guilt as the family hits challenges due to her transition. Can Grandma help her through?

Dream Date

Sorry for the late entry. Life happened.

The Secret Gift By Teek © 2021 Chapter 2 Shopping

Summary: There are a few shopping trips with Grandma and Grandpa while everyone adjusts to the new reality.

The Secret Gift By Teek © 2021 Chapter 01 The Gift

Summary: Lewis gets a great collection of gifts for Christmas that any 12-year old boy would love, but until he gets his secret gift, true happiness is unknown.

Lucky Find
By Julie D Cole

“Oh come on Joe, it’ll be a lot of fun, and you will be a big help.”

“Look, if you five want to make fools of yourselves, that is fair enough, but why drag me into this Carrie?”

A Well-Planned Christmas Vacation

by MonicaS

16-year-old Dan goes with his sister and their parents to a family gathering at his grandparents' farm for Christmas. Dan plans to spend most of the 5 days with his cousin John playing games. What could go wrong?

The following story takes place in the Arctic Fox universe, but at this moment isn’t part of canon. It may be later, but I haven’t decided on that. For now, consider it a ‘what if’ story.

Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays.

Thank you to Malady for his help editing, and as usual, bouncing my ideas off of.

Your help is much appreciated!

--Rosemary

This is a sequel to “Burial”. Together the titles hint at Easter rather than Christmas. Appearances can deceive.

My second coming (back) to South Odom was less discreet than my first. The motorcade consisted of a large black armored limousine with tinted windows preceded by three black armored SUVs and with another three SUVs behind. Of course we entered the town at the maximum speed allowed. Did I mention that I among other things I own a security company and business is always slow just after New Year?

I had not been looking forward to Christmas at all. It had been a really tough year for me and I needed to just get away from everyone and clear my head.

In my eyes the town looked as miserable as it had done 25 years before when I left it. I suppose it was OK if you had a thing for Midwest small towns. A long way from any sizeable city it was the commercial center for a wide swathe of the countryside. Not that the aforementioned countryside was particularly densely populated. I passed a small mall when entering the town. That was new. However, the main reason for the existence of the town was The Mill. Most of the working population worked for the mill directly or indirectly. The fact that I arrived on a cold and windy December day didn’t matter. I couldn’t have hated South Odom any more anyway.