-
Another Experimental Dinner
I’m an all in kind of person, which sometimes causes my life to look like a swirls of colors blending together. Our homeschool history topics have always had a way of slipping into our meal, movie picks and free time choices. Now that I’m writing a historical, our home has taken on certain elements of the 1930s. So last night my kiddos and husband became my depression era research tools.
Lentils and rice, beef with olive oil and lemon, lettuce with olive oil, lemon and oregano.
Meal time is often an adventure in the Nelson home. If you don’t believe me, check out this earlier post. I’m finding I refer to food a lot in my current manuscript. So, of course, I had to try feeding my family the way Miriam McCallister (the mother in my work-in-progress) would have fed her family.
I went to the internet for ideas. What a treasure I discovered on Youtube! If you haven’t watched Great Depression Cooking with Clara, make sure to do so. In fact, I’ve added her explanation of the meal I prepared right here.
Granted, my characters would probably not have had access to lemons, but starting the family off with a “feast” seemed the kind thing to do. And guess what. They really liked it! They even liked the lentils and rice once they added a touch of salt.
One thing I learned, lentils really grow. They’re like the Incredible Hulk, small and unimpressive one moment, then trying to burst from the pot the next. We’ll be eating lentils and rice again tonight. And maybe again tomorrow.
I have a tendency to cook more elaborate meals with many ingredients. Clara’s meal was easy and I felt good about feeding it to my family. I think we’re ready to go deeper into our research.
-
A Few Kind Words
I opened an email today and the first few words melted my heart. There wasn’t anything amazing, no flowery prose, but a simply sweet greeting. So I noodled over this for a few moments. Why did these few words bring me such a happy feeling?
Because for the slice of time I read that email, I felt important to another person. In today’s world that’s really something. I spend way too much of my life in the grocery store. Everywhere I look there are other shoppers eager to get out the door and employees who just want to finish their shifts and go home. It wasn’t until a truly dark day that I noticed each face I passed seemed to be scowling.
I think we underestimate how our words and attitudes can hurt or heal others. Words are powerful! And a smile may go further than we can see.
But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. Hebrews 3:13 NIV
How can we encourage others?
1. Take the time to smile.
2. Offer help. This could be taking a busy moms kiddos for the day or bringing a meal to a neighbor.
3. Slow down. People are more important than our schedules.
4. Send an unexpected note or email.
5. When you ask someone how they’re doing, listen to the answer.
Has someone done something recently that encouraged you?
-
Changing Genres, Changing Style
My current work-in-progress is a story set during the Great Depression. This is the first time I’ve delved into a historical, and I’ve discovered my technique is very different in this genre. Usually I have a plan. It’s not fully formed but there is a basic skeleton to follow. I write each day, and I write fast. Editing is held off until the entire store is written.
But with the historical, I write slowly. I’m tied to the internet and a variety of books so I can appease my constant need to verify facts. Even the editing process is different. I find I must perfect a scene before moving on to the next. I’m sure the rewrites will take only a fraction of the time I’ve spent in the past, so maybe timewise, it will be a wash.
I’m not sure this is all a consequence of a new genre. Maybe it’s me who’s changed. I’m a different person than the one who wrote the last manuscript. In almost every way I’ve been pinched, squeezed and molded. Today, I have a deeper understanding for others and their struggles, which allows me to extend mercy and grace and receive it for myself. I hope that comes out in Anne’s story.
Thanks for reading as I ramble on again! 🙂
Writers, does your style change when you switch genres?
Has your style changed over time?
-
Snow Day Memories
Sure doesn’t look much like spring in my neck of the woods. We woke up to a blanket of snow. It’s gorgeous! And as a bonus, the powers in the school district actually canceled school. You can imagine the rejoicing. Even my younger kiddos who are still homeschooled did a few jumps for joy. Though I would have given them time to play in the snow, the girls were thrilled that their brothers could stay home too.
When I was in middle school, I lived with my dad and his family. Our house was at a high elevation and snow came on thick. One of my greatest memories are of sledding down the steep driveway on sheets of aluminum (I think that’s what it was) recycled from our local newspaper printer.
The road would mash down until it became like ice allowing us to pick up speed. Eventually the aluminum would wear away and our bottoms became the sled.
When our hands were frozen and the plastic bags in our boots had given out and let water in, we’d hike back to the house and strip off the layers of wet clothes. Once bundled up in warm sweat suits, we’d sip hot chocolate and watch the snow from the window.
What do you remember from snow days?
