The world can wait

  Christmas Ivy  (Published by Prism Book Group, 2016) by Judy DuCharme First line: The sizzle of bacon cooking brought Ivy to an upright position out of sound sleep. Blurb: It had to be a dream. Her grandparents, who have already passed away, greet her Christmas morning with love and sage advice. Their presence captivates reality and brings Ivy to complete confusion. Could this strange visit truly be the provision for which Ivy longed? How could a quilt reveal truths never before realized. Christmas Ivy has won   First Place Short Story at 2016 Florida Christian Writers Conference, and 2018 National Indie Excellence Award Winner for  Christmas Ivy. Inspiration: I hoped to help write a story to be used for my church’s children’s Christmas play. The story began to form as I drove home from a prayer meeting. I sat on the steps by our little heater and wrote most of it in one setting that night. It was never used for the play, but it was expanded and became the small bo...

  BLURB: Ride with the Cracker Cowboys in historical Florida as they take the cattle to market and follow the journey of Linney Merritt as one cowboy steals her heart. Marrying held no interest for either, but now, against all their determination, they are drawn to each other. And then, just before Christmas, they find themselves fighting together to save the life of a calf, all the while discovering the One who can remove fears and provide forgiveness.   EXCERPTS: 1. Nellie moaned, and Linney pulled. The emerging calf licked her face. “We better hurry, Pa. He just done licked me. Don’t want him thinkin’ I’m his mama.”   “You’ll make a good one someday.” “That ain’t happenin’. Why would anyone want to go through this?” Pa looked around Nellie’s bulk. His eyes found Linney’s. “For the likes of you, girl. It’s worth it.”   2. Her eyes shifted to the rider. He appeared to be a few years older’n her. She caught her breath. What was that? His square sh...

  BLURB: How Can one visit alleviate the trials of the past few years? How can one quilt reveal truths never before realized? It had to be a dream . . . Her grandparents passed away a few years earlier, but here in the family kitchen on the dawn of Christmas morning, they greet her with the same love and sage advice she grew up with. Their presence captivated reality and brings Ivy to complete confusion. Could this strange visit truly be the provision for which Ivy longed?   EXCERPTS:   1. The sizzle of bacon cooking brought Ivy to an upright position out of sound sleep. The smoky flavor tantalized her nostrils as the fog in her mind slowly lifted. Her hands flew to her face. It’s Christmas! The words rose within her, not with joy, but with panic. How could she have slept so late!? Mama will have my head. I should be making breakfast. But wait. It’s Christmas! Mama must have let me sleep . A wonderful gift, to sleep past dawn. Ivy heard a gentle snoring and looked to se...

Run With the Wind: Life on the scrub was rough, but it was all she needed. Then he arrived. He wanted to start over. But this . . . Life changed for the world in a stable one Christmas. Could it also begin for Linney in this stable? Excerpts: 1. Nellie moaned, and Linney pulled. The emerging calf licked her face. “We better hurry, Pa. He just done licked me. Don’t want him thinkin’ I’m his mama.”  “You’ll make a good one someday.” “That ain’t happenin’. Why would anyone want to go through this?” Pa looked around Nellie’s bulk. His eyes found Linney’s. “For the likes of you, girl. It’s worth it.”   2. Her eyes shifted to the rider. He appeared to be a few years older’n her. She caught her breath. What was that? His square shoulders and square jaw made him much wider than most  Crackers. But there was something else. It made her feel jittery. She must have overeaten, or that new calf licked her too much. Her stomach didn’t normally flop around like a snake hit by a cowm...

  www.amazon.com/Christmas-Ivy-Judy-DuCharme-ebook/dp/B01N0B4MY9 Christmas Ivy won First Place Short Story at the 2016 Florida Christian Writers Conference and was a Winner in the 2018 National Indie Excellence Awards. Blurb: How can one visit alleviate the trials of the past few years? How can one quilt reveal truths never before realized?  It had to be a dream… Her grandparents passed away a few years earlier, but here in the family kitchen on the dawn of Christmas morning, they greet her with the same love and sage advice she grew up with. Their presence captivates reality and brings Ivy to complete confusion. Could this strange visit truly be the provision for which Ivy longed? Excerpts from Christmas Ivy 1. The sizzle of bacon cooking brought Ivy to an upright position out of sound sleep. The smoky flavor tantalized her nostrils as the fog in her mind slowly lifted. Her hands flew to her face. It’s Christmas! The words rose within her, not wi...