Meeting Beth and Catherine

Beth, left, and her friend, Catherine
Last week, I opened an email from Beth from Lake Jackson, TX.
She found my email address on my website and this is what she wrote:

"I've read your two books to a friend who is 90 and blind. We have enjoyed them so much! Your books have brought us so much joy. Some days, she laughs so hard that there are tears rolling down her cheeks. We were hoping that there will be another book soon. Thank you so much for your books.
From two huge fans,
Beth and Catherine"

 In the photo, Beth is pictured, left, and Catherine is pictured, right.
I have never been to Lake Jackson, TX, but it is south of Houston and west of Galveston along the coast. I've never met Beth and Catherine.

But, I will be meeting them this Friday at 4 p.m. ET.
By use of conference call, I will be reading them a chapter titled "Spin The Bottle" from my new book, Hickory Trail, due out in October 2018. I've written about two-thirds of the book's first draft with a goal of finishing the first draft by Jan. 1. Hickory Trail follows Frank Wilcox as he stumbles into and through high school during the 1970s in north Georgia.

I asked Beth, by e-mail, to tell me more about her relationship with Catherine.

 "Catherine is an inspiration to all who know and love her," Beth writes. "She was widowed at a very young age (36, I think) with four children. She raised those four to be exceptional human beings.

 She has been very active in our community and her church for many years - until she lost her eyesight. She loves to talk about her relatives and an ancestor, Stephen F. Austin, who was a founding father of Texas. Yes, our State Capitol, Austin, is named after him!

 (Catherine) also survived heart bypass surgery at the age of 89. She is just as sharp mentally as ever.

 We met years ago when Catherine began babysitting our youngest son, Alex when he was 4 or 5 (he's now 32) and we have kept in touch since then. Usually, we would exchange birthday cards and Christmas cards and have an occasional lunch together. But, after her surgery and after she lost her eyesight, I began to visit her weekly.

 One of Catherine's friends began reading to her and I thought that was such a wonderful idea. We've known each other for so long and we were running out of topics to talk about. So, I recruited my sweet husband to try and find a suitable book that would interest her. That's how we found Brookwood Road and Elm Street!

 You just can't believe the happiness and joy those books have brought to her and to me, also. They have sparked memories long forgotten by both of us and we have had many discussions about stories in your books that related to our lives, also."

 That email was followed up with this one:

"We finished Elm Street today and (Catherine) had a different kind of tears in her eyes when I read Frank's graduation speech. I believe she was remembering growing up in a small town, too."

 Friday is going to be pretty special. I cannot wait to meet these two precious women.

If you are new to this blog about my book-adventure, Brookwood Road, Elm Street, and Hickory Trail (coming 2018) is a three-book series titled Memories of a Home. These are collections of stories, written as fiction, based on my childhood, growing up on my grandfather's farm and in small-town north Georgia during the 1960s and 1970s. The books are available at Amazon and at select retail locations in Cumming, GA and Lexington, SC. More information here.

www.scottdvaughan.com



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