Christmas Memories by June Foster

Times have changed. But I still remember one Christmas tradition our family enjoyed. We gathered in the dining room for a luscious meal then adjourned into the living room where our Christmas tree, bare except for lights, stood ready for our homemade ornaments patterned after the Jesse Tree.

First we read the story of the Jesse Tree which tells, through the use of symbols, the Biblical story from creation to the birth of Christ. We learned that in Medieval times, when the  tradition of the Jesse Tree first began, people created  large carvings, tapestries or even stained glass windows to place in churches for members of the congregation who were illiterate. Nowadays, the cutout symbols represent Bible stories we know so well. For example, the earth represents the Creation, a picture of an apple is the Garden of Eden, and a rainbow is symbolic of Noah and the flood—and many more.

So, now it was time to get creative. Each family member chose a couple of symbols for ornaments they wished to construct from the variety of materials I had accumulated and set out on the dining room table. When the ornaments were completed, we hung them on the tree. The next week we gathered again and told the Christmas story. In the correct order, each person removed their ornament, relayed the Bible story and replaced the cutout on the tree. Afterward we prayed and asked the Lord to help us keep Christmas in our hearts every day of the year.

But alas, those were the wonderful days when our children were home to celebrate. In the last years, we've traveled in our RV and our tree morphed from a six foot pine to a two foot plastic tree small enough to fit in our coach. But we still remembered the real reason for the season as we celebrated with our Florida friends in a room full of white haired Christians instead of boisterous children.

Today we live in a new home in Cullman, Alabama and don't plan on putting up a tree. What? How can I say that? No, we're not saying bah humbug. We're going to share our children's tree in Texas and enjoy our family's company once again.

Backcover material

Emily Eason wants to distance herself from her parents' opulent lifestyle in Birmingham, Alabama, and enjoy life in the rural village of Raccoon Creek and her fifties-style home. But after gazing into the little snow globe she purchased from Hardwicke's Drugs and Gifts, she finds herself transported to another time—her grandmother's era.

Lance Hardwicke is the pharmacist and owner of Hardwicke's Drugs. Four years of pharmacy school didn't allow for much of a social life. Gorgeous Emily Eason, nurse and resident of Raccoon Creek, has captured his attention. The next time she comes in the store, he's determined to ask her out. Maybe take her to Birmingham to see the Christmas lights in his brand new orange and white '53 Pontiac Pathfinder.

Can love span the fifty-year gap standing between them? 

Blurb: When love spans the decades

After gazing into a snow glove, Emily Eason finds herself transported back in time to her grandmother's era—the nifty fifties. But when she falls in love with the handsome pharmacist, Lance Hardwick, can their love span a half century gap?

 June Foster is an award-winning author who began her writing career in an RV roaming around the USA with her husband, Joe. She brags about visiting a location before it becomes the setting in her contemporary romances. June's characters find themselves in precarious circumstances where only God can offer redemption and ultimately freedom. Find June at junefoster.com.

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