Don't you just love a good snowfall? Not the one that is hurried, windy and whipping at your face, but the slow, peaceful, romantic one that conjures up images of sitting by the fire with a hot brew and the company of your loved one.
With Valentine's Day fast approaching, I sit here with my Toshiba Satellite laptop, amid the company of a nice Oriental stir fry, a hurricane lamp of flickering candlelight, and a hot Tim Horton's Chai. Outside my window, snow is gently falling, and my little town looks like the vision of a Marshmallow World, as Dean Martin once sang.
The sun has set, and drivers are making their proverbial crawl home from work on the snow-covered roads. Inside my rustic farmhouse, I revel in the comforts of home life, daughter and faithful dog.
As usual, I've got love on my mind. Well, after all, isn't that what EVERY romance writer has on her mind 24/7?
Recently, I went to a Dollarama and stocked my basket full of Valentine's Day decorations. Shoppers eyed me, completely puzzled, wondering what grande shin dig I was hosting that consisted of this red hearts decor that overflowed from that basket. There was huge, pink and red shaped heart candles, a red table cloth, silver and red votive holders, a red sign that said LOVE, and red candy dishes shaped like a heart.I had chocolates with cute, brown labs on the box, heart gummi's, and fuzzy pink socks. Perhaps I went overboard, but I don't care; I justified it as the most important date on my calendar so far this year. Red hearts and romance are at the core of this old soul's existence.
Love, inherently, is the most important thing one can have on their mind. Cozy like a blanket, love warms the heart, renews the soul, and gives a writer plenty of inspiration for the next great novel. Love and a romantic snowfall are two great aspects that complement one another well, don't you agree? There's a good reason why the hot tub suite's are sold out in the winter months at all the romantic hotels and getaway spots. Winter time is a cherished haven in which love is born, and I'm sure this season has spawned some fantastic real-life love stories.
Snowfall has a way of getting to me. It always kick starts my next novel, puts me in the mood, and gives me a glow from the inside out. I cannot begin to express what bliss I find in the midst of a good snowfall. Some of my best characters have been created during a good ole blast of the white stuff.
I am actually jealous of the folks on the eastern seaboard who got up to 90 cm this past week. Send some MY way? Yes, please, Mother Nature.
While I write this, I ponder all the good that has come to me in 2015 so far. Yes, it is premature to judge the year on just a scant 29 days into the annual calendar, but I can't help it. Each New Year, I embark on the tradition of creating a "Blessings & Miracles Jar" that will encompass that entire year. The last two jars from 2014 were filled to the brim!!! I can't help it, I'm just grateful.
We, as humans, have a LOT to be grateful for. I know I certainly am. While living in a country known for its vast freedoms, clean drinking water, good food, and amazing people, I also take into account the simple things of life that matter most. I've got a teenage daughter who loves me and thinks I'm a hero; my dog is madly in love with me (can you blame him?), I have friends who've got my back, no matter what. They don't care whether I look like a Victoria Secret model or not, live in a palatial home in Rosedale or a simple, 100 year old farmhouse, or if I make $1 million dollars a year as opposed to $77,000 annually. No, these friends embrace the real, authentic woman who has taken the hard knocks of life, and turned them into gold. Within the pages of these novels, you will find the tears, the tragedy, the laughter and the triumphs of a conscious woman who fully knows her worth and who she is.
Gratefully, I honor the men in my life who've inspired my writing and shown me that life gets better, that not all men are A-holes, and good people are abundantly in our Path at all times.
To the dear friends who have stood by me when marriages crumbled and backstabbers slandered, I salute you all today.
My wish for each of you is that 2015 will be richly abundant enough to fill your Blessings & Miracle jars to the brim, and then some.
Hopefully, this evening you are sitting by the fire with a loved one, watching the warmth of the flames dancing in the grate, or enjoying a candlelight dinner and smiling fondly with the radiance of love in your hearts, knowing how blessed you truly are to have this love.
To those of you out there who are single and still searching for that ONE GREAT LOVE, please do not give up your search. Love is waiting in the wings, it has heard your call. It knows what you want.
Love is infinite. Love is worth the wait.
Remember, to always keep the passion alive,
RR xo
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