Song of Souls: The Journey of a Writer

New Author Uses Painful Experience as CatalystFor First Book in Song of Souls Trilogy 

By Karilea Rilling Jungel

One deals with grief in various ways. There are the seven stages of grief; shock and denial, pain and guilt, anger and bargaining, depression/reflection, the upward turn, reconstruction and working through, and finally, acceptance and hope. And somewhere in these stages, after only 18 months of marriage to Dustin, then widowed at a young age, Christen Stovall found a way to give voice to her loss, and her book, Soulbound, was conceived.

“I decided on a trilogy in order for the characters to play out.” Christen explains that even though she picks up side jobs, her primary job is dedicated to taking her characters on a fictional journey. “When I talked to my mom about this effort, she was very supportive of me. My mother lived out in the country, so I invited her and my brother to move into town with me; it would be easier on her to get to her job, and made it financially advantageous to all of us.

courtesy christen stovall

“I started writing as a hobby in my late teens, early 20’s. I wanted to write a book, but felt I didn’t have any new idea (for a novel) back then.  About two years after my husband died, the idea for this story started building in my head, and the characters began evolving. On our vacation to the east coast in 2014, the whole outline of my story came into view, and when we returned home, it took about nine months to get the story written, and a full year before it was finally done.

“To a degree, the beginning story is based on my life. I had been home schooled, while Dustin attended Central High. Dustin and I met each other while we were still in school when we applied for auditions at our community theater. I thought then, and shared with some of the other actors, that ‘I think I really like him.’ This was well after he had been in a car accident in the winter of 2000, and Dustin had worked hard to rehabilitate his mind, body, and spirit. Not long after being in a play with him (The Odd Couple at Salina Community Theater, 2005) we started dating, because I realized the ‘crush’ was as strong as ever. I had noted that although Dustin had always been a deep person; his car accident just added another layer of depth to his persona. We were together for two years before he proposed in 2007, and we married a year later, on October 26, 2008.

“However, because he was not able to become 100% rehabilitated following his car accident, Justin’s depression from continuous physical pain had become too much for him to handle, and he died on May 1, 2012.”

In Christen’s first book Soulbound, her main character, Aislynn, draws upon Christen’s personal experience as a young widow for a character who marries her “soulmate,” only to also become a widow not long into the marriage. In this fantasy world, some soulmates are able to stay connected, which gives them certain abilities. Aislynn learns she will require training to use her powers correctly, in order that she stay sane, and not go ‘crazy’. Aislynn makes the choice to stay a soulmate and becomes soul bound. That’s when her adventures really begin.

Christen acknowledged that other facets of her own personality come through in Aislynn. “In terms of how Aislynn approaches situations, such as when bad things happen, which you can’t control, you can learn to control how it will affect you, and how you will approach your own healing. Whether you are going to be a victim, or a survivor, and grow stronger are characteristics that Aislynn takes on, and I have done the same. Close friendships are important to Aislynn. She uses the same term of endearment as I did. But she is not exactly like me. Some of my other characters are based loosely on my own friends. Family is important to her, and Aislynn feels a sense of responsibility toward other characters, as do I.”

Christen confesses that this first novel was more revealing about what she went through than she thought it would be. “I was nervous at my first reading, because (the story) was intimate to me, and shows what I went through. I’m an introvert, and it is difficult to be that open to others. But the more Aislynn grew, the more I felt I was coming back to myself, as well.” Christen imagines that her second book will show some darker sides of various situations she personally went through while dealing with her grief, which will be portrayed by her protagonist. Her third book will show a softer, accepting side of what Aislynn, as well as Christen, went through.

After Christen finishes the trilogy, she would then like to continue on with a prequel, and other writing projects.

Christen Stovall’s book can be found on Amazon.com (paper and e-book), and can be ordered directly through CreateSpace, as well as Barnes & Noble.

A Traditional Farm Life - Mapleine Pancake Syrup

A Traditional Farm Life

By Shasta Hamilton

Greetings from Enterprise, dear friends!   Today I was “taken for a ride.”  It was Mama’s maiden voyage riding in the people hauler with our boys taking turns at the lines.

Michael had the four youngest children with him on a shopping trip, so it was just the two oldest boys and I at home.  Yesterday two of our three oldest children put the first coat of primer on the people hauler, it was now dry, and we were ready to take a spin.  I elected to sit on an old towel, however, “just in case.”

I considered taking an umbrella along, as it was just starting to sprinkle when the boys got Tom and Jerry hitched, but thought better of it.  Somehow the thought of  “that crazy lady” in the back of an open horse-drawn wagon, holding an umbrella, cruising through residential areas of Enterprise, discouraged me.

Thankfully, the ride turned out being encouraging instead.  It is not very often these days I have the privilege of spending time alone with my oldest boys, so an hour’s cruise around our fair city was a pleasure.  Each one took a turn in the driver’s seat while the other sat in back with dear old Mom, and it was very interesting, indeed, to observe their differences in technique while handling the horses.

When our boys have not been handling horses these days, their free moments have been occupied by other aspects of the great outdoors.  Last weekend found Michael and the boys primitive camping in a pasture along the Saline River.  As I understand it, “authentic” cow patties added to the “pioneer” ambiance of the event. 

The girls and I couldn’t resist our own campout here at home--Holiday Inn style—complete with an indoor camp supper.  Our eight-year-old daughter fried potatoes in one skillet while I handled the Spam in another.  As usual, she put bacon grease in first to melt, but this time something just didn’t look right.  It melted instantly and had a strange syrup-like texture.  I tried not to panic, but it was obvious something was very wrong here. What could have possibly happened to our bacon grease?

The potatoes browned much more quickly than usual, and stuck and burned to the bottom of the pan.  It was like when sugar caramelizes . . .Hmmm.

Turns out it was sugar carmelizing on the bottom of the skillet.  A sniff of the jar confirmed my suspicions; the faint maple scent was the final clue I needed.  Somehow a jar of our homemade maple syrup for pancakes had turned into a beige-colored, sugar–crystallized, bacon-grease-impostor.  Next to it in the door of our fridge, in an identical glass jar, was the real thing!

We immediately added bacon grease to the pan, and finished browning the potatoes.  Surprisingly, the combination of sweet maple syrup and smoky bacon grease was actually quite tasty!

While I don’t think we could—or perhaps should--duplicate that dish again, it might be fun for you to try making your own pancake syrup at home next time pancakes or waffles are on the menu. 

At our house, and now at The Buggy Stop, we prefer Mapleine Imitation Maple Flavor for this application.  My husband grew up with homemade Mapleine syrup on his pancakes, and so we relive those childhood memories every time we have pancakes or waffles.  Interestingly, the box it comes in still looks the same as it did in Michael’s childhood. 

It is hard to find, however.  In the last 10 years or so we’ve only been able to find it at small grocery stores supplied by Affiliated Foods.  Most recently we ordered some through the kind folks at the Chapman Food Mart.

The secret to success is to get the sugar fully dissolved without boiling it too long and making candy.  At the other end of the spectrum--as we are all too aware of--is not completely melting the sugar.  In this case, a few weeks of aging in the fridge turns out a pretty good imitation of bacon grease.

Mapleine Pancake Syrup

1 cup water

2 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon Mapleine Imitation

Maple Flavor

1.  In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil.

2.  Add sugar and cook and stir until sugar is completely dissolved; remove from heat. 

3.  Add Mapleine and stir.  Serve over Buttermilk Pancakes or Waffles.

Yield:  2-1/4 cups syrup.

Copyright © 2015 by Shasta Hamilton

Shasta is a fifth generation rural Kansan now residing in Enterprise, Kansas.  She and her husband own and operate The Buggy Stop Home-Style Kitchen with their six home-schooled children.  You can reach The Buggy Stop by calling (785) 200-6385 or visit them on the web at www.thebuggystoprestaurant.com.

Presidential Brown Bag: Ike and Dutch: Mentor, Protege and Common Sense

Presidential Brown Bag

Ike and Dutch: Mentor, Protege and Common Sense

A brown bag discussion set for October 29 will examine research on Dwight D. Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan. The program, "Ike and Dutch: Mentor, Protege and Common Sense," will be led by author Gene Kopelson. It is scheduled for noon in the Visitors Center Auditorium of the Eisenhower Presidential Library.

Kopelson's talk is one of the major themes of his forthcoming book, Reagan's 1968 Dress Rehearsal: Ike, RFK, and Reagan's Emergence as a World Statesman, to be released in 2016 by University of Southern California Figueroa Press. According to Kopelson, the book will include newly discovered historical information that behind the scenes Dwight Eisenhower was Ronald Reagan's hidden political mentor.

Kopelson is president of the New England chapter and on the Board of Trustees of the Theodore Roosevelt Association. As a historian, he has published works on Theodore Roosevelt's Great White Fleet, Ronald Reagan's 1966 campaign and Mexican American voters, the 1968 Nebraska and Oregon Republican primaries, and Washington State Republican politics in the 1960s. He and his wife Mindy update teacher-student books and video teaching trunks at the Holocaust Center for Humanity in Seattle.

Eisenhower Foundation Ed Program Gets New Technology

TCT GIFT TO EISENHOWER FOUNDATION ENHANCES FIELD TRIPS TO PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

There's an app for that! School field trips to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum, and Boyhood Home are being enhanced by the addition of 25 iPad minis recently donated by TCT, Inc., a telecommunications company headquartered in Council Grove, Kan.

According to Emily Miller, Ike EDucator, the donation enables students to research historical information online when participating in Ike EDucation programs offered on-site at the Eisenhower Presidential Library. Ike ED offers a variety of educational curricula to meet the age level and needs of visiting students and teachers. The Eisenhower Foundation established Ike EDucation in 2013. It offers K-12 school groups complementary programs and activities that relate the life and times of the 34th President to today's students.

The on-site programs at the Eisenhower Presidential Library allow students to hold pieces of history - objects such as diaries, maps, and photographs - as they draw conclusions about the object's significance to a world event. A study of the weather on D-Day might include a secret military document describing the weather requirements necessary for a successful invasion, a weather balloon artifact, and the name of a meteorologist who reported daily to Eisenhower. With the addition of the iPad minis, students can conduct further research by online before stepping into Eisenhower's shoes to decide whether to commence or delay the D-Day invasion.

"The students are able to access information online, such as primary documents and videos," Miller says. "For example, in our program Holocaust: From a Name to a Number, students can scan a QR (Quick Response) code to watch interviews of actual Holocaust survivors and hear stories about the atrocities they endured at the hands of the Nazis."

TCT supports the communities it serves by funding local grants, sponsoring area events, providing numerous scholarships, and contributing to charities as well as civic and service clubs, according to Angie Schwerdtfeger, TCT's director of public relations.

"We know that a lot of students in our service area participate in this program, and we thought this was a great way to marry historical programs that teach kids about history, about leadership and about responsibility, with technology that is going to grab their interest," she says. "It's fine handing students a pamphlet, but that's not going to engage them as much as technology will, and therefore they are going to learn things because they are excited about the technology. We're hoping that through this technology, they will get more excited about leadership, responsibility and history."
TCT opened a Solutions Center in Abilene to service customers in the surrounding area, Schwerdtfeger adds, and contributing the iPad minis to the Ike Education Program is just one way the company supports the region.