LIFE's TWISTS and TURNS--

AND THE BLESSINGS ... OCTOBER 22 2013 ....

What a twisty-turney road we travel on our life's journey.  You never know what might be around the next bend.  I want to tell you about one of those twists.

I've mentioned before  the many many folks I have met through the years from participating in the festivals.  I would like to begin telling of some of these blessings.

Today I am going to tell of this couple, not that they are more important than any of my other friends, but to tell you about courage.


They are Paul Estronza LaViolette and his wife Stella LaViolette.  She loves to cook and bake.  He writes books.  His books touch on the real-life challenges we all face, and the happiness we have all experienced at one time or another.

It has been, probably 5 or 6 years ago now, that I first met them at one of my festivals.  He was a vendor.  Selling the books that he had written.  He came by my booth, and, no other way to explain it, fell in love with one of my framed pictures.  He returned to my booth whenever he had a free moment and just looked, and talked with me.

He told me about his books, how they touch on life's experiences.  I visited his booth and saw his books.  Thinking "what the heck" I asked him if he ever traded any of his books for whatever.  His face lit up like a Christmas tree.  He got the picture, I got 3 of his books.

Needless to say I found his books were wonderful.  Mostly  short stories, but, oh my!  What stories.  The hardest to read was of their experiences of surviving the horrendous hurricane that  destroyed New Orleans and much of the Mississippi coast, where they lived.  Frankly I don't know how they coped, I don't think I could have.

We see each other twice a year.  He gets a picture, I get a new book.  He is in his 80's now.   He has been in a terrible tractor accident on  his farm in Blairsville Pa (where he moved when he lost everything in the hurricane).  His neck was broken, he was life-flighted to the hospital, was not supposed to survive, but there he was, with his wife and his books. 

We talked.  He got a new picture, I got  new books.

If any of you attend the second weekend at the fairgrounds this coming Saturday and Sunday, I hope you will look him and his wife up, and possibly purchase a book.  His stories are memories of what used to be.  And what memories/stories they are.

Have a good day and God Bless.