Joining in the Round is a lighter, more personal story from my Restoration series. Since it takes place in part around the Winter Solstice, it’s my choice for this week’s snippet.
THE FARM DIDN’T LOOK its best in winter. The mountains were lost to sight, wrapped in dull, misty clouds, and the forest surrounding the pastures became a gloomy wall of bare black tree limbs and drooping wet evergreen boughs.
It was a dismal sight, but in Felicity’s opinion the warmth made up for the dreary view. The sky might be murky and the ground soggy, but the damp air felt positively balmy after the last few weeks of frigid Nebraska winds.
No tents huddled in the pastures for this revel. The weather was too unpredictable, and the attendance was low enough to house everyone in the lodge’s guest rooms and the twelve rustic cabins behind it. The creaking porch rockers held elders enjoying the fresh air and dogs who had been evicted from furniture indoors.