That's the tagline for my latest novella, Circle of Light: A Persimmon Hollow Christmas Novella. The phrase describes the inner and outer journey of the heroine, Clara, who is newly arrived in the fictional frontier town of Persimmon Hollow in 1898. She's far from happy about her family's move to the small town in the Florida wilderness.
Circle of Light is set during Advent and Christmastide and the season plays a big role in the story. Advent is a season of light and hope. Clara tries to embrace those feelings as December unfolds. Her family and newfound acquaintances try to help her help herself. That includes a young man who offers to show Clara the sunny side of life in a near-wilderness.
But Clara, at first, stubbornly clings to memories of what she considers the more civilized world she left behind in her northern city home.
There are personal reasons for Clara's resistance to change. You'll have to read the novella to find out what they are. But period newspapers shed light on some external reasons why she might have bemoaned leaving what she called civilization.
Persimmon Hollow in 1898 was a still-growing settlement populated by earthy pioneer people. Larger Northern cities had more resources and residents. That urbanity is reflected in news media such as a December 1, 1898, issue of The Catholic Telegraph newspaper.
The Catholic Telegraph was based in Cincinnati, Ohio, which had a population of more than 300,000 people in 1898. The city was cosmopolitan compared to Persimmon Hollow's 1,400 residents and sandy streets paved with pine straw.
The newspaper's women's page decreed the following as fashionable for winter 1898-1899:
- New shell combs that were curved to fit the head and worn directly "under the knot arranged high." These combs also supported heavy winter hats.
- Expensive buttons and belt buckles that were "a distinct feature of autumn and winter gowning." They were so trendy that "almost every stylish toilet or costume has one or the other or both."
- Without doubt, "white gloves are to be worn with everything this year." The type of fabric depended on the use: chamois for daily street wear, high-sheen cotton with decorative black topstitching for upscale street wear, and plain high-sheen cotton or kid for evening.
- A new trend from France, where French women were "wearing pointed wraps of cloth to match their gowns."
Catholic women in Persimmon Hollow in 1898 may have received the Catholic Telegraph through the mail and read about these trends. However, most items described as fashionable weren't seen on an average day in Persimmon Hollow.
Some of the newspaper's household hints were more applicable to a frontier town. Some, though, weren't. The small settlement probably didn't have whole nutmeg available in small local stores. The tip to always start grating at the flower end wouldn't have been helpful.
More fitting for the frontier setting was a suggestion for cleaning flatirons in warm water, using a half tablespoon of melted lard to every two quarts of water. Readers also were advised to soak lamp wicks in vinegar and thoroughly dry them before use. "They will draw well and will not smoke."
Finally, this odd (to modern ears) tip might have caused heroine Clara to raise her hands in despair for remembering amenities she'd left behind. Streetcars were unknown in Persimmon Hollow. But city dwellers reading the newspaper were told to do the following when riding a streetcar: "Practice deep, full breathing, which robs even bad air of half its dangers."
Persimmon Hollow had the edge over all cities in air quality, for it was pure and healthful. The town had other charms, too, which Clara gradually comes to realize with help from her faith, family, friends, and a love interest. My historical romances have HEAs (Happily Ever After) endings, and Circle of Light is no exception.
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