Touch of Love ~ ...a bit of therapy

If you’ve read any of the stories in my second short story collection you might have surmised how personal some of the stories are to me. In addition to the obvious I’m going to let you in on some of the backstories.

The first and most personal one is An Empty House. In December 2016 my wonderful husband had a stroke. I can use all of the clichés available (Threw me for a loop, knocked the wind out of me, came out of nowhere…) and it just does not express how our lives changed that night. As I said in the story we’ve had to adjust to a “New Normal” which really isn’t normal.

I am eternally grateful that the love of my life survived and has made terrific strides towards recovery, but there is still much more to go. In the meanwhile we had to find ways to get back to life, my husband is the one who suffered the stroke and yet we’ve all been affected. I had to force myself to resume my activities, responsibilities, and my professional life. I actually felt empty inside.

Long ago during an interview I was asked WHY I write, my answer was “I write because I breathe.” I had to learn to breathe again. I started compiling my second short story collection and it wound up being both personal and therapeutic for me. This collection is truly personal to me and there are other stories which were certainly drawn from my heart. I also started a very basic website http://lifevscare.blogspot.com which, although slow in development, I hope will offer some useful information to others who have stroke survivors in their life.

He is My Brother is about my brother(in-law) and our desperate quest to save his life and find him a donated kidney. We, our family, need him. If you don’t mind please visit the website we set up for him and share our story to all of your contacts, https://kidney4del.wordpress.com/

Although these next stories are pure fiction, they were certainly inspired by people and events in my life and hold very special meaning for me — these stories include: Rekindled, A Date with Mistletoe, and The Lost Love. Finally The Dead Guy in the Park and Always, One More Time were just fun stories to write.

If you take the time to read this collection, please handle it with care, it really was written with a personal Touch of Love.

A Teaser from Touch of Love

An Empty House

No matter how many times I turned the key in the lock I was always disappointed to find the room within always empty. I kept hoping for the day he would return. I promised him I would wait as long as it took until he came back to me.

For months I missed my husband, I missed sleeping next to him every night, and I missed seeing him every morning as he dressed for work. I was forced to accept the fact that it wasn’t our bed he fell asleep in every night. Someone else was preparing his meals, greeting him when he woke, and someone else was listening to him when he needed to talk. So many days and weeks passed while I cried myself to sleep every night… simply alone.

Life had changed. I never suspected that he would leave me, that he would leave our home.
...

A Chelle Cordero short
story collection

.

An Empty House: You never know what tomorrow will bring. This is a personal essay about coping with and moving on with the “New Normal”.

The night before our 41st wedding anniversary my wonderful and loving husband was rushed to the hospital with a stroke. It was just after midnight on our anniversary that the Dr said the next 48 hours would be critical. He spent months in rehab and I feel very blessed that he was able to come home. This man has always been my hero (and the man I have based every one of my book heroes on!). It’s been a journey and we are on this road together...

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Are you taking advantage? Read a FREE story, Pussy Cat Tales

Throughout the month of September, I'm posting my short story Pussy Cat Tales in serialized version. Pussy Cat Tales (an amusing look at a lifetime with cats) is one of the short stories in The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero 


Come to my Facebook Author page every other day for another installment. The next installment is due Thursday, September 10.


Catch up with previous installments:
part 1: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChelleCordero/posts/941510175892493
part 2: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChelleCordero/posts/941510729225771
part 3: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChelleCordero/posts/941511319225712
part 4: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChelleCordero/posts/941511789225665

THE MANY FACES OF CHELLE CORDERO

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At First Glance - Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 11/30/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the
WeWriWa blog

I'm continuing with snippets from The Meeting, a part of The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero, a short-story collection which exemplifies (I hope) the diversity of my writing.

The story begins at a Charleston SC train station in 1942. America, still reeling from the Pearl Harbor attack, entered the war and soldiers in uniform were going off to Europe and the Pacific to fight. Life continued on the home-front.

Last week two young ladies, both Southern born and bred, were saying a tearful good-bye at the train station. A young MP riding in another car was about to step onto the platform.

It felt good to stretch his legs as he stepped down from the train onto the platform. He watched as two women tearfully hugged each other and found himself unable to stop staring at the woman left on the platform. She was beautiful.

He lit his cigarette and took a drag and then walked over to the woman.

Jeannette was aware of the soldier‘s stare and tried not to let it affect her. He was a handsome man, but it just wasn‘t polite to be scrutinized so thoroughly like that. He came even closer and she tried to look in the other direction.

           “Hello.”

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

The Meeting

From a random meeting in the south during WW2 to a
marriage and love that lasts for an eternity.

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The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero is a single author collection of short stories featuring Introduction, Pussycat Tails, Holiday Happiness, Not Alone, I Swear That Raccoon Just Knocked on the Door, Stormy Weather, A Mother’s Love, More Than a Friend, The Meeting, The Vacation and a special bonus section.

...and in time for the holidays!

A short story about finding holiday happiness whenyou didn’t realize it was right there with you all along.

Holiday Happiness: A Short Story [Kindle Edition] by Chelle Cordero

just 99-cents - click HERE to buy

Introducing The Meeting ~ Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 11/23/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the
WeWriWa blog

I'm moving to another story from The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero, a short-story collection which exemplifies (I hope) the diversity of my writing.

This snippet is from The Meeting which begins in 1942 at a train station platform in Charleston, South Carolina.

“Make sure you send me a letter as soon as you get there,” Jeannette stopped to dry her eyes, “you just know how I am going to miss you.”

“Oh honey, I‘ll write to you every day,” Melanie hugged the best friend she always shared everything with. Their mommas had taken them for walks in their baby carriages together, they were there for each other‘s first dates, they consoled each other when Melanie‘s big brother left to go fight the big war, and they stayed up late reading letters from Melanie’s ill mother. “Oh I wish I didn‘t have to leave you.”

“You tell your momma to get well so you can bring her home again.”

“Last call for Greensboro,” the train engineer poked his head out to remind passengers to get their luggage loaded.

In another car an M.P. checked the cuffs of the prisoner he was transporting from Georgia and then motioned to another soldier on the train.

“I‘m going to step off and have a smoke,” he was satisfied the prisoner wasn‘t going anywhere.

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

The Meeting

From a random meeting in the south during WW2 to a
marriage and love that lasts for an eternity.

 AUDIO 

PRINT 

Kindle 

 AllRomance Ebooks 

 iBooks 

 Smashwords 

The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero is a single author collection of short stories featuring Introduction, Pussycat Tails, Holiday Happiness, Not Alone, I Swear That Raccoon Just Knocked on the Door, Stormy Weather, A Mother’s Love, More Than a Friend, The Meeting, The Vacation and a special bonus section.

from the book's dedication...

To my parents, Marcy & Reva, their relationship was the epitome 

of the love story and the inspiration for "The Meeting"

One more snippet from NOT ALONE - Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 11/16/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the
WeWriWa blog

A few weeks ago I began running snippets from the story Not Alone from my short story collection, The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero.. Told in 1st person POV we learned that someone had died and everyone was blaming Jordan, including the narrator. Here is one more snippet from the story and we'll find out a bit more of what happened... Next week I'll move on to another story - but read to the end of this post if you are still interested in finding out how this story goes.

Kimmie’s dad came by to pick up the rest of his daughter’s things; we shared a suite in the dorms. He hugged me and thanked me for the friendship I shared with his daughter. He told me how much it meant to him and his wife to hear me talk about Kimmie during the memorial service. Then he asked me to help keep Kimmie alive by never forgetting her. When he left, the tears began to fall again and I stared at a picture of my best friend while I cried.

Maybe I didn’t really, or maybe I did, but I heard Kimmie’s voice telling me that Jordan needed me. I thought that maybe I was losing my mind, it could have just been the desperation I felt, but I knew that I heard her voice. So I went over to Jordan’s off-campus apartment; I stared at his door for a few minutes before I actually knocked.

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Not Alone

Sometimes forgiveness seems impossible, but then so is turning your back on a friend.

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NOT ALONE is available as a FREE
audio preview of my short story collection

Download Chelle’s audio story NOT ALONE
from this short story collection [FREE]
http://store.payloadz.com/go?id=1901650
(narrated by Wendy Tremont King)

The story behind Not Alone ~ Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 11/09/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the WeWriWa blog

Last week I started with a snippet from the story Not Alone from my short story collection, The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero.. Told in 1st person POV we learned that someone had died and everyone was blaming Jordan, including the narrator. Here is another snippet from the story and we'll find out a bit more of what happened...

As word of Kimmie’s death spread across the campus, the ostracizing began. Her friends and classmates were too stunned to think beyond losing such a young, vibrant friend. Kimmie’s parents had suffered one of the worst things that ever could happen to a parent; they had no room for forgiveness in their hearts, grief was taking up too much space. It was easier to blame someone than to try to make sense of it, our friends turned on Jordan as well.

I cried non-stop at Kimmie’s funeral and thought of all the long phone calls we had and the shopping trips to the mall and cramming for tests. I couldn’t imagine a world without my best friend or a world without her laughter. Even though I knew that Jordan had been banned from attending the funeral I was angry that he wasn’t there to witness the mourning, the loss and the questions of how we were all supposed to go on.

That was yesterday.

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Not Alone

Sometimes forgiveness seems impossible, but then so is turning your back on a friend.

 AUDIO 

PRINT 

Kindle 

 AllRomance Ebooks 

 iBooks 

 Smashwords 

The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero is a single author collection of short stories featuring Introduction, Pussycat Tails, Holiday Happiness, Not Alone, I Swear That Raccoon Just Knocked on the Door, Stormy Weather, A Mother’s Love, More Than a Friend, The Meeting, The Vacation and a special bonus section.

The Inspiration For This Story: First let me put the disclaimer here that this story is PURE fiction, however I was inspired to write it after an incident that happened near my home.
Without going into the identifying details - a young man that we had known for a number of years was involved in a work related accident, he was driving. His co-worker, sitting in the passenger seat, was severely injured and left disabled, no one knew for sure, including the doctors, if she would even survive. It was known that his injuries, although serious, were not life threatening and after long-term physical therapy would be overcome. Although witnesses came forward to say he didn't appear to be at fault, the girl's parents and several friends blamed him for her injuries.
I remember speaking with him one evening when he came to visit, he was still wearing a back brace and bandages. He was blaming himself - he said maybe if his reaction had been quicker, if the major impact was on his side and not hers, if he had chosen a different route all together, if, if, if...
What I remember most from our conversation that night was a  combination of hurt and anger he expressed - while in the hospital they placed him under a suicide watch because, when he first found out how maimed she was, he uttered the words, "It should have been me." He told me that the last thing he would do would be to take "the easy way out" and relieve himself of his guilt by killing himself.
The case went to trial and he was found innocent of criminal negligence, but did lose a lawsuit in civil court her parents initiated. He also lost his livelihood because of liability after the lawsuit.
I definitely thought of the pain in this young man's eyes when I created Jordan.

How Kimmie Died ~ Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 11/02/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the WeWriWa blog

Last week I started with a snippet from the story Not Alone from my short story collection, The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero.. Told in 1st person POV we learned that someone had died and everyone was blaming Jordan, including the narrator. Here is another snippet from the story and we'll find out a bit more of what happened...

I left the party that night early, too early to know that Kimmie’s boyfriend dumped her and left her at the party while he went home with another girl. She was upset and shouldn’t have been drinking; most of the folks at the party were under the legal drinking age – but that’s another issue altogether.

Kimmie wanted to go home, she couldn’t even hold onto her keys, Jordan offered to drive her. He drank a beer early in the evening, he was one of the few who could legally, and then he hadn’t had anything else for hours. The cops even said that his blood alcohol level was well below the legal limits, Jordan was just trying to be a nice guy.

I visited Jordan in his hospital room right after I heard about the accident, I didn’t even know that Kimmie was dead. Jordan was devastated, he told me how he got cut off on that dark and winding road and the car rolled down the embankment. There were no witnesses; just a minor paint scrape on the front fender.

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Not Alone

Sometimes forgiveness seems impossible, but then so is turning your back on a friend.

 AUDIO 

PRINT 

Kindle 

 AllRomance Ebooks 

 iBooks 

 Smashwords 

The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero is a single author collection of short stories featuring Introduction, Pussycat Tails, Holiday Happiness, Not Alone, I Swear That Raccoon Just Knocked on the Door, Stormy Weather, A Mother’s Love, More Than a Friend, The Meeting, The Vacation and a special bonus section.

Part of a short story collection - Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 10/26/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the WeWriWa blog

Last week I hadn't realized that I had already run through a group of A Chaunce of Riches snippets earlier this year, so I am changing direction this week and will feature my short story collection, The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero.

Here is a snippet from the story Not Alone...

I ignored the changing numbers on the alarm clock as long as I could. I still refused to believe that anything that had happened over the past few days was real; it was all a nightmare, that’s all.

As my toes sought the warmth of my slippers, the tears began to fall again, no matter how many times I tried to deny it, my best friend was buried yesterday. They wouldn’t let Jordan come to the cemetery. Everyone blamed him, even me.

For the two days that Jordan had been hospitalized, they kept him under a suicide watch. That angered him because it meant that people thought he would want to take “the coward’s way out” as he called it. He said it wasn’t his fault, but he still blamed himself.

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Not Alone

Sometimes forgiveness seems impossible, but then so is turning your back on a friend.

 AUDIO 

PRINT 

Kindle 

 AllRomance Ebooks 

 iBooks 

 Smashwords 

FREE Preview of The Many Faces of Chelle Cordero in Audio

Download the audio story NOT ALONE 

from this short story collection [FREE]

http://store.payloadz.com/go?id=1901660

(narrated by Wendy Tremont King)