Comments on: New Mexico in Pictures Reveals Velda Brotherton’s Story Worlds

By: Velda Brotherton

Velda Brotherton — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 15:58:06 +0000

It wonderful to hear from so many old and new friends on this tour. I've especially enjoyed the comments. Hope you enjoy the remainder of the tour this week and join me August 4 for the posting of the names of the winners of books and the silver and turquoise ring.

By: Arletta

Arletta — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 18:29:06 +0000

Dear Velda,
I've caught a couple of stops on your tour, loving the lyrical writing of the Prologue and Chapter One and now putting the place in my visual as well as mind's eye. I know New Mexico fairly well as it was my husband's home and still is for many relatives. Stephanie's eloquent entry adds to your powerful writing about the lonesomeness, beauty and soulfulness of the area. I would add that the light in Northern NM nourishes my soul with joy and beauty on each visit...I'll be returning in Aug. and in late Oct. as I undertake a quest to follow my recently widowed heart.
Thank you for your words and pictures. Arletta

By: Gwyn Ramsey

Gwyn Ramsey — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 05:55:08 +0000

Great job Velda and Janet. I love the pictures of New Mexico. They are gorgeous. What a fascinating story about Edna's mother spending the winter in the cabin by herself. Being alone and snowed in had to be hard. Thank sharing Edna’s story with us.

By: Stephanie

Stephanie — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 18:25:41 +0000

These photos make me homesick for New Mexico, and I live here!

Yesterday I took a 4-year old and a 5-year old to Rancho de las Golondrinas (Ranch of the Swallows,) a Spanish settlement from the 1700s not far from Santa Fe. We went on a Josefina tour, based on the Josefina story in the American Girls series. The Josefina books are actually derived from the life of a fictional girl living there at Golondrinas.

What struck me in looking at these photos is that in many ways, life wasn't so different then than it was in Edna's and her mother's time: isolation, unremitting work, sometimes a teetering on the edge. We've always been so removed from the rest of the U.S., and life has never been easy in our unforgiving land.

But there is that physical beautiful in NM that catches the soul, and there is the romance of life in the past, and there is the joy in carrying on a way of life and tradition. These photos capture that beautifully.

By: Velda Brotherton

Velda Brotherton — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 18:15:35 +0000

Hello to two familiar writers following my tour. Gayle, all I can say is, read the book. Seriously, she was quite a woman. A city girl who loved her husband so much she gave up much of her life for him. Edna talks often about how her mother finally came to love the peace of living on the ranch and in the end couldn't be coaxed from it.
Linda Apple is posting more about Edna and the ranch life on her blog next week. Keep following and thanks.

By: Gayle Gresham

Gayle Gresham — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 17:47:49 +0000

Beautiful pictures, Velda. It is interesting to see the photos of New Mexico. I can't imagine Edna's mother spending a winter alone on the ranch. How did she keep from going stir-crazy?

Thanks Velda and Janet!

Gayle

By: Alice Trego

Alice Trego — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 17:04:44 +0000

Loved the photos, Velda. They seem to exude feelings of loneliness, spaciousness and quiet, which is a far cry from the hustle and bustle of city life most of us are used to. Your descriptions of each picture blends for a nice read on Janet's Riehl Life Blog.

Thanks for sharing, both of you!

Alice