WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE WHEN KEN CALLED?
From a sod house on a Neberaska homestead to Yellowstone, Wyoming; from a Rocky mountain cabin to a beachfront condo, THIS PRECIOUS LOVE is a historical romance you will never forget.
Ken and Jeanne came from different directions to work at Yellowstone National Park. They have two romantic summers together and are parted for 50 years. THIS PRECIOUS LOVE is the story of the love Ken carried for 50 years.
Although THIS PRECIOUS LOVE is essentially a true romance, it reads like historical fiction--you won't want to put it down.
COWGIRLS AND CATTLE RANCHES ARE HISTORY
Jeanne lived her first six years in a sod house and until she was married on cattle ranches. At three her Dad brought her a horse of her own and a year later a pair of cowgirl boots. when World War II came along, she, her Dad and Mom ran the ranch alone. She was one of many true cowgirls who did the work of boys.
History touches every page. But don't expect a sugary tale of fancy from this book. Dr. Hounshell doesn't pull any punches as she includes all the heartache, disappointments and challenges that every life encounters. She writes frankly about the horror of losing a daughter who was only qw, the heartache and anger over caring for a sometimes cruel husband during his long and agonizing journey toward death.
A TALE OF TRUE ROMANCE CONTAINS POEMS OF LOVE AND A WEDDING SONG
Ken spent 28 years in the United States Air Force. When he is faced with heart surgery that he may not live through, his thoughts are of his Jeanne and he vows if he lives he will find her again.
Then comes the phone call that would change Jeanne and Ken's lives forever. Jeanne sat in her lifelong dream--a beachfront condo. Now in their golden years, after so much life had already been spent, these lovers would finally be brought together again. Ken would make one more phone call trying to find his girl--and he would succeed.
One reader sought Dr. Hounshell out to tell her, "THIS PRECIOUS LOVE is the best book I've ever read."
It is historical romance at it's best--touching, heartbreaking, inspiring. You'll want this story to go on forever. And it does. Dr. Jeanne will share her and Ken's lives through WRITE STUFF and stories of their family including "their first granddaughter, Y'rushalayim who is one. Ken simply calls her Sweetie and she calls him Umpa.
THIS PRECIOUS LOVE is a true romance and contains a few of the hundreds of poems of love Jeanne has written for Ken. It tells of the day she sant for Ken the wedding song she wrote for him as tears streamed down his cheeks. It had taken 50 years, but today he was making Jeanne his and giving her his name. She gave him her heart.
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EXCERPTS FROM THIS PRECIOUS LOVE FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT
PROLOGUE: NOVEMBER 8, 2001
The ringing phone broke into the serenity of Jeanne’s seaside home.
Jeanne sat in the sun-drenched living room of her tiny condo with Avonelle, her writing teacher. They drank wine, ate cheese and fruit and talked about writing and what it meant to them—about their lives and their dreams. The ocean lay before them singing its eternal song—sparkling with sunlight. They sat together in paradise, these two talented aging friends who always reached for more—going ever deeper within to put on paper the thoughts of their hearts.
Peace pervaded Jeanne’s tiny apartment, which was the fulfillment of a dream she’d held for so long. For years she’d wanted a home on the beach. The day she’d first stepped into this condo, all she’d seen was the unlimited expanse of blue ocean and the shore where the waves broke in froths like whipped cream. It filled the windows and was reflected on the wall that was all mirrors. She stood spellbound and the music of the surf filled her heart. Now this dream was hers—just steps from the sand. Today she sat there with the ocean filling her eyes and her ears as her soul sang with joy while she shared the scene with her friend.
Shall I answer the phone or continue our conversation and let my machine take the call? Jeanne asked herself. It’s already intruded, she concluded.
"Excuse me, Avonelle. I’ll take a message and be right back." Jeanne rose and walked to the phone.
On such small quirks of fate and decisions made lightly do our futures rest.
"Hello."
"May I speak to Mrs. Buckingham?" A man’s deep rich voice greeted her.
"This is she."
"Jeanne," . . . there was a pause.
Jeanne searched her mind for that barely remembered voice that had spoken her name just that way. A voice that sent her heart racing. The pause lengthened as she waited wondering . . .
"Do you remember Ken Hounshell?"
Trembling with wonder at hearing his voice—her Ken’s voice, Jeanne’s mind flew back across the years, back almost half a century to a day before she’d seen the ocean—let alone dreamed of living here. Back to the day she’d come to Yellowstone, back to the day she’d first heard that voice, back to the day when . . . .
BOOK I
THE BEGINNING: LOVE COMES
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK SUMMER OF 1952
Love steals
unbidden
into two hearts.
Love buries itself there
so deep
it is everlasting.
Love comes
on silent wings
melding two hearts into one.
Love comes
shot through with your light
your soul.
Love comes to stay
and life
is a glory.