Journey Through Reading

Jeannie Chambers

Jeannie Chambers’ latest book explores the perils and possibilities of glimpsing the future. Arnetta and The Mirror of Destiny is available locally as well as on Amazon.

If you could see something in the future would you be more careful with the present? That is the plot premise of Arnetta and The Mirror of Destiny: The Future Doesn’t Belong To The Faint Hearted. Author Jeannie Chambers, The Laurel’s “Accidental Gardener” for the last six years, released this second book in September; her first was Tunnel of Time (2017).

A real estate broker partner with her husband, Tucker, and a vacation rental manager, Chambers has always been an avid reader and a prolific writer.

“My parents told me more than once, ‘You can go anywhere in the world you want, any time you want, just by reading a book,” she says. “I don’t mind getting lost if it’s in a good story.”

With her two books, Chambers has focused on writing stories that make readers think and that “tickle their inquisitive bones where the only way to satisfy that itch is to read more and more.” Inspiration for her stories started with her children, now grown, and continue with her grandchildren.

“I’ve just been writing stories for as long as I remember,” she said.

Of the fantasy fiction genre, Arnetta and The Mirror of Destiny: The Future Doesn’t Belong To The Faint Hearted spotlights a 16-yearold character, Arnetta, who desires more than anything to be a part of a family. The time period is 1985, and although Arnetta resides with her grandparents in a small, southern textile mill town in South Carolina, she always feels like something is missing. When she has a chance encounter with an antique store owner, a ripple effect occurs that enables Arnetta to see future events through a special mirror.

photo by Susan Renfro

At its core, the book is the “journey of a teenager who learns that knowing certain things can be beautiful, but also heartbreaking, dangerous, or deadly,” explained Chambers.

Arnetta and The Mirror of Destiny: The Future Doesn’t Belong To The Faint Hearted can be found locally at The Book Nook on Main Street, Highlands and Books Unlimited on Main Street in Franklin. Also available online at Amazon, Books-a-Million, and WalMart. com. Chambers said she would love to connect with readers through Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

A bright-as-sunshine painting on display at Shakespeare & Company Booksellers recalls a golden afternoon when a pair of hot-air balloons adorned the skies above Highlands.

One of the wonderful things that makes Highlands so charming is the unexpected pleasure of finding a delightful hidden treasure around every corner.

For example, skip right on over to Village Square and take a gander at the colorful, playful picture in the window of Shakespeare & Company Booksellers.

There has got to be a wonderful story that goes with this.

Checking in with co-proprietor Stuart Ferguson, we found the story, and it’s just as fun and fascinating as the picture itself.

Stuart’s stepfather, Donald Furnald, was a resident of Highlands for many years and was the chef and manager at Skyline Lodge. His memories from, and love of, Highlands run deep. Now in his late ‘80s, Don remains a very vibrant, active man who took up painting two years ago.

But why a hot air balloon over Highlands?

Stuart worked at the Highland Hiker (known then as the Happy Hiker) and owners David and Carol Wilkes had a promotion that brought two hot air balloons to town. They sold three rides, gave away one as a promotion, and on Saturday evening they had tethered balloon rides so residents could take a turn going up in one of the balloons. David and Stuart went up on the last ride of the evening and looked down over the town.

That’s a memory Stuart never forgot, so given Donald’s love of painting balloons he asked him to capture the memory for him, and voila here it is, history on canvas. Don’t miss it. It’ll make you smile! by Mary Jane McCall

An appreciation for nature and tradition and a healthy sense of creative playfulness are woven into each of Michael and Joann Brown’s unique creations.

We all begin as an empty vessel. What we collect in those vessels defines who we are.

Michael and Joann Brown filled theirs with family (three kids), love, faith, a respect for nature, and satisfying work. That work, woven into this metaphor, is Basketry.

Michael inherited a love for wood. He enjoys constructing local forest-wood planters, helps Joann with basketry, and maintains their Christmas tree farm.

The Browns’ basket designs are sculptural, though not traditional Appalachian. Nor are they Native American. They are free-style, decorative, and functional, each made from what Mother Nature provides. And every basket has a tale to tell: What magic led them to their cache of materials? Did they have to wrestle it into submission (sometimes vines are reluctant to let go)? Was it a new fiber discovery? Did it inspire an inventive technique? Did Smokey Bear witness?

These self-taught basket-makers find trialand-error their best teacher. They love to experiment with novel bits and twisty climbers they discover in the woods. Environmentallyconscious, they don’t damage root systems. They take only what they need, leaving plenty of new growth.

While Covid slowed down 2020 production and craftshow participation, the Browns intend to be back in high gear doing 2021 shows in Highlands, Hendersonville, at John Campbell Folk School in Brassotwn, and other venues, if/when world health gets back in balance.

In the meantime look forward to the new year. Perhaps you’ll collect a Brown Family Smokevine basket, a vessel ready to fill with all the things you treasure and hope for in life.

by Donna Rhodes

DINING DINING Pages 66-77