BLOOM Magazine FALL 2021 - Issue 6 HARVEST

NO. 6 - FALL 2021 HE HAR E I E

Every season brings a HARVEST of new opportunities to embrace the life you were born to live.

THOUGHT OF THE SEASON

letter from the editor

Growing up near Kruger Park in South Africa, we knew only one season - sweltering heat and sunshine all year long. My first authentic experience of autumn came when we moved to America. Here in the Pacific Northwest with an abundance of growth in every garden, the vivid colors of fall continue to take my breath away. To me, fall is and always will be the most beautiful season of all.

Fall also marks the beginning of many things for our family. After a busy laid back summer, we welcome the structure of the new school year. With our children returning to after-school activities, we once again find ourselves behind the wheel to soccer practice and games, and before we know it, the holiday season will be here.

Our neighborhood streets will play host to little ones in fanciful outfits collecting candy, and soon after, friends and family will give thanks around our festive dinner table.

This fall, we are excited to embrace the HARVEST of opportunities this new season has to offer. We had planned to launch our first digital issue in Spring 2022, but sometimes God's plan is bigger than what we can imagine.

Photo credit MELANIE CHEN

We are thrilled to announce the release of our very first digital issue. Inside, you will find inspiration to bloom wherever you find yourself planted.

In SPACES, we will show you how to set your table for a feast and make the beginning of the holiday season unforgettable.

We are thankful for new women volunteering their time and creativity to support our passion project.

This month we want to celebrate the women that make our pages bloom. Read their stories by visiting THE BLOOM TEAM section on the website.

New this season is HER STORYBOOK. We created a platform for writers of every age to showcase their talents. This season we feature Abi Wall's "The House of Dreams." Read her short story of two young friends desperately trying to find their way back to what matters most.

We continue to showcase small businesses creating products or offering services that enrich our lives.

Building a business from the ground up is challenging. Providing creatives a platform to showcase their talents is one of our passions.

FEATU RED this season is Dahlia Barn from North Bend, WA, and Fine & Dandi from Cape Town, South Africa.

In GROW, we will show you practical ways to embrace the harvest of every season.

Finally, in FEAST, we will celebrate the season's bounty with delicious squash recipes you can cook for breakfast, lunch, and Thanksgiving dinner.

I am grateful to all our readers who come back to support our magazine. Without you, BLOOM would only be a dream. I hope this fall you feel inspired to embrace the harvest. May you use what the good Lord gave you to live your life with a bounce in your boots and a song in your heart.

Much love,

B L O O M M AG AZIN E - F A L L 2 0 21 I 5

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HER STORYBOOK Maisie scowled. Her mother and Martin were most likely on their honeymoon, and her cousins wouldn't miss her if she stayed a bit longer.

When she walked past the boy, she saw through the windows that it was dark, and the moon was high.

Maybe not a nap, then. It was probably long past her bedtime. She would finish exploring tomorrow, and then she would go.

She had reached the first step of the staircase when the boy said, "If you don't leave now, you might never be able to."

Maisie turned. "What do you mean?"

The boy's head hung low. She looked again at his bare feet and dirty clothes.

"Will you please at least open the door? Take a step outside?"

Maisie considered the boy. Exhaustion was pulling at her to climb the stairs. She could just imagine what kind of bed would be waiting for her if she only let herself leave the boy behind.

She could deal with his strangeness in the morning.

But something about his caved-in shoulders and frown forced her legs back towards him. If he only wished her to open the door and take a step out, she could do that. If it would stop making him look so dejected.

When she approached the door, he moved aside so she could grab for the handle - but there was no handle. The brassy doorknob that had been on the outside of the house was not there. She pushed on the door. Nothing happened.aside "Use the handle," the boy said.

"Hm, I would. If there was a handle."

"No. It's there. You just have to find it."

He crouched down and ran his fingers along the flat door. She did the same, but her fingers ran into no knob. She reached higher than she expected a handle to be, lower. There was nothing. The boy's fingers fluttered by his side, and he bounced on his tip toes. ''The windows, then," he said. She frowned, but followed him into the sitting room and to the nearest window. He motioned for her to try and

Abi is our Junior Editor. She has a degree in Creative Writing from Western Washington University and writes young adult fiction.

One day she hopes to be published. She has lived in the Pacific Northwest all her life and enjoys traveling, hiking, and spending time at the beach when she's not reading or writing.

open it. She tugged and tugged, and when nothing happened, he joined her. Together they pulled, but it stayed shut tight.

There was a slight flutter of fear in her belly when they both fell away, breathing hard.

"Is there a back door?" she asked, suddenly not excited to spend the night in this house with no idea of how she would get out in the morning.

Aunt Kylie probably was looking for her. Her cousins, too. Maybe Aunt Kylie had called her mother and Martin to tell them Maisie wasn't with them. She didn't know why she'd thought earlier that everyone would simply drive off without her. There was no way everyone at the wedding would forget about her.

"No," the boy said. "No back door."

"What kind of house doesn't have a back door?"

"A dream house."

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To read what happens next, click here

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We onl need o be one person. We onl need o feel one e is ence. We don ha e o do e er hing in order o be e er hing, beca se e are alread infini e. While e are ali e e al a s con ain a f re of m l ifario s possibili .

Tha s hen reali ed ha cer ain momen s go on fore er. E en af er he re o er he s ill go on, e en af er o re dead and b ried, hose momen s are las ing s ill, back ard and for ard, on in o infini . The are e er hing and e er here all a once. The are he meaning.

To see more of Abi's book recommenda ions, click here.

BLOOM Magazine™ (ISSN 2770-3606) FALL 2021, Issue 6 - HARVEST BLOOM Magazine™ is published quarterly in Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter by hesmarieH® LLC 7026 Strouf Ave SE Snoqualmie, WA, 98065 info@myBLOOMmag.com myBLOOMmag.com

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