To all those young at heart, here’s a reminder of those long forgotten happy days. Close your eyes and listen to Bobby Vinton or Jim Reeves’ rendition of the beautiful song fit for Valentine’s Day.
A long, long time ago,on graduation dayYou handed me your book,I signed this way“Roses are red, My Love,Violets are blueSugar is sweet, My LoveBut not as sweet as you.”We dated through high school,And when the big day came,I wrote into your book,next to my name:“Roses are red, My Love,Violets are blue,Sugar is sweet, My Love,But not as sweet as you.”Then I went far away, and you found someone new.I read your letter, Dear, and I wrote back to you:“Roses are red, My Love,Violets are blue,Sugar is sweet, My Love,Good luck, may God bless you.”Is that your little girl?She looks a lot like you.Someday some boy will writein her book, too.“Roses are red, My Love,Violets are blue,Sugar is sweet, My Love,But not as sweet as you.”
The Wentworth Legacy is now on Kindle Unlimited. Check it out here.
Spencer Wentworth’s carefree life does not prepare him when he inherits a huge fortune with an attached responsibility. When the stock market collapses in 1929, the family fortune suffers a huge loss and is in the brink of bankruptcy. He has to find a quick solution before he loses everything. An opportunity arises when he meets Sally Sinclair, an only child of a wealthy new family in town and is willing to marry her to save his legacy at the cost of losing the woman he loves, Lorna Beckett, an orphan and a friend of his sister.
“This plot-driven, emotionally complex tale effectively details Spencer’s determination to sacrifice his own happiness in favor of his family’s success. . . With harrowing intensity, Morgan also illustrates the pervasive anxiety just before a disastrous era hit. Overall, she delivers an engrossing love story while also depicting surprising burdens borne by New York’s wealthiest families during the late 1920s. An engaging tale of a young man’s coming-of-age that will appeal to fans of complicated family sagas.” – Kirkus Reviews
This month as we celebrate Valentine’s Day, it is interesting to note that the rose is not only a symbol of love but a symbol of discretion. Legend has it that Cupid gave a red rose to Harpocrates, the god of silence, to bribe him to secrecy over the dalliance of Venus and so the red rose become the symbol of discretion, love, passion and romance. Roses were henceforth painted on the ceilings of banquet halls to remind all gathered there that whatever was said there, should not be repeated which became the expression sub rosa (under the rose).
Another legend says that while Aphrodite was running to the dying Adonis, she was scratched by a rose bush and her blood falling on the roses turn it red. Other account says that Adonis turned his blood into red roses.
Whatever legend strikes your fancy, there is nothing in our garden at this time of the year but the florist and even the supermarket stores are selling roses grown in South America so there is no excuse not to give red roses for Valentine’s Day.
And how did Valentine’s Day get started?
A certain Bishop Valentine started it to replace the Roman festival of Lupercalia. There were several Bishops of Valentine but nobody is really certain as to who is the real Bishop Valentine. But whoever he is, the tradition continues and we celebrate this day exchanging gifts and greetings between our loved ones, friends, family but mostly lovers.
During the Victorian era, valentine cards were mostly decorated with old-fashioned roses. Even today, valentines are still associated with roses. For Valentine’s Day, red roses are arbitrarily the most popular flower.
There are several red roses in the market nowadays but I can recommend some tried and true varieties that grow very well in the garden. Plant some of them and give your Valentine red roses again in June.
Here are my favorites:
Firefighter – dark red rose
Ingrid Bergman – dark red rose
Lasting Love – dark red rose
Let Freedom Ring – medium red rose
Mister Lincoln – dark red rose
Olympiad – medium red rose
Veterans’ Honor – dark red rose
A bouquet of red roses from my garden last growing season.
For the romantic at heart, here is a lovely poem by Robert Burns (1759-1796).
Today is National Red Rose Day. A red rose conjures of romantic love, passion, respect and courage. In celebration of the National Red Rose Day, I’m listing the red roses in my garden. I have 21 red roses, 17 varieties.
I’ve been asked a few times about my inspiration for “The Wentworth Legacy” and so here it is.
When we moved to Long Island in 1971, I was exposed to the life of the old money. My mother-in-law had remarried after her husband died to a member of what I considered the upper class of the North Shore of Long Island. As such, I was lucky to see some of the homes of the wealthy families of the North Shore which somehow got into the pages of my book. I came to dine at Piping Rock Club in Locust Valley and Colony Club in New York, both are exclusive country clubs for the old money. No, my husband and I were not members of those clubs although he was a member of the Knickerbocker Club in New York. My mother-in-law was a member of both Piping Rock and Colony.
I saw and heard stories about the life above and below stairs from people around me. It was both fascinating and intimidating at first but as the years went on, I learned to be comfortable with the new aspect of my married life. It was a far cry from where I came from – a small town in the Philippines.
We are often asked if we are related to J.P. Morgan. We are not. My husband said they came on different boats. People often wondered why my husband knew so many old money in the community. My husband’s parents were not rich although I sensed his grandmother was. They were comfortable but their social standing was far above most of the people I knew.
So, the idea of writing a book about the old money came from being around some of them. This time, the North Shore in “The Wentworth Legacy”, next time, the South Shore in “?????”. Stay tuned.
Don’t miss the chance to win a signed copy of “The Wentworth Legacy” by Rosalinda R Morgan at Goodreads Giveaways. Enter for a chance to win now. Giveaways ends on Feb. 28 at 11:59 pm. Open only to Goodreads members in U.S.
“This plot-driven, emotionally complex tale effectively details Spencer’s determination to sacrifice his own happiness in favor of his family’s success. An engrossing love story. . . ” – Kirkus Reviews
An urgent telegram from his family’s attorney to come home immediately interrupts Spencer’s carefree life in England in 1927. Spencer A Wentworth, a scion of an old wealthy banking family of the New York Gold Coast in Long Island, returns from a three-year Grand Tour with a big surprise waiting for him that he is not prepared to handle. Thus begins a series of events putting pressure on his personal life. With the stock market about to collapse, he can lose everything including Wentworth Hall, his ancestral home which he was determined to save at all cost even if it means losing the only woman he loves.
“This plot-driven, emotionally complex tale effectively details Spencer’s determination to sacrifice his own happiness in favor of his family’s success. . . With harrowing intensity, Morgan also illustrates the pervasive anxiety just before a disastrous era hit. Overall, she delivers an engrossing love story while also depicting surprising burdens borne by New York’s wealthiest families during the late 1920s. An engaging tale of a young man’s coming-of-age that will appeal to fans of complicated family sagas.” – Kirkus Reviews
Starting Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2017 to Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017, you can order the kindle copy of The Wentworth Legacy for 99 cents at Amazon.com.
In 1927 while on a Grand Tour, Spencer A. Wentworth, a young scion of a wealthy old banking family of Long Island, New York Gold Coast, receives an urgent telegram to come home immediately. No explanation. Upon arriving home, he was handed a huge responsibility that he was not prepared for.
As the stock market begins to collapse, he is plagued with worries that the family will lose everything including Wentworth Hall, his ancestral home. Honoring his promise to preserve it, he is determined to save Wentworth Hall at any cost.
His sister, Emma, caught in a love triangle with a married man who ends in a tragic death has her own worries to save the family reputation.
It is a tale of responsibility, love, betrayal and suspense during the Gilded Age with a backdrop of a way of life long gone.
A great love story! A tale of responsibility, romance, betrayal, and suspense in a fabulous settings!
The Wentworth Legacy is now on sale at Amazon.com for a limited time during the Holiday Season. Get your copy now and save $3.00 off the original price of $18.95. Discount will remain in effect till Jan. 6, 2017.
Being born into an old and privileged banking family of the Gold Coast of Long Island, Spencer A. Wentworth and his sister, Emma, enjoy the lavish lifestyle money can buy. Three years into his Grand Tour, Spencer gets a telegram to come home immediately. With the stock market about to collapse and the Great Depression looming on the horizon, the Wentworth family faces a difficult time financially. Only one solution is available to Spencer which means losing the woman he loves. As Spencer struggles with his decision, Emma struggles with her conscience as her secret lover, a married man, was murdered.
Will Spencer be able to save the family fortune and Wentworth Hall, his ancestral home and how will Emma deal with the family scandal?
Best wishes for a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and a Wonderful New Year!
Rosalinda R Morgan 