It's a New Day

By Marcia Penland

The art ladies are back and they are preparing for a state-wide art show to be held in Waco, Texas. As usual, things are not simple for this group of feisty women, but they like it that way. They rise to every occasion as they set out to heal the heart of a teenaged boy with a broken family, give hope to a young homeless mother of two, and embark on a whole new adventure involving a food truck and lots of bacon. The former governor of Texas even joins in their antics, with his bum knee and two-cow ranch. Each woman in the group is different in background and personality but very much alike in her dogged determination to work hard and do right by others. They share an uncanny ability to find clues and solve seemingly impossible situations due to years of honing attention-to-detail skill through their art. This group of talented, resourceful ladies is quick-witted, outspoken, humorous, and compassionate. Although life has not always been a bed of roses, each lady is relentlessly positive, remembering yesterday is over and IT’S A NEW DAY.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: Feb 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781649792723

Marcia Penland

Raised in Fort Worth, Texas, Marcia (Marcie) Penland has lived in five states, and in Europe. She has a bachelor’s degree in English and journalism, from The University of Texas, Austin. Having retired from a career in teaching for over 20 years, Marcie now spends much of her time painting and writing. She sells her paintings at art galleries and shows while participating in art leagues and studying with other artists. Her three recently published books combine Marcie’s professional and personal interests while reflecting her priority of faith and relationships. A healthy dose of humor, camaraderie, and suspense is sprinkled throughout her writing.

Book preview

Day

About the Author

Raised in Fort Worth, Texas, Marcia (Marcie) Penland has lived in five states and in Europe. She has a degree in English and journalism from the University of Texas in Austin. Having retired from teaching mathematics for over 20 years, Marcia now spends much of her time painting and writing. She sells her paintings at art galleries and shows while participating in art leagues and studying with regional artists. Her two recently published books combine Marcia’s professional and personal interests while reflecting her priority of faith and relationships. A healthy dose of humor, camaraderie, and suspense is sprinkled throughout her writing.

Dedication

My book, It’s a New Day, is dedicated to my son, Andrew Penland. He will always be my husband’s and my pride and joy. He is hardworking, kind, and extremely creative and resourceful. We are so proud of the man he is.

Copyright Information ©

Marcia Penland (2021)

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher.

Any person who commits any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Ordering Information

Quantity sales: Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the publisher at the address below.

Publisher’s Cataloging-in-Publication data

Penland, Marcia

It’s a New Day

ISBN 9781649792716 (Paperback)

ISBN 9781649792723 (ePub e-book)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021901255

www.austinmacauley.com/us

First Published (2021)

Austin Macauley Publishers LLC

40 Wall Street, 33rd Floor, Suite 3302

New York, NY 10005

USA

[e-mail]

[phone]

Acknowledgment

My husband is my biggest fan, encourager, and supporter. My mom and dad, my brother and his family, and my mother-in-law have always stood beside me, believing in me as well. I am extremely blessed to have such a loving family.

I also want to acknowledge and thank the staff at Austin Macauley for taking a chance on me, a new author, and showing me every courtesy of professionalism to help my books be successful.

Finally, this book is loosely based on a very special group of artists in Crawford, Texas, to whom I will always be very grateful. Nothing I write could fully capture the joy, fun, and inspiration they represent.

Members of the Art Group

LaVonda Beasley is the teacher of the little art group that meets regularly in Calhoun, Texas, population 650, give or take a little. She is a well-known artist who can paint Texas Hill Country landscapes with such beauty it will take your breath away. LaVonda is no-nonsense and extremely bright. A native of Calhoun, LaVonda is plugged into the history and happenings of every person who has ever lived within a 50-mile radius of Calhoun.

Bobbette Rollins is incredibly resourceful and talented. She is a natural born leader, who everyone loves and respects. Her paintings are beautiful, and so is she, inside and out. Bobbette is the glue of every group to which she belongs.

Cora Beth Parker drives the members of the group wherever they need to go. Cora Beth is light-hearted, easy to get along with, and also very artistic.

Patty Williams is sweet, thoughtful, and abundantly gifted. She predeceases the other members of the group but continues to live in their hearts forever.

Darla Lewis has painted longer than anyone in the group, except for LaVonda. Her specialty is gorgeous fall landscapes with deer incorporated into almost every picture. She works full-time as a hairstylist and owns the only hair salon in town. Like LaVonda, Darla is a native of Calhoun and she too has strong connections to the community.

Mary Ann Ballard doesn’t live in the Calhoun-Waco area very long, but she continues her friendship with the rest of the group. She is a retired teacher and relishes having time to paint and be creative, after a long time of working.

Verlene Grubbs is a gutsy little spark plug who asserts herself all the way between Kansas and Texas. She lives in Kansas but blows in and out of the Calhoun area fairly frequently like a high plain’s tumbleweed. Although she is a little rough around the edges, Verlene has a soft, compassionate side that becomes increasingly more dominant with age. Verlene likes to paint wild animals more than anything else.

Governor Stubblefield (Stubby) is a former Texas governor who buys the ranch down the road from LaVonda and her husband. He fancies himself an authentic cowboy, but truthfully, he is a gentleman rancher with very little knowledge of any aspect of the cattle business. Stubby has dabbled in painting since recently retiring, and the ladies admire his enthusiasm for art and life, in general, and welcome him to the club with open arms.

Shannon Martin is a late-comer to the group. Not only can she paint beautifully, but she can also sing like a canary. Shannon provides the background music for every adventure and activity the group undertakes. She is quick-witted, feisty, and an instant fit into this circle of trust and liveliness.

Characters are listed according to their prominence in the overall storyline.

It’s a New Day

Mary Ann brushed her hair, put on some dangly gold earrings, patted the dog, and headed out the door. She had accepted an extended sub job, in a town close to hers. She was subbing for a new teacher, who said she needed a little time off to reassess her life and gain a new perspective. This was code for Why in the world did I go into teaching in the first place? In fact, at this very moment, Miss Dracos was sitting cross-legged on her couch at home. She clutched her iPad tight in her lap with hopes of identifying ten professions she would rather pursue other than teaching. Right off the bat, she had listed 15. Mary Ann didn’t feel this way, however. She loved creating and teaching lessons, and just working with kids, in general. She jumped in her car, energized to be back in the classroom for the first time in three years since she had officially retired. When she arrived at school, she was greeted by Lou Nell Brown, the school secretary, who, by 7:30 in the morning, looked like she had already run a marathon or wrestled a pig. In either case, she had come up short.

Oh, my goodness, it’s gonna be one of those days, I can already tell, Lou Nell huffed and puffed, as she handed Mary Ann the keys to her new kingdom for the upcoming month.

Go ahead and take these, Mrs. Ballard. But I’ll walk you down there anyway. You’ll be out in the portable building, away outback. That way nobody will hear you or those kids you’ll be trying to tame. I mean trying to teach. Lou Nell’s last two sentences drifted off into thin air like she was talking to herself rather than Mary Ann. C’mon. Let’s go this way, Lou Nell said, giving Mary Ann a look that clearly communicated, Wouldn’t want to be in your shoes, no way, no how.

Mary Ann followed close behind Lou Nell down a long hallway that seemed like they were walking the green mile. Posters at the beginning of the hallway imparted encouragement, You’ve Got This, and It’s a New Day. By the time they reached the doors leading out to the portable, posters, which were even partially torn, screamed a whole different message. See Something, Say Something, and Don’t Ever Give Up. It was clear to Lou Nell that Mary Ann grasped the shift in tone. She glanced sideways at Mary Ann, knowing she had a live one here and a teacher who, she hoped with all her might, would not be easily discouraged. Lou Nell was grateful that Mary Ann was on her toes and seemingly unperplexed. Subs were hard to find, and subs for hard-to-handle classes were next to impossible. They wore out fast, if they even accepted the job in the first place. Lou Nell gave Mary Ann a halfhearted smile and patted her arm gently as they exited the building and proceeded up the ramp leading to the portable.

We’ll be alright. We’ll figure it out. It was Mary Ann who was reassuring Lou Nell. No sooner were the words out of her mouth, than the door leading into Room 201, Mary Ann’s new teaching home for the next few weeks, swung wide open. One boy fell out of the room onto the wooden deck of the portable building while another boy held the door open, laughing loudly and pounding his chest. I win, I win, he declared for the whole world to hear.

Get yourselves back in that room. Right now, I said! Lou Nell yelled in a deep husky voice that seemed to come from somebody at least twice her size. Lou Nell weighed all of 100 pounds on a good day. Remember the zero-tolerance rule we have here. No fighting. No rough-housing. Anyway, what are you two already doing down here? You’re supposed to wait in the gym till your teacher comes to pick you up.

Rosco, the boy sprawled across the deck, scrambled to his