Not Dead Yet

 

by Maureen O. Betita

I am proud to announce that I am not dead yet. Nor are the millions of people of a certain age (ACA-ers) who are traveling, dancing, taking cruise, going to movies, writing, reading... And perhaps, maybe, I think…the world of media is figuring it out.

My evidence?

Firstly, NCIS had a storyline last season featuring the main character, Leroy Jethro Gibbs in a relationship with a woman. His. Own. Age. Whoop! Playing this smart, sassy and magnificently intelligent woman was Jamie Lee Curtis. These two people were HOT!

Secondly, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel came out on the big screen, showing multiple ACA-ers going on an adventure, seeking romance and at the end the characters of Evelyn and Douglas were speeding off on a moped through the streets of India, her arms wrapped sweetly about his waist.

Thirdly, Hope Springs. I think of this movie as the next logical step from Crazy, Stupid Love. Realistic, thought-provoking and staring the wondrous Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones, Hope Springs isn’t a comedy, despite the commercials. It’s awkward, it’s quiet, it’s authentic.

Want one more proof of the emerging belief that life doesn’t end somewhere in the mid-forties? Check out my 1 Night Stand story, Something Different.

“…We women, we know the truth of love and the human heart. He will mourn me, dearest Evengeline. But as this illness steals my time with him, I want to leave him with hope. This dating service you run…when you feel he is ready, find him a woman, Eve. Find him someone different so that he doesn’t look for me in her eyes.

Show him my letter, so that he knows I want this for him with all my heart. Our children will follow your lead. He will resist, but be firm. Use all you know to bring love back into his life.

My days are numbered, the drugs ease my pain. Help my Aaron to heal from his.

Yours in spirit, Maria Consuelo Castillo”

Aàron read the letter and slid into the chair at the family meeting. With a shudder, he met his son’s eyes and sighed. They all watched him, waiting. She wanted this? His beloved wife, gone three years? It was a useless gesture, but he wouldn’t deny the attempt. One date, to satisfy Maria. But that was all. He swore it.

Sail into the sunset as an old world gentleman finds himself charmed by a Californian upstart, challenged to open his heart and take a chance with a new love.

Have you noticed an increase in the ACA-ers showing up on television and the movies? I’m keeping track, quite excited about these sightings! Have you any to share?

Families

by Maureen O. Betita

I’ve been thinking a lot about families lately. Once upon a time, families lived close to each other for generation after generation, knew most each other’s business (or thought they did) and were a bit bossy with each other. (Well, seems like most families have at least one person who attempts to be the boss…)

There is always a boss, a know-it-all, a whiner, a spoiled brat…to one extent of the other, depending on the number of relatives within any circle. Family dynamics, gotta love it!

What I find amusing, is how different families view other families. I have a cousin who lives in the same county as her siblings and parents. A few of the great niece/nephews have moved away, but the rest of them are still in that little county. Now, hearing that one of her distant cousins seldom sees her daughter, she immediately jumps to the conclusion that there is some tragedy or emotional trauma involved. A fight, a battle, a separation. Nope, the two just live in different states. But yeah, immediately it has to be dramatic. (She’s the dramatic child).

My family? We live scattered throughout California with one odd duck in Portland, Oregon. We see each other a few times a year, sometimes it’s a holiday, sometimes not. We e-mail here and there. Mom stays in touch with all of us.

We kids are taking a cruise together in September. We’ve done it before. Always manage just fine to get along, to do things apart and some things together, but we aren’t in lockstep. I tend to think most families probably spend too much time minding each other’s business. And that is seldom a good thing!

In SomethingDifferent, the Castillo family is a bit like my family. They care about each other, they want what is best for each other, but they don’t want to be too intrusive. They follow their mother’s last wishes and try to help their father find someone new. But none of them go with him to the arranged date. None of them were involved in the search for the woman Madam Eve found for him. They trust him to discover for himself if it’s going to work or not.

There is no one truth about families, though we can all hope at the heart of a family there is something that holds us together.

I do sorta wish mine had a string of resorts…

Maureen O. Betita

www.maureenobetita.com

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And Now For Something Totally Different…

 When I was asked to write the story of Aarón Castillo, I spent time thinking about this. I knew I could make it simple. The dignified widower ready to meet someone new, wanting someone to share his life with… Or I could have him wanting to return to the family business and the kids set him up on a date because he’s driving them crazy. Or he could be pursued by women, all aware of his fortune, and wanting to comfort him. (Uh huh.) Maybe he could go a bit wild and be a total playboy…

Nah.

I settled on the reluctant and resistant one date, set up by Madame Eve at the instigation of his wife. “…when you feel he is ready, find him a woman, Eve. Find him someone different so that he doesn’t look for me in her eyes.”

Aarón denies the need and refuses to read the information about Hannah Reed. But as we all know, Madame Eve has a way of making a match that sticks. All Hannah asks for is an evening sail with a gentleman.

From California, she worked all her life in the harried world of high end real estate and is tired, broke and considers this date her last fling. She used to one night stands, more than used to them. A gentleman? That is something very new for her. 

They both discover the attraction of not so much opposites, but a fresh perspective.

An evening sail off the Caicos, a sumptuous dinner on a deserted island and a sudden storm is a recipe for temptation.

Try Something Different yourself! 

A sweet love story, proving it’s never too late to find love.

Given a chance to meet for a one night rendezvous anywhere in the world, where would you prefer? One comment wins a copy of the new book!