December 2020 Issue

Rocking Around the (Metal? Holly?) Christmas Tree | Cabinet of Curiosities

Have you ever watched A Charlie Brown Christmas television special and wondered about the metal Christmas tree lot that Charlie Brown visits? Did you know that cutting down a holly tree almost became illegal in our area? Let’s explore this curious affinity for metal Christmas trees and an early effort to save the holly tree in the latest episode of the Cabinet of Curiosities! The History of Christmas Trees When imagining our ancestors and how they may have spent Christmases a few hundred years in the past, many of us picture a happy family around a large, decorated tree, with a blazing fire in the hearth and children playing at

Be Present

How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these. – George Washington Carver The Celebration Issue! To tell you the truth, the final issue of 2020 is quite the celebration here at Bella. We made it through the year with innovation, collaboration, expansion, and a positive outlook on the horizon. We were blessed with the continuing support of advertisers and contributors who not only kept our Bella in print but allowed us to spread our mission wider and

Gearing Up Your Health in the New Year

2020 isn’t going to win any awards for the difficult and unpredictable year it’s been, with its controversial presidential election, pandemic, economic hardships, racial tensions, and widespread fear and uncertainty about health and quality of life going forward. Thousands have succumbed to a newfound virus called SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) that continues to elude medical doctors and scientists. Many of us found out that we aren’t as healthy as we thought and that we should have been taking better care of ourselves. Looking to the new year, what can we do to help our bodies become stronger and perhaps more resistant to the many pathogens out there? Perhaps

Healing Water for My Soul

My love for healing water is the whole point for so many of the stories I tell and that I’ve told on the pages of Bella Magazine this year. The drops of healing water in my life are the moments of loving connection with others where I get the opportunity to share life with them, and they with me, with no strings attached. Some of these encounters this year have been a brief passing moment as I exchanged glances and a smile with someone, and other encounters have been for long chapters of my life that continue. There are so many times in this chaotic year when I have felt

Holidays and the Gathering Spirit

Celebrations have social and emotional motivators Grandma Anderson made delicious meatballs with a secret ingredient called Rusk that is no longer found in stores. She taught my brothers and me to play Rook, which may explain why I still get the creeps when black birds soar overhead. Grandma Harper made prize-winning potato pancakes and stuffed cabbage. She taught us how to play pinochle and we would dance around the table if someone got what she called “a thousand aces.” My mamma was the most creative in the kitchen. She ventured away from traditional meat and potatoes and delighted us with recipes from our South American lifestyle. Gold Coast Stew served

What Should I Do With My Money?

The point is that every person’s situation is unique, and there is hardly ever a cookie cutter answer to the question, “What should I do with my money?” This is the question I hear just about every day of my life. It is an excellent question and can only be answered with another question. Some days the answers in life are simple and other days the complexity of life is beyond our imagination. The answer to this question is somewhere in between. It begins with a couple of simple questions. First of all, what is the purpose of the money you are referring to, and what is the time frame?

How much do you know about employee benefits?

It is the time of year when employees make their benefit selections. Many of them do not know what they are selecting, but next year thousands of dollars will be deducted from their paychecks to pay for benefits they know very little about. Many employees select the lowest premium plan without realizing that it does not cover the spouse’s prescription medications or the child’s therapy. A friend of mine recently came to me for assistance in selecting her family’s benefit plans for next year. She was handed an enrollment form to make her selections and no other information. When I started asking her questions, she could not answer them. There

A CAUSE FOR Celebration

Appalachians tend to be very independent and content with their lives. They live close to nature and have a deeply held belief in God. They are friendly, kind, and helpful to one another, and they take care of the needs of others. Appalachians also have a strong sense of what is right, and of what ought to be. When I was still working as a nurse, we lived in a small town in western North Carolina. The population was mostly poor and set in their ways. Because they did not take kindly to people from “outside,” it took a long time for me to make friends with our neighbors, who

Lights of St. Mary’s

On the frosty eve of Bethlehem, hazy nimbus of lamplight on cobblestones leads to the open doors of St. Mary’s. Within, eternal flame of brooding majesty burns above the ornate cupola. Towering pillars, angled arches, patterned concentric circles lofting above the altar — silent hints of the complexity of church history. Lambent stained windows and shadowed mosaic encircle the faithful with biblical messages. Ruby poinsettias amid pine-scented greenery flank altars ablaze with candles shedding their muted pools of empathy and bright sparks of hope this Christmastide. A tree-wrapped manger filled with new straw portends the good works of a parish to welcome the Christ Child! Lusty chorus of ancient carols