"Christmas in My Mind: a Collection of Prose and Poems by the Walsh Street Writers" contains seven short stories -- memoirs or memory-inspired fiction -- and four poems. It is a collection of works, inspired by the Christmas season, written by six members of The Walsh Street Writers, a group of writers creating in different styles -- memoir, fiction, poetry and plays. The members of the Walsh Street Writers, who gather monthly to review each other's work, met while taking workshops at "The Writer's Center," one of the few organizations of its kind in the United States dedicated to promoting and supporting writers. "Christmas in My Mind" contains the following works: "Holiday House Tour Hell" is a comedy of errors. A farce, based somewhat on a true experience, it is inspired by "I Love Lucy." "The Last Christmas Eve" is a bittersweet story of Greg, who has not told his wife or young teenage children that he is dying. As he tries to make this the best Christmas, he reminisces about the Christmases of his youth. In "A Christmas Season During World War II" the author recalls what Christmas was like during World War II, while he was a sixth-grader in a southern New Jersey farming community. The author, Carter, recounts frantic efforts, gone awry, in "Christmas," when her mother tries to create a postcard perfect celebration. "Ninarella: A Christmas Tradition in Old Calabria" recounts the nine evenings before Christmas in a historic cathedral town overlooking Italy's Ionian Sea. Helenka goes home to visit her mother in Canada in "Christmas Dinner at the Legion." She arrives to learn that the Polish Legion will celebrate its annual "Christmas Dinner" in January, a celebration for which she is totally unprepared. "A War-Time Christmas" describes life as it was in small New England towns during World War II. Three poems, "innocent child," "Christmas tree," and "Christmas in the Tropics" respond to Christmas in traditional Japanese styles; the fourth poem, "Star of Wonder," addresses the celestial compass of the Magi. The works are an expression of life's experiences and perspectives translated into writing.
About the Author: Krystyna Belendiuk was born in Winnipeg, Canada. After graduating from McGill University, she attended the University of Chicago, where she earned a PhD in biopsychology, an MBA, and served for five years on the faculty in psychiatry. She served in senior management positions in the pharmaceutical industry, co-founding a successful company, Pharmavene, in Maryland with her late husband, George Belendiuk. She is now semi-retired, consulting and spending summers on her boats in Annapolis with her husband, Patrick McGann and their beloved pets. Carter has used her training as a lawyer to pursue a "vagabond" career path. She writes mostly creative nonfiction, memoir, and essay. She and her husband of 30 years reside in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. with their beloved Maine Coon cats. Olivia (Val) Crisson came to writing late in life but always knew it was her passion. She has been happily married for 38 years, has two children, a wonderful daughter-in-law, and one heavenly grandchild. Never a linear thinker, her life follows the same path. Her adventures include working as a stewardess and a kindergarten teacher. She lives in Washington, D.C. and still has many stories to tell. M.E. Gilroy, a native of New York City, worked in the professional theater before joining the U.S. Foreign Service. She lived and worked in Malaysia, Mauritius, Morocco, Canada, Barbados and Haiti. She and her husband reside in Arlington, Virginia. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild. Catherine Mathews was born in New Jersey, and spent her childhood there and in Vermont, before moving to Florida. She joined the U.S. Foreign Service and was assigned to Paris, Rome, Tel Aviv, and Athens, where she met her husband. Together their family went on to Frankfurt, Germany, and Istanbul, Turkey, with a final assignment in Rome, before retiring to Northern Virginia. She now writes memoirs for the enjoyment of her children, grandchildren and looks forward to exploring other writing projects. William Sansalone was born in Vineland, N.J., and grew up in nearby Malaga. During the 1950's he was a student, graduate teaching assistant and lieutenant with the U.S. forces in Germany. After completing a PhD in biochemistry at Rutgers University, he served on the faculty at: SUNY; NIH; and Georgetown Medical Center. His writing activities include publication of research papers in scientific journals; editing and producing three books on nutritional biochemistry; and creating short memoirs.