Leaving the Shell

When I first heard about the Pulse Shooting in the media, I was shocked, just like everybody else. There are no words to describe the feelings raging inside upon being confronted with such terrible news. It is impossible to understand the hatred and viciousness behind such a deed. So while I was struggling to understand something that is beyond understanding, DreamSpinner asked us authors if we wanted to contribute to an anthology for the victims of the shooting. They called this anthology ‘Love Wins’ and they were looking for stories where hope and love win in the end.

Now, this was something I could do, I thought. I knew it would only be a small contribution, but I also knew that we all could do with a little hope and love.

I had been thinking about two characters for quite some time, but their story always slipped from me. All of a sudden, it wrote itself.

Dean is a successful writer who had a terrible accident when he was eighteen and has now secluded himself from the world. He lives in a house on the verge of collapsing, because he can’t stand having strangers inside his sanctuary. Morgan is a bit of a jack of all trades, carpenter, plumber, gardener, ghost hunter. He is sent to do some badly needed maintenance at Dean’s house by Dean’s sister and Morgan’s aunt. The two women have decided to play matchmaker and see if there are any sparks between the men. And since this is a story about love and hope, of course sparks fly.

I had a lot of fun writing about the two men. They’re both stubborn and mule-headed and give as good as they get. On first glance, it’s a classical story about somebody who has secluded himself from the world being coaxed out of his shell by love. On second glance, the coaxing goes both ways, since, in my opinion, not all shells are visible or obvious.

We all hide in a shell of some sort, to protect ourselves from a world that seems to be getting harsher and colder and less caring by the minute. It is a mechanism of self-defense and there’s nothing wrong with that. As long as we remember that there are others out there, who are just like us. Others, who are sick and tired of people being mean just because somebody is different. Tired of people hating others because their own lives are not going the way they want them to be. Tired of dealing with all the small ways people make each others lives difficult instead of helping where they can.

We have to find those who are like us, those who want to make this world a better place, and to achieve that, we have to leave our shell and take the risk of getting hurt. But the reward when we find somebody like us, a like-minded soul, is worth that risk. We are many and all we have to do is reach out to each other and stand strong against the hatred and bigotry and the overall ignorance.

I’d like to end this blog with a little proverb that has helped me through a lot of trying situations with my fellow human beings and that keeps me from becoming hateful myself. It may sound a bit cynical, but if you think about it, I’m sure you’ll see the wisdom.

‘Never assume evil intent when mere stupidity suffices as an explanation.’

Love Wins Anthology published by Dreamspinner Press

Release Date: December 12th , 2016

Authors: Lucie Archer, Kris T. Bethke, Deja Black, M.A. Church, David C. Dawson, Jana Denardo, Nicole Dennis, Ravon Silvius, L.A. Merrill, Grace R. Duncan, Xenia Melzer, Jude Dunn, Julie Lynn Hayes, Tray Ellis, Troy Storm, Alicia Nordwell, Renee Stevens

Cover Artist: Paul Richmond

Xenia Melzer is a mother of two who enjoys riding and running when she’s not writing stories. She doesn’t like beer but is easily tempted by a Virgin Mojito. Or chocolate. Truffles are especially cherished, even though she doesn’t discriminate. As a true chocoholic, she welcomes any kind of cocoa-based delight.

You can contact her through her website: http//www.xeniamelzer.com

Or befriend and follow her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/xeniamelzer/