Author Archives: russtowne

About russtowne

I'm awed by the beauty of nature and the power of love and gratitude. Some of my favorite sensory experiences include waves crashing on rocky shores, waterways in ancient redwood and fern-filled forests, and rain. My wife and I have been married since 1979. We have 3 adult children and 5 grandchildren. I manage a wealth management firm that I founded in 2003. My Beloved is a Special Education teacher for Kindergartners and First Graders. I'm a published author of approximately 60 books in a variety of genres for grownups and children.

No Star In All The Heavens

Posted on December 5, 2012 by russtowne

The story of the star that sits atop our tree goes back over thirty years. I was a young single man whose business was failing. Finances were very tight. I had enough money to buy a Christmas tree but not … Continue reading →

Posted in Abundance, Family "Fun", Gratitude, Love, Marriage, Spirit, True Stories I've Written | Tagged business, business failing, Christmas, Christmas tree, girlfriend, good times, heavens, rough times, star, wife | 4 Comments

The Goofiest Christmas Tree and Beach You Ever Saw

Posted on December 5, 2012 by russtowne

A Most Unusual Christmas Tree Visitors who come to our home near the holidays are often struck by the sight of a most unusual Christmas tree. Instead of a fir or some other traditional kind, we have a palm tree. … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance, Challenges, Children, Choices, Creativity, Dealing with Pain & Grief, Dreams, Family "Fun", Generosity, Inspiring, Pain & Grief, Parenting, True Stories I've Written | Tagged beach, beach incurable, bonfire, built, Crhristmas tree, disease, friends, fun, palm tree, sand, splashing, star, unusual | 6 Comments

A Middle School Love Letter Proves Some Loves Never Die

Posted on December 4, 2012 by russtowne

Twenty-two years ago a love-struck 6th-grader penned a plaintive letter to the girl of his dreams. Here are my favorite parts of the Yahoo News article (in quotes), along with some comments from me: “Written in all caps at the … Continue reading →

Posted in Choices, Friendship, Love, Stories That Touched Me, Youth | Tagged 22 years, Cathy and Trevor Webb, Florida, Love, love letter, marriage, middle school, Pensacola, proposal, roller derby, wedding | 2 Comments

Climbing The World’s Tallest Tree

Posted on December 4, 2012 by russtowne

As many of you know, I love redwood trees and live in redwood country. I love their beauty and magnificence. It is a spriritual thing to me to be among such ancient and towering living things which provide homes and … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature, Stories That Touched Me, Vids & Stories That Touched Me | Tagged (That's Half The Battle!), ancient, climbing the world's tallest tree, creatures, Dan Lewis, Hyperion, Now I Know, plant, Prometheus, redwood, world's tallest tree | 4 Comments

That Was You?

Posted on December 3, 2012 by russtowne

Most readers of this blog know that I tend to write in tangents. Ideas tend to come to me bunched together or in thought strings and rather than fight it, I take the easy/lazy way out and write a flurry … Continue reading →

Posted in Humor, Love, True Stories I've Written | Tagged adopt, adopting, adoption, biological, bleak, choices, Date, Dates, first, foreign, international, lemonade, locker, lockers, Love, short skirt, Travel-All | 15 Comments

When a Moment and a Lifetime Merge

Posted on December 3, 2012 by russtowne

When I was recently married and still in my early twenties, I met a woman at work who looked to me to be in her fifties and who told me a most amazing story. She’d stopped at a traffic light … Continue reading →

Posted in Love, True Stories I've Written | Tagged instant, lifetime, Love, merge, moment, traffic light, woman | 8 Comments

In That Instant

Posted on December 3, 2012 by russtowne

Two lonely strangers on opposite walls Of a room full of partying people Each of the lonely hearts wondering How soon they could go Without being rude. They felt they didn’t really fit in With this popular raucous crowd. There … Continue reading →

Posted in Breakthroughs, Loneliness, Love, Poetry I Wrote | Tagged crowd, hearts, instant, introvert, introverts, lonely, Love, partiers, party, poem, raucous, strangers | 2 Comments

A Kind and Thoughtful Act

Posted on December 2, 2012 by russtowne

Jamie, the creator of the delightful Grandmother Musings blog which can be found at http://grandmothermusings.com/ has just nominated me for a cool award that I have never heard of before. It is the Blog of the Year 2012 Award. Thank … Continue reading →

Posted in Awards: Sharing The Love, Uncategorized | Tagged award, awards, Blog of the Year 2012, Grandmother Musings, Jamie, nominations, sharing the love | 2 Comments

Dancing In The Rain

Posted on December 2, 2012 by russtowne

I just received an email from one of my favorite relatives that showed photos of a young boy maybe 6-8 years old riding a horse, playing baseball, ice hockey, and field hockey, running, water skiing, and more. In each photo … Continue reading →