An Excerpt: ELDERBERRY DAYS
Home. I have thought of this place as home for a whole year now, this tiny cottage cradled against the bank of the wee stream burbling past my patio...
Hey, Crofties!
It’s been a year for the record books, hasn’t it!
I’m looking forward to 2026 and all that the new year has in store for us. I always take the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day to do a year in review and to do some praying about and planning for the new year, and this week is no different. I hope you’re taking some reflective time for yourself, too.
Last Saturday, I told you that there’s a sequel to Elderberry Croft, and here’s the first part of that - just a taste! Elderberry Days: Season of Joy is written in the form of journal-like letters from Willow Goodhope to her mother over the course of the year that follows her stay at The Coach House Trailer Park. It’s the new beginning of the healing journey that she and Christian are now walking together.
Remember: Eldeberry Days is available on my Shopify store: Becky Doughty Bookshop, or wherever you get your books. Don’t forget to check for my books on your library apps, too, and you can listen to all twelve episodes, PLUS the sequel on YouTube!
It’s been a year since Willow moved to Elderberry Croft at The Coach House Trailer Park, charming her way into the lives of each of her new neighbors with her outrageous laughter and her elderberry gifts. But the time has come for Willow to return home to where her heart has been all along. Will she find the courage to leave the sanctuary of her little cottage and face the life she left behind? Is love enough to carry her through the darkest night and into a brand-new day? Join Willow Goodhope and the people in her life as she discovers beauty in the broken places, grace in the shadows, and joy in each new season.
Need to catch up?
Elderberry Croft: December Dawning Chs. 5 & 6
Published: Dec 20, 2025
Read full storyElderberry Croft: TABLE OF CONTENTS
Published March 11, 2025
Ready to see what’s next? Let’s dive in!
LISTEN to the excerpt:
Elderberry Days: January
Willow Goodhope’s Elderberry Cold & Flu (or just because) Bulk Tea Recipe
Loving the Elderberry Crofty vibes? Share with someone else who might love them, too!
READ along:
Elderberry Days: An excerpt…
JANUARY
~ ~ ~
Dear Mama,
I fell asleep thinking of you last night, and so you came to visit me in my dreams. You did not come alone.
Yesterday, I took down all the twinkle lights I'd strung back and forth across the patio, and the shadows of the winter night they'd kept at bay crept in around me, taking me by surprise. The darkness left me feeling rather bereft, a bit like a lost child, alone and small.
When Christian arrived for dinner, he eyed the solitary glow of the porch light in its old-fashioned globe above my door. Without a word, he went about building us a grand fire in the stone pit on the patio. The weather cooperated, staying dry and crisp, and the smoke drifted up and away, leaving behind warmth and soft light and the fragrance of wood fire. We sat bundled together in a blanket, talking of trivial things that belied the depth of what was happening between us.
Christian stayed long past my witching hour, that moment each night when I'm brave enough to send him away without me, and I stood on the patio after he was gone, reluctant to go inside, alone. Oh, how desperately ready I am to go with him. Even now, my heart feels large and clumsy in my chest, pressing painfully against my lungs at the thought of making a home with him again.
Home. I have thought of this place as home for a whole year now, this tiny cottage cradled against the bank of the wee stream burbling past my patio. (Burbling. Is that a word? If it isn't, it should be. It's very streamish.) Beneath a giant eucalyptus tree whose rustling branches sing green lullabies in the January breezes, Elderberry Croft has been my home for twelve timeless months.
Here at The Coach House Trailer Park, in this hidden sanctuary I stumbled upon in what was surely one of my darkest hours, I found a whole group of people just like me. People who were afraid to live, afraid to move forward, resigned and waiting for it to all be over.
At first, it was enough to realize I didn't want that for them, and I determined to do everything I could while here to help them learn to breathe life in again. But in time, as I got to know each of my neighbors, I realized I didn't want that for me, either. We were all desperate for miracles, and God brought them in basket loads.
Yep. Elderberry baskets. Like the ones you and I used to make together.
The "For Rent" sign was so small, I drove right by it, the awareness of it not registering until I was several blocks away. I wasn't looking for it—the notion of moving out hadn't even taken root until that moment—but as I followed Eddie Banks across the narrow bridge over the stream, I could feel myself already falling under the spell of the place. When I laid eyes on the forlorn little croft tucked in behind the huge Coach House, I think my heart would have broken if it wasn't already in pieces. It seemed as hollowed-out and grief-stricken as I was, in spite of the stream burbling (that word—can't you just hear it?) along beside it and the lush vegetation embracing it. If a house could be a kindred spirit....
It was little more than a shack, really, slouching resignedly in the back corner of the park, waiting, biding its time, just like everyone else here. The front door, painted a surly green, hung crooked on its hinges, the bottom of it trimmed at a discernible angle to accommodate the slope of the floor. The butter-colored paint on the siding was sun-faded and chalky to the touch, although only peeling in a few spots, and one of the windows had a screen missing. The painted eaves actually matched the color of the door, as did the narrow trim around the windows. Not completely abandoned, I realized, but in desperate need of a gentle hand.
I saw the fragile bones of something lovely in its brokenness, Mama, but it wasn't until I noticed the tree that I realized I was the one the little home was waiting for. An elderberry tree, perhaps a decade old, had somehow taken root and was thriving along the edge of the stream, just off the east end of the river rock patio. Did you plant it there for me?
I felt like Mother Goose's crooked man (a crooked woman), having walked a terribly crooked mile to get here, stumbling upon this little crooked house. Sans, of course, the crooked cat and mouse. (Although I did have a crooked tarantula come visit one day. I'll tell you about that another time.)
Last night, after Christian left, I stood on the patio in the dark, just listening to the stream, and grieving for the elderberry tree I must leave behind if I am to go home again. Another goodbye. Why does love always require sacrifice?
Continued in Elderberry Days: Season of Joy….
♥ ♥ ♥
Read more of Willow’s story in Elderberry Days: Season of Joy. Available where ebooks, paperbacks, and audiobooks are sold, and on my Shopify store at Becky’s Bookshop!
Ingredients (Bulk Recipe)
1 cup dried elderberries
1 cup dried elder flowers
2 cinnamon sticks broken into pieces
2 tablespoons dried ginger root (not powder) OR add fresh to taste when brewing
2 tablespoons dried lemon rind OR add fresh to taste when brewing
Place all dried ingredients in a glass bowl and mix well. Store in a labeled paper bag or in a sealed glass jar in a cool, dark place for up to one year to ensure effectiveness. This recipe will make approximately 25-30 cups of hot tea.
Tips: I like to use an extra cinnamon stick as a stirrer. Also remember that using fresh ingredients will require you to adjust your measurements. As long as your essential ingredients are included, let your taste buds do the rest.
To Brew 4-5 Cups
*Stir bulk ingredients first, then put 1/2 cup of the herbal tea mix in a thermos, or in a tea diffuser.
*Pour 4-5 cups of boiling water over the top of the herbal tea mix and let it steep for 15 to 20 minutes, or steep in a pan on the stove-top on low heat/simmer for 15 minutes.
*Strain, then add honey to taste.
And this is now wraps up both Willow’s and my Substack year, too. It’s been lovely spending time with you here. Do subscribe to my newsletter if you haven’t already - I’d love to stay in touch!
Blessings in the coming year,
Becky Doughty