dana reed

Spoiler Alert, watch first. Love rarely shows up on doorsteps anymore. But love returned where it had been abandoned. I watched this film in 2022. It reloaded this October 2023 in my movie listing. Even now it’s hard to pull myself away from watching repeatedly. In all fairness, yes, there are a few bumps, but they are minor. Jacob and Rachel’s meeting spoke destiny. There was a flicker with Jacob and Rachel that ignited in the hearts from the start. Their affection for music started the sparkles in the eyes, the pianist and the songbird. Then their passions melded to set a greater purpose as partners—surpassing the limitations of physical attraction alone. Their creative souls connected sweetly; the bilingual to the multilingual, both intimate with words; then the creative writer with one who embraces the imaginative as well, “A tactile object in a virtual world,” all spoke to the developing depth of this relationship. The charm this couple shared was refreshing versus the typical romance storyline of unspoken or misunderstood exchanges until finally the couple acknowledges their truth. The aerial views on the drive to the father’s made it clear that he lived in the middle of nowhere. This aerial excused this bump when they chose to sleep in the car versus leaving a note, at the shoes, that they would return the next day, then finding a warm hotel. The time spent at Jacob’s father was good, they were on a mission, and here father son had reunited, “100%.” I loved that the journey to find one parent resulted in connecting both parents. The writers’ ability to script, a mature couple, present in the moment, to allow the moment to authentically open up for them yet not be consumed in the quest, spoke to their emotional well-being. Emotionally stuck people cannot fathom this. It’s not either or, both are possible. People can be in the middle of handling a situation and do something else without the one diminishing the other. Rachel could read Jakes book versus Noel's diary and not taint her sincerity to find her mother. Did Rachel “cheat?” No, her truth was merely emerging. She was settling for Alan—“what she thought she needed, she didn’t need anymore.” The sparks between Jake and Rachel just kept growing until Alan is seen for who he was, “a need” and not a mate. Her heart and head were aligning. In the end, heart and head were one and true love prevailed. Yes, the candles everywhere in the room were too much, even for a romance scene. However, we were prepped as the lobby and clerk area told the viewer that this bed and breakfast went overboard with Christmas decorations. Jacob making the trip to Noel ties everything together as Noel says, “If you see my daughter …” Our imaginations complete the story without issue. A refreshing allowance. We can also easily understand how Rachel, learning of her mother's location, could wait until after Christmas for this visit. Her time spent on this quest, Christmas hours away, then resolving Alan in the matters of the heart leaves no room to add an equally major biological mom, meeting moment. Rachel’s heart truth had to surface to a conscious awareness. Alan must dissolve. First things first. The sigh, subtle exhale of relief in his body was Jake’s joyful praise and heart’s delight. The smiles at the end addressed everything left unspoken. Destiny averted marrying the wrong person. Rachel was his and there would be a sweet reunion of Rachel and mom with Jacob by her side and life afterwards.