My success as a writer has not been grand, but I do have a few die-hard fans scattered around the country. Once in awhile, I hear from a new fan whose curiosity about me spills over into an email. Fans ask me questions that take me outside my familiar routine, which in turn keeps the old brain cells active. Usually I have to ponder the answers for awhile before answering. For example, the new fan asked which of my five books is my favorite, and why. The answer to that one is threefold.
The Alley of Wishes is the book of my heart and a labor of love because I wrote it for my mother, who died long before it was published. My Name is Esther Clara is probably my best and most challenging book because I wrote it in first person, in my grandmother's voice. The Grass Dance was my first book and remains a fan favorite eight years after its release. However, it is not my favorite and I'd rewrite it if I could.
The second question asked by this new fan really sparked my imagination!! "If you could go back in time and visit any past era, when would it be?" Hmmmm......
At first I thought it would be wonderful to visit Israel during the time of Christ, to see him during his ministry on earth. But the politics and powers during Christ's time were as messy and discouraging as they are today so I eliminated that option. Next I thought about my lifelong fascination with ancient Egypt and seeing the building of the Sphinx and pyramids with my own eyes. But then I thought about the horrible conditions that surely must have existed then, with laborers driven like cattle to complete their tasks. I wanted to see something pristine, a time that, in my mind at least, would be less chaotic.
My answer to the fan was that I'd like to see my homeland -- America -- 500 to 1000 years ago before politics, before machines, before pollution. I want to see primeval forests east of the Mississippi River and the untouched grasslands of the plains as they were before the axe and plow changed their faces forever. I want to smell the air as it must have been back then, fresh with pure, rich, untainted oxygen. I want to see rivers and streams as they were before our modern actions muddied them -- so clear I can see the fish and fresh water clam beds in the depths. I want to see beaches along the Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf, before hotels, condos, and sprawling estates lined them. And most of all, I'd like to see the native people in their original habitat, before European diseases, politics, and "eminent domain" wrecked their beautiful world.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
I've been hiding in the background......
....wondering what I could possibly blog about that would make a difference in the grand scheme of things. We all have a lot to think about. Today I'll share a few random thoughts that range from the ridiculous to the sublime.
Politics & Politicians: I grew up listening to my grandparents argue and discuss politics and politicians. Maybe their mostly negative views influenced mine, because I find myself thinking more and more like they did 50 or 60 years ago: Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. So see? Nothing changes but the date and our age where politics are concerned.
Afghanistan & Iraq: I read a newspaper op ed that said Russia bankrupted itself fighting in Afghanistan. Well hey, the US had already been bankrupted by Wall Street, big business moving overseas, and fiscal mismanagement at every level, so guess we're good to go. I believe in our military forces and hold citizen soldiers in the highest esteem, but I don't believe in spending money on wars when schools and infrastructure are in such sad shape, and taxpayers are losing their jobs and homes.
Fame vs. Reality: Michael Jackson died and even our politicians acknowledged his passing with a moment of silence while in session. Where were the moments of silence for the soldiers and marines lost in Iraq and Afghanistan? Tiger Woods wrecked his car and refused to talk to the police, was fined $164. A young man I know did a slow-tap-on-pedal at a stop sign and had to do many hours of community service and pay a huge fine. Politicians that don't pay their taxes for years get no kind of punishment whatsoever. If Joe Public doesn't pay HIS taxes, the wrath of the IRS comes down on him with a vengeance. Can you see a pattern here?
Health Care: I've said all I have to say about health care in a previous blog. Pres. Obama has pushed the possibility of a health care plan farther than any other president, but my opinion has not changed. The House and Senate have over-complicated the issue with thousands of pages of rules and regs, none of which will control the real problems. As long as insurance companies and lawyers provide huge support and perks to politicians, we won't have a plan that really helps the American people.
So that was the ridiculous and discouraging. For the sublime, here are some links you might enjoy:
http://www.squidoo.com/hollenbergstation
http://www.squidoo.com/sandhillscranes
http://www.squidoo.com/kentuckymountains
Politics & Politicians: I grew up listening to my grandparents argue and discuss politics and politicians. Maybe their mostly negative views influenced mine, because I find myself thinking more and more like they did 50 or 60 years ago: Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. So see? Nothing changes but the date and our age where politics are concerned.
Afghanistan & Iraq: I read a newspaper op ed that said Russia bankrupted itself fighting in Afghanistan. Well hey, the US had already been bankrupted by Wall Street, big business moving overseas, and fiscal mismanagement at every level, so guess we're good to go. I believe in our military forces and hold citizen soldiers in the highest esteem, but I don't believe in spending money on wars when schools and infrastructure are in such sad shape, and taxpayers are losing their jobs and homes.
Fame vs. Reality: Michael Jackson died and even our politicians acknowledged his passing with a moment of silence while in session. Where were the moments of silence for the soldiers and marines lost in Iraq and Afghanistan? Tiger Woods wrecked his car and refused to talk to the police, was fined $164. A young man I know did a slow-tap-on-pedal at a stop sign and had to do many hours of community service and pay a huge fine. Politicians that don't pay their taxes for years get no kind of punishment whatsoever. If Joe Public doesn't pay HIS taxes, the wrath of the IRS comes down on him with a vengeance. Can you see a pattern here?
Health Care: I've said all I have to say about health care in a previous blog. Pres. Obama has pushed the possibility of a health care plan farther than any other president, but my opinion has not changed. The House and Senate have over-complicated the issue with thousands of pages of rules and regs, none of which will control the real problems. As long as insurance companies and lawyers provide huge support and perks to politicians, we won't have a plan that really helps the American people.
So that was the ridiculous and discouraging. For the sublime, here are some links you might enjoy:
http://www.squidoo.com/hollenbergstation
http://www.squidoo.com/sandhillscranes
http://www.squidoo.com/kentuckymountains
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About Me
- Laurel Johnson
- I enjoy good writing by writers and poets who are not famous. My mother said I was born a hundred years too late. The older I get, the more I realize how right she was.