tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34601135880528708362024-03-13T09:14:04.461-07:00Jean's BlenderJean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.comBlogger93125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-91174621667264774672016-06-28T14:39:00.002-07:002016-06-28T14:39:48.084-07:00Parallel Times?<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">In a previous century, a country in Europe was in disarray
economically, socially, and politically, following a devastating war. During a political campaign, one of the
candidates described how he could bring greatness back to the country. He promised an economic miracle for the
people; he dealt in demagogic diatribes against minorities among the
citizenry. He was elected by a
landslide, created a military brutal to the weak and strong in ideology, and
made overt efforts to destroy those who were not of the proper heritage. He ultimately broke with some allies,
gathered a satellite ally who mimicked his tactics. The consequences were horrific: one
particular part of the populace suffered deaths in the millions simply for
having a different racial makeup.
Eventually much of the world was embroiled in a catastrophic war whose
effects even to this day bear scars and unhealed wounds. All of this can be traced in large part to a
demagogue who desired to rule the entire world.
He failed. His personal history ended when he ended his own life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Demagogues vary in different eras, but remain dangerous
because of their ability to employ the worst in human nature to create more
power for them. They use the weaknesses
in society to gain strength for themselves.
We can learn lessons from history that will prevent repetitions of such
a magnitude of horror. Are we listening?</span></div>
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Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-1134731788533978832015-09-05T14:52:00.000-07:002015-09-05T16:49:05.133-07:00Snake!<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> A quiet Sunday afternoon.
I am reading a gripping murder mystery outside in the lawn chair. The solution to the crime is being solved and I follow with deep attention. I may have figured out the plot and fingered
the murderer! Just a few more pages will
tell me if my idea is right. Suddenly a
shout comes from our neighbors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> “Get him!” the young man shoots a hose at the brick wall
of his house in response to the call from his friend. I head over to the fence between us. The two are focused on something and pay no
attention to me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> “What’s going on?”
I ask, and learn that a large black snake is crawling up the side of the
house. My question is already answered,
as I watch the scaly creature make its way toward the roof. I remember my own history of snakes: snakes in
our bar, under our beds, in our cellars, watching us from the back windows . .
. my friend the little snake in a large jar who lived for a few days. . .
snakes have mixed personalities, from friendly to deadly. I love to watch them displayed in museums
and zoos but not in back yards.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> The next-door neighbor snake was not interested in me but
in what might be available for dinner in the woodsy back yards of our
area. I had a special interest in the
snake because of my special gift: that of snake whisperer. The difficult part for me now is what to say
to the snake.</span></div>
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Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-51898779691875066992015-09-02T11:33:00.000-07:002015-09-02T11:43:49.918-07:00Out Back<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> We watch
the creature activities at our patio and back yard where squirrels, birds, and
chipmunks have found the peanuts and birdseed we set out for them. Our back door is a sliding glassed access to
outside, so we are able to watch the many scenes that entertain us. Birds at the feeder, squirrels who would love
to get all the seeds there, and the chipmunks who gather up what falls from the
feeder. We place unsalted peanuts in the
shell on the railings to the steps down to our lower back yard, and then watch
the furry ones carry them off or eat them on the spot. Once in a while a cardinal or crow will grab a
peanut and fly away with it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Recently,
we counted five squirrels, three chipmunks, and numerous birds of several varieties,
but this week something has changed.
Birds continue to visit the feeder, but only one chipmunk shows up, and
now instead of five squirrels, only the one appears. It bears a tumor on its back, with some fir
missing on it. Did it have a confrontation
with siblings, we wonder. Is the wound
serious or will the little one heal? And
where have the others gone? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> When
darkness settles over the back yard, upper and lower, the cicadas strike up the
band, and as Katie our beagle-jackrussell and I head to steps leading to the
lower yard, they serenade us. Now, when summer
moves to its close, they sing more softly with their ch-ch-ch’s. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> I watch
each morning for our little injured squirrel, concerned about the lump on its
back, the hairless circle that it has caused.
Nature has healing power, and although we can’t take this little
creature to the vet for treatment, we are hoping healing is taking place and
soon that lump will disappear and fur will cover the spot. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> The
chipmunk home is somewhere behind or under the spot for our large garbage cans,
and Katie searches and waits for one to show up. Their speed is their protection. They are nature’s cute ones, and I’d love to
keep one as a pet, the way Charlie’s brother had them in his house at one time.
[Three chipmunks. A house full of
kids. One chipmunk nearly drowned in the toilet bowl
before nick-of-time rescue. The elderly sisters
who came to visit were startled when two ran across their shoulders in a
chase. Sometimes the little creatures would
be invited to the dinner table where they might be given a few morsels.] We have not tried to duplicate that
arrangement, and I believe Katie would be a danger to any of them. But wouldn’t that be fun, to have some indoor
chipmunks? Katie is not likely to form a
welcoming committee. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> The alternative is to spend our
mornings watching what takes place outside.
The activity is always worth our time to witness. We are thus aware that as seasons move always
to the next one, so do Charlie and I. Now
in our eighties we navigate more slowly.
Our delight in what nature provides for us increases. We have time to watch, time to offer
nourishment, time to relate to the little ones out back.</span>Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-15909217512379570662015-08-27T09:56:00.000-07:002015-08-27T09:56:23.112-07:00Forgiving<div align="left" class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> The group gathered for their weekly prayer time in the
pastor’s study. An added blessing was
that all the members had shown up this time, with no one missing. They began by sharing news of the church, events
coming up soon, lists of who was sick or needed financial help and other
problems. The young man looked in the
doorway and was motioned in by those inside.
They were curious as to why a white man would want to join them, but
they welcomed him with smiles. He seemed
nervous. Perhaps this was the first time
he had visited a black church, but soon settled down and listened as various
names and concerns were brought forth, and scripture passages were read by some
of the group. As they began to discuss
the verses read and joined in prayers for those named, violent sounds ripped around
the room. Bodies fell over, hit by
bullets from the gun carried by the visitor.
He continued shooting until all seemed dead and then walked out. One member managed to crawl away, leaving the
others lifeless, staring at nothing.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Later, when the horror of that moment was announced,
shock destroyed all joy. Yet not long
after that, families began to voice their grief in unexpected responses: that
of forgiveness for the killer, who had been arrested and stood defiantly before
a judge. He claimed his action was for
the purpose of beginning a race riot.
When he was told that he had been forgiven by the victim’s families, he
sneered. But there in that courtroom
someone stood up and faced him directly.
Those in attendance recognized the speaker as Mark Twain, who made a
solemn statement and disappeared:
“Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has
crushed it.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> In his cell, alone, the killer noticed a sweet odor
permeating his surroundings but could find no source for it. It engulfed him despite his efforts to wave
it away. It remained permanently with
him during the trials and sentencing and long afterwards until the fragrance
joined him in the grave.</span></div>
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Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-52142678687864566082015-07-30T08:47:00.000-07:002015-07-30T08:53:35.875-07:00Smoke Gets in My Eyes<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> My father was a constant cigar
smoker, and I hated to be in a closed room or car while he lit up another
stinky cigar. My mother and I tolerated
the habit once as we drove from Washington State to North Carolina, along with
our aging cocker spaniel, Inky. I
promised myself never to marry a cigar smoker when I grew up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> After his
death, I managed to avoid most cigar smoke simply by moving to another room, or
move far away from such smokers if I happened to be at a gathering. Eventually, smoking anything, pipe, cigarette
or cigar was banned from most public places, which was a blessing. Just before such a universal ban took place
however, I endured the cigar smoke from the Mayor of our small town of Madison. I served two terms on the Town Board, as the
first woman elected to that spot, and during that time one Mayor was an inveterate
cigar smoker, and would light up during our meetings.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> I had
learned years before that, however, that if
you can’t beat ’em, join ’em. A
few days before the next Board meeting was scheduled, I began cigar
hunting. I narrowed my choice to an
expensive, exclusive model that came in its own glass tube. The die was cast. I carried it in my purse to the meeting. My plan was to wait until the major business
had been decided, and while lesser issues were discussed, I would proceed with
my nefarious plan. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And it came to pass that I found
the moment, pulled the glass tube from my purse, extracted the cigar, brought
out my book of wooden matches (for greater effect), put the cigar in my mouth,
licking it a bit as I had seen my father do, struck the match and lit up, with little
smoke clouds issuing from the weapon. During
this entire process, I could sense without looking around, that suspense was
building. While one of the members
droned on with some minor business, I took a puff, blew out the smoke, and then
another puff. I eventually smoked the
entire cigar right down to the last inch while taking surreptitious glances at reactions
from my colleagues. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Fortunately, the experience was a
good one. Good humor ran throughout the
meeting room, from those at the table with me to the townspeople in the observers’
seats. I had been a hit, and my point
about noxious cigars was made, even though it did not change the practice by
the Mayor at subsequent meetings, who continued to smoke his way through one of
his stogies. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> It was later that I learned my
action had made the news, not only in our local newspaper, but was picked up by
other papers across the state. My
brother at the time was with the Institute of Government in Chapel Hill, and
had read about me in the Madison</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Messenger</span></i><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">.</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> I have an idea he was the cause of the story
traveling to other localities in North Carolina, but he never owned up to passing
the story around.</span>Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-46101868375311690152015-06-04T10:44:00.001-07:002015-09-05T16:08:42.526-07:00The Times Are They Ever A'Changin'?<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> I was going
through a scrapbook full of my feature newspaper articles of long ago, my
letters to editors, and other commentaries, and found this letter tucked in the
scrapbook. It is a response to my long
letter to the editor in the News-Record back in 1966, when I wrote at length against the
violence of mob actions. I’ve become a
bit more radical since those days, but here below is a letter from a woman here
in Greensboro agreeing with my premise and telling a horrifying story of
something that happened when she was a child.
I will quote the letter but not provide her name in order to protect her
privacy, or if she is no longer living, the privacy of her family.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The letter: (written
in the vernacular of her day and of the 60’s)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> I just read
your letter in Public Pulse, and you are <u>so</u> right, there <u>is</u>
nothing on, under or over the face of the earth like the sound and sight of a
mob in action. I know, because I lived
through 2 days of fear and horror when I was a girl of 17, in Lincoln Co.
Ga. A drunken negro killed a deputy
sheriff (white) at a church near my home, at Lincolnton, Ga. The mob of about 300 men, and bloodhounds
chased him right across our pasture. We
had a large plantation, worked mostly by negro tenants, sharecroppers, good people
whom we loved and respected and protected.
But we couldn’t protect them against that vengeance mad, kill crazy
mob. One of our colored men was
suspected of having given him some food, and when he couldn’t tell them where
the killer went, he was beaten almost to death, and when he attempted to run,
they shot him. 300 guns can make an awful mess of a human body. I will never forget the pitiful faces of his
wife and children, and the angry tears of my father, as we helped her pick up
what was left of him, for burial. Later,
the mob picked up another negro, who had been forced at pistol point, by the
killer, to drive him 12 miles to a swamp in Wilkes Co. He was also beaten to a pulp. Late that night they caught the killer and
brought him back to Lincolnton, again right thru our yard. By then, there wasn’t a human being in that
mob. They were beasts who had lost every
spark of decency and reason. The law
tried to rescue him, but all appeals failed.
It was worth one’s life to even get near them. They took the killer and the negro who had
driven him to Wilkes Co. to Lincolnton, where they drove an old automobile
bumper in to the ground for a stake, tied them to it with wire, piled wood and
old tires around them, poured 5 gallons of gas over them and burned them. I shut myself in to my room, with the windows
down, but I’ve never forgotten the screams, and the stench of burning human
flesh, and neither will the men who were in that mob. When it was over and sanity had returned,
just beginning to realize what they had done, a few weeks later, 3 of the men
committed suicide. Some of their wives
left them, refusing to live with a man who could so easily turn into a beast. The memory of those 2 days and nights will
never fade. It has governed my whole
life, in my attitude toward any sort of defenseless human, colored or white or
even animals who dare not bite when kicked.
I wish every one who thinks differently, could see just <u>one</u> mob
in action, and feel the aftermath. Then
more people would feel as you, and I do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">End of letter.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have never been able to forget what she wrote, and it has
become one of my own guides to relating to others, and also, as she notes here,
to animals.</span></div>
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Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-66224072951666009422015-05-02T10:11:00.002-07:002015-05-02T10:32:32.921-07:00The Calling of Other Voices<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"> When I was finishing high school and
looking for a good college or university, my preference was Michigan State
University’s School of Journalism. I
wanted to be a journalist, and my work on our school newspaper had convinced me
of that calling. My heart was set on it.
My father had other ideas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"> He feared my exposure to radical
ideas such as communism, and also had concerns about how far from North
Carolina I would be. He was nearing
retirement from the Army Medical Corps and my parents would be moving back to
the Old North State soon. Disappointed
in not having such a great opportunity to study journalism at a school known
for such, I began searching through the Blue Book of colleges. Because my boyfriend planned to attend
Georgetown University in Washington, DC, I decided to seek a school in
Virginia, my mother’s birth state.
Randolph-Macon Woman’s College won the prize and I began my freshman
year there, graduating in 1955 with a major in political science and a minor
study in English.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"> It was at R-MWC that I began writing
for the two campus magazines and the newspaper.
I spent my senior year as editor of the newspaper, <i>The Sun Dial</i>. The experience
whetted my appetite for more of the same, and when my husband, daughter, and I
settled in Madison, NC after our first home in Bremerhaven, Germany with the US
Air Force, I found the opportunity. The <i>Madison Messenger</i> and papers in nearby
cities took my feature articles. I wrote
a column in the local paper as well. I
loved writing about interesting people and also helped husband Charlie with
articles on Madison’s history for a publication honoring the town’s
sesqui-centennial. It was a fulfilling
time that I could manage while at the same time caring for our four children as
they grew up.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"> At some point, however, my direction
changed and I became deeply involved in the life of our local Presbyterian
church. The effort eventually led me to
seek ordination at a time when women were barely recognized for such
leadership. Before I began that journey,
graduate studies in English at UNC Greensboro broadened my understanding of
literature and enhanced my writing skills.
The latter became important as I worked on church newsletters wherever I
found a chance to minister. I also
became extremely active in women’s organizations that supported opportunities
for leadership in many fields, and my choice was to serve as a chaplain in
hospital and hospice settings. Writing
sermons, a challenging genre, occupied much of my creative efforts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"> Retirement provided opportunities to
consider other possibilities. I began
working seriously with different genres: poetry, varieties of prose, letters to
the editor on political and social issues, and eventually managed to publish
some books. Two are by a small press in
Maine, the rest self-published by a North Carolina company. Included are poems, a collection of stories
about a small town, and stories of children in WWII and of rescued pets. The latter two books are closer to my former
journalistic efforts. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"> What now? Well, I think another path is calling me:
some form of feature writing about interesting people and events. I don’t know how that will materialize, but I
see myself headed along other directions in my writing, part of which will
include my blog page. Watch this blog
for further news.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-56657383547785891892015-01-11T17:05:00.000-08:002015-01-11T17:05:47.829-08:00Alligators!<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> I like alligators.
I respect alligators. After
seeing how they surround our national government, however, how they are up to
our President’s knees at times, don’t ask me to befriend them. To make friends with alligators at the same
time I keep my distance from them seems to be an impractical relationship. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Alligators lurk in many places. Once they showed up in a church that I served. Circling, menacing, snapping . . . They hissed falsehoods and sang old songs no
one knew. They are kin to crocodiles,
and some might mistake one breed for the other.
Both are dangerous to keep around as pets. When they are let loose in a congregation,
the dangers last long after their audition, and leave their wounds, which then
leave scars, and then bad memories. When
they began to circle me, I tried to play nice, say kind words to them, and pet
their knobby heads. Almost lost a few
fingers with that last attempt. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> It’s best to avoid alligators in churches. There they tend to be even more deadly, and
can destroy everyone who is present. My
own efforts to befriend them resulted in their becoming even more
destructive. I learned finally to get
out of there and find safe haven elsewhere.
The ancient church alligator grinned a huge toothy smile of joy upon my
departure. I later learned that it
consequently attacked the congregation, with the help of a bevy of younger
beasts. Stay away from churches that nurture
alligators. They are bad news.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> As for alligators in swamps, when they remain in their
natural habitats I have no complaints. </span></div>
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Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-33951810246558889142014-12-29T08:11:00.003-08:002014-12-29T08:20:32.737-08:00The Woman Who Never Died<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> It was
difficult enough to outlive her children.
To watch them die from illness, or accidents, or old age. How intolerable to witness her grandchildren and
great-grandchildren die while she lived on . . . never to die. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> When she
was still a girl, she had said out loud, but to herself, “I wish I could live
forever. I wish I could see how the
world changes, and how life turns out for everything in it.” What she did not notice was the presence of
the Wish Spirit who had lingered over her that day, listening to her wishes, as
the Spirit does for everyone. The Spirit
then chooses whether to grant or deny wishes she hears. The reasons need not be specified, whether about
longevity or good and evil, or even human sexuality. Thus the Wish Spirit hovers over all the
living at some time or another, to hear our desires. She has the power to choose which ones to
bring about.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> This time the
Spirit made a vital decision, perhaps as an experiment, in granting the wish of
that woman, who at the time was young enough yet to experience much of what
life might hold for her. What the rest
of us have yet to find out, however, is what this young woman discovered simply
because she made a wish that we too may have uttered at some time. The
difference is that the Wish Spirit has not yet granted our wishes but has done
so with the woman who once was young and now is ageless. Her name is Evelina. She will live forever.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> We don’t know with certainty when she entered into human
life. Her birth records were destroyed
in a fire long ago. Nor do we know how
long eternity will last. We can see
Evelina only as we experience her presence in our current lives. We can wonder how she relates to the fact of
death as she is witness to it in times of war, disaster, illness, or accidents
or other kinds of destruction of human life.
Her memory is intact. She has not been through any diseases or illnesses
that would cause her death. What we
cannot know or predict is when, and if, her human life comes to an end. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> The
question: “Is Evelina satisfied with the result of her wish for life
forever? Does she consider eternal life
to center solely upon existence as she is now: a living human being who, like
all, is fully flesh and blood?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> What, dear Reader, would you choose for your own
life? Eternity of human existence? A time that your life in the flesh will end,
whether from age or ill health or violence?
Think about Evelina and how she has discovered the power of a wish. Do you envy her? </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-73751300669361646062014-12-07T14:46:00.000-08:002014-12-29T18:16:32.175-08:00December 7, 1941: Honolulu, Hawaii<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Today marks the 73</span><sup style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">rd</sup><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> anniversary of the day the
United States was launched into World War II.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It was a surprise to all but those who were expecting an an act of war
against our country.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The date itself
turned out to catch even the military at Pearl Harbor unaware, when Japanese
planes bombed the Naval base on Sunday morning, December 7.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">President Roosevelt was to give that day a
name: the Day of Infamy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I will give an account of that time as it affected me and my
family, from this excerpt from my book, <i>Rachel’s
Children: Surviving the Second World War</i> (All Things That Matter Press,
2010). It is found on pages 9-10 of the
book.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“Children in American territories joined their counterparts
around the world, by spending the next few years in a climate of war and its
accompanying horrors. It was not a time
of glory, no matter how many patriotic speeches would be delivered, no matter
how many inspiring songs were sung and encouraging prayers offered. It was instead, a time of war.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“My own experience as an eight-year-old in Honolulu was
shared with classmates many times after my mother, brother and I returned to
the “mainland.” My father remained in
Hawaii where he was a pathologist with the Army Medical Corps. After the attack, he was to continue his
service as Commanding Officer of the North Sector Tripler General
Hospital. He remained at that post until
the end of the war, when he was assigned to the Army hospital at Ft. Hamilton
in Brooklyn, NY. By then I was in grade
7B at Public School 104, and wrote an essay duringthat time about my
experience of the December 7<sup>th</sup> day in Hawaii.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">From a poem in my book:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> <i><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Black smoke on a Sunday morning,<o:p></o:p></span></b></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> planes appear from the sea<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> to interrupt the December weekend.<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> Sirens scream through streets<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> indiscriminate of homes and
buildings<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> where Japanese, Chinese, Hawaiian<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> and wahine neighbored. Church bells<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> call worshipers to services while
whine<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> of bullets and flash of light accent<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b> the morning bright with hope
transformed<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"> into fearful surprise.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span> </span></b><i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-56618299349972529302014-10-13T16:38:00.002-07:002014-10-13T19:06:50.392-07:00What's On My Plate<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">This is one of those details of how I did my most recent chip carving piece, a plate. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Here is the first step: getting the pattern on to the wood: there are various methods of copying that pattern.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEiOGQjQj9gLNKXP34yYPjsxDRMuEtNI8usOo2EN_MkNgiskZUW5fYa-UU9EavbVyEnTLBpalI-606sj3vp9Legszzg8Fb0fCma9LcQPycyZU-fXRYgHyWv5L4_MvRDjFPF2Ms4V1MNf0I-6rv1joAgyJtC05RAFYNFb-ZT5-XSVu9dtwHxePihSlT6qlLnOj7vRwgA5rD9WEiR0tQl_JVhLxFGu7dPfpu777Whj4Ae40sxHXWwahGpChfYvMwL85dg1fqb6rxx-xyUne8J-XynneujWPy45F-v4vxFxWWJTC1Qe_bDwyGq6LhAgLkMXid1FMyzzIPdBjKeqpa_A8OPTbfjcLQ=s0-d-e1-ft" /><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Now to begin the actual carving. There are knives designed especially for this.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEhPyrxvyinoEaVhm2FNc62VOA4Rnu1qr8M2XPC6fjNHKkDb72lBJyq1rLd6Tdm5ZUMmhIGSlmtSzrHntrUsJr9MKQeh01heygrUHzFg9eGwPN1CltctEAWN6AzOoTGOl_MEYpEUqtCddQyRCqR2V2qGVvXVH8ebPB8O-P5czouCD5gKO1g6y7SXUds7w7zy4XlG13yr_siQ6Rd1oYw9JjYIZ_b-yKEqW7f2RZh4iwAmRpkqYB0t8L0AGGBoEQ_ByOCKjwwd3KZTg_UZzSwsR78xC3-hlukXi77tPPvSBF3si9_RH4C9-5mrnFemIuRgdB9I09h5D6aUoqSdP9biKA2KLbif8g=s0-d-e1-ft" /><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Then you keep on until the whole pattern has been carved.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEh0ebbjwKeVMZj44K1jDwFWdxnzTvsSDiv77FZ6U_-M1boBiUjH91dA6KL2w07RUDzxseP5ihmbbenoz28fvohIthVkzYmyTSrhSlpnjKH-H-R5HZEBA3Gvcw93GKkmykCCsiX1T5pknH5ytDaogn2aYQgOYfwryzdO-4dPSdAg77ONzT_l1C3i5RIH0jtBrkclLlZQSSig4v1UmKnOC911tEVKBgu219MjyD_5eIcGcZ7otyS68IiQo72flXlQ4piRDhZg6WnJ-j4EwAX00zRKVBeGRWuGgCvowdautTGm-cE8Z72hb0yOLHO8WSJOY5jgHc900Ytt4KVDM0dqaC0beAhHHw=s0-d-e1-ft" /><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Now you are ready to finish it up by adding a stain and then spraying on a polyurethane finish, and you have this:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEiWKowiTBICgMaOWg8Ww7BpTYcXF6ZW9m17S3kVMYR6Q3IZjHXs4LYjnFTc9MrNDKC8Co2msovJukQkCauT5Ual5tnfFVtnQx7NW-Sjt4sYtxciCg9c2vzTE9JXxXUYsXGMW_yBiBQs7kaaERYhfqZRjIj2DrJj2iByHJ7ytYUSiRQKm6Tt951lkaN_vxnRNlUqbKT8FxLte5wH3YaVns1UyVqAmDp8fzmBmQmyRR5jYCL_M1X58ksom7xSuXbHH3Q7JWOH53z-ej6bm2kfhD1SjvKro1dlIp_TdK_8c-WjBSoHEf2xnjUmMZri1bwv5KFNUeTaDrbkLcY8taynbnyX1JdNeQ=s0-d-e1-ft" /><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">There are other ways to do this, but this is the process I use. The most beneficial aspect of carving is first the therapeutic process of carving, and then the pleasure of giving your finished work to someone else, or have it displayed somewhere in your own place. Many relaxing hours are the effect. I studied this with Wayne Barton, a master carver who comes regularly to the Brasstown Folk School.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-50404354267975926582014-10-05T05:52:00.000-07:002014-10-05T10:19:07.604-07:00Rainbow<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Charlie's brother, Leigh Rodenbough, died two weeks ago, on September 21, at the age of 90. A retired attorney, he went full time into his art after years of finding a moment here and there to spend time with a canvas during his law practice. His work was remarkably beautiful, showing his love for nature and his children and grandchildren. Seascapes were dominant for the former Naval officer, who spent World War II on ships. He also loved clouds, farm scenes, wooded areas, trees, rivers and skies. My favorites were the scenes from nature.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The evening of funeral visitation, his new work of art was the absolutely beautiful double rainbow visible from the the funeral home in Madison. It was stunning, and viewers were convinced Leigh was once more plying his art, this time with the canvas of the heavens. I was moved to put the experience into a poem:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> RAINBOW</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> <i>“This is what all art
strives for: the creation of a living permanence.” John
O’Donohue</i></span><br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rainbow</span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">(<i>for Leigh Rodenbough – 1924-2014)<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> sea
foam, star, cloud of clear puff</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> or
dark edges, they caught his eye</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> and
found homes on canvas</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> old
barns, woodlands, river scenes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> on
the Dan and Mayo, leafy trees,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> mountain
views, autumns of clear sky</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> boats
that sail, ships that cross seas,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> each
trusting waves to bear their weight,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> small
craft lead the way, sing lake poems</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> shores with children shaping sand </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> into castles as sea water fills
holes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> a
sand crab scrambles seeking safety</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> while
shovels work their artistry</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> it
comes to us framed, the artist’s gift</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> to
tell us the story he learned from ages</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> of
study and the glory of light:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> a
rainbow that carries the love he sends</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> arcing
over skies but touching earth</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-56979601742463158562014-10-04T13:12:00.000-07:002014-10-04T13:14:54.946-07:00Jesuslove in an Alien World<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> A recent
issue of <i>Christian Century</i> takes a
second look at the book <i>Resident Aliens</i>,
as viewed 25 years later. The authors,
Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Willimon, were former professors of mine during
my sojourn at Duke Divinity School.
Commentaries by a number of current theologians, church leaders and
seminary professors critique the book in light of our own time. Some find it wanting, others see its
continued relevance.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> The book
defines resident aliens as Christians who stand apart from the common culture,
in communities which consider themselves unaligned with the state but instead are
the church in its broader scope: as witness against the state or society on
occasion. As assessed by the authors, they
were part of the counterculture. Today
as I stand outside that time, I wonder how we as Christians can remain in the
alien fold, when it is more likely that the world around us is alien and we
have become part of the culture that surrounds us.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Our measure
is Jesus. Did he represent the culture
of his day or the counterculture? As I
consider the matter, I realize that Jesus was actively political. He stood squarely against the injustices of
the Roman rule, the discrimination against women in his society, the needs of
the poor and the sick who did not have access to the health care of that time,
and the society of rank, which marked the boundaries between the wealthy and
the poor, as well as including the economic needs of those between those two
categories. Today we label them the
middle class. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> To follow
the teachings of Jesus calls for us to live in a world that is alien to
Christian practices. We are not the
aliens, we are the inhabitants of an alien society, when we try to show love to
others in a way imitating Jesus’ love. To
remove the barriers that we cannot breach is a daunting effort. The discoveries of what I call <i>Jesuslove</i> among those we condemn as
undeserving because of their failures defines one way we can carry that love
with us to the alien world surrounding us.
</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We are all failures in some manner,
yet so was Jesus. He failed to follow
the religious laws when human need interfered.
He failed to acknowledge the power of the Roman rule over his
people. Yet the failures were the very
factors that brought forth his love for others.
He dared to include the fallen of society, and declared himself on a
mission to bring the Creator’s love to everyone. The result was to be punished severely for
such efforts. He visited the sick and
restored life to those believed to be dead.
In the last chapters of his story, he overcame even his own death at the
hands of an evil power. The aliens did
not win then, nor will they do so ever, because what is lasting is the kind of
love no one can adequately define. We do
know, however, that it is most powerful in an alien world, the world we live
in.</span></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-16313763699880949812014-09-12T09:02:00.001-07:002014-09-12T09:02:42.479-07:00Heavy Reading<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="font-size: large;"> I have now FINALLY completed two
very long reads: Gabriel García Márquez’ <i>one
hundred years of solitude</i>, and Rabbi Michael Lerner’s <i>Embracing Israel/Palestine:A Strategy to Heal and Transform the Middle
East.</i> Reading in these two very
different genres at the same time provided challenges of focus for me, but also
relief when one book might overwhelm me without having the other for contrast.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="font-size: large;"> Márquez’ long story of a family in a
remote mountain (in the Andes?) in South America was difficult to follow if I
tried to keep all the characters straight.
Every generation had similar names, not only for the male lineage, but
also for the women in the families. The
founder of the family and the village, José Arcadio Buendía, and a son, Aureliano Buendía, provide names
for multiple descendents through the Arcadio and Aureliano names. I gave up trying to follow these
relationships and simply took delight in the many stories of war and peace,
chicanery and loves and sexual activities that were detailed in this lengthy
history of the beginning of a village until its destruction a century
later. How Márquez kept the many
characters and events straight was indeed a phenomenal achievement. In fact, his book took a Nobel Prize. Reading a few chapters at a time was the only
way I could manage this voluminous creation, but it was worth the effort. The humor, the hijinks, the sorrows and
tragedies all kept me reading to the end, of over 450 pages.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="font-size: large;"> In contrast, Rabbi Lerner’s
non-fiction study (also around 450 pages) of the disturbing and frustrating
relationship between Israel and Palestine, particularly since 1947, held my
attention for other reasons. Lerner’s
Network of Spiritual Progressives and his Tikkun Community provide the basis
for his current efforts to find a sure path toward healing and community
between Israel and Palestine. In his study
of the current situation and a broad historical view leading up to the present,
I found this clear account enlightening.
His strategies for healing the relationships between these two people,
his detailed steps for ending the terrible conditions that exist for everyone
in that land, are a light we could follow successfully if only this effort were
realized.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="font-size: large;"> Reading two books at the same time
has become for me helpful in keeping up both with important publications and
what I love so much: mysteries and the methods for solving those
mysteries. My current very favorite
reading has been with the Canadian author Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache
series set in Quebec. I would dearly
love to live in Three Pines among all those delightful characters. Now on the latest of that series I am already
sad that another is not waiting in line.
The author recently spent time in Durham, but alas, I was not able to be
there to see and hear her.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="font-size: large;"> Old age is a great time to catch up
on the books that were once put aside in deference to required reading for
degrees, or for learning skills about writing, or some other Important
Reason. Now I can read what I want, in
both Kindle and real book forms. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-49009986217861842542014-09-03T12:28:00.004-07:002014-09-03T12:28:35.088-07:00The Field of Childhood<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> In my
childhood, my literary education was guided by my mother and also my
imagination. The first stories I was
acquainted with were those told by my mother while I sat in her lap on a summer
evening on the front porch. She rocked
while she told the stories. Two of them
stayed with me, as I asked for them over and over again, during the warm Southern
evenings accented by katydids and lightning bugs and the hum of her voice. There was Lambikins and The Little Red Hen,
both of whom outwitted the bad fox every time. The Little Red Hen had scissors
with her and cut her way out of the fox’s bag.
I forget how Lambikins escaped, but both used their ability to outwit
the evil fox. I also remember feeling
sorry for the fox’s children, when he came home with an empty bag, and they
remained hungry.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> When I
began to wrestle with the written word, however, my world widened forever. For my seventh Christmas, I received Eugene
Field’s <i>Poems of Childhood </i>from my grandmother. My mother and I both were captivated by the
poems and also the magnificent illustrations by Maxfield Parrish. Those pictures will always be in my
head. (I also had a Parrish-illustrated
play that I loved throughout my growing up. I don’t know which of our children now has
that.) </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> I think the
tragic poems still draw me back into Field’s book, as it also did with my
mother. “Little Boy Blue” evokes tears
even now: the story of a little boy whose toys were faithful to him and waited
for his return even though he had died in childhood. Legend holds that this was about Field’s son,
but his death occurred a year after this poem was written. The poignant ending continues to have its
power: “And they wonder, as waiting the
long years through/In the dust of that little chair,/What has become of our
Little Boy Blue,/Since he kissed them and put them there.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Another
tragic poem is “The Little Peach.” My
mother and I both agreed that this was one of our favorites, despite its
sorrow. Johnny Jones and his Sister Sue
take bites from the green peach they knocked down from the tree. “Under the turf where the daisies grew/They
planted John and his Sister Sue,” were the lines that caught me, but all
because of the Maxfield Parrish illustration that accompanies the poem. These two creative “fields” brought me my
first fascination with books and poetry.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Tragedy is
not the sole proprietor of this volume, however. There are close to 200 pages of poetry
collected here. Only a few have claimed
their own fame: “Wynken, Blynken and Nod,”
“Jest ‘Fore Christmas,” “The Duel”
(the battle between the gingham dog and the calico cat), “Seein’ Things at
Night.” Many others are light-hearted and fun to read out loud. I love the lyricism of “Wynken, Blynken, and
Nod one night/Sailed off in a wooden shoe— ” the rhythm captures an essence of
our human need for order. In this poem,
the Parrish illustration in its mystic setting provides the right mood for a
sleepy child.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> When I
wonder how our sense of timing, our joy in particular words and phrasings, the
plots of simple stories suited to childhood affect our later use of language, I
find the answers in what we heard and read in our first years. Our ideas form, our manner of speaking and
writing, can be traced back to what held meaning for us not only in ideas but
in speech patterns and emotions. These remain
with us. I am grateful for wandering in
the Fields.</span></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-67160695682437826852014-08-21T08:57:00.000-07:002014-08-21T08:57:36.615-07:00Broken<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> One of the
best-known gospel stories has to do with Jesus’ feeding of the multitudes with
nothing but five loaves of bread and two fish, offered by some who were among
the crowd. At the conclusion of the
event, we are informed that there were leftovers: twelve baskets full of broken
pieces. It was mention of the broken
pieces that my attention refocused.
Broken pieces. Isn’t that what
all of us are in this broken world? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> My thoughts
go to Israel, Gaza, Syria, Iraq, and well, the whole Middle East. They also go to our own country, in places
like Ferguson, Missouri and other places of racial tension and anger and
bloodshed. I think of Greensboro and the
poor and hungry residents here. I think
of the violence against women across the country, of families who are broken
because of a multitude of reasons . . . we are indeed a broken world.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> Sometimes
we take refuge in our Face Book messages, our Twitter accounts, our
organizations and places of worship, waiting for the Great Superhero to swoop
into our lives and rescue us all.
Sometimes we simply feel so overwhelmed that we withdraw into ourselves,
our own needs, our own ideas. Sometimes
instead, we let our vulnerability to the power of others, their words and their
wealth, provide escape routes from the realities we live in every day. We forget our own power, as we cower under
the weight of brokenness in our world.
We depend on what is beyond our own strength to make everything right. The result simply becomes a life that is more
broken. The pieces taunt us and we
escape into whatever is available to make us ignore the pain of being broken.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> I strain to
recognize where the glue is that will mend our societies, our political
structures, our battlefield injuries, our hatreds, our efforts to kill possibilities
for change. I hope that we can lay down
the guns of death, both those real and those symbolic of death. I hope we can discover how to put back
together this jigsaw of pieces so that the complete picture will be one of
community and progress. I know it is
present somewhere in the maze of disarray and splintered society, and our call
is to locate the healing and become what we once dreamed of for our lives
together. Thus endeth my sermonizing for
this day.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span> </div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-35886575970526848172014-07-30T18:30:00.003-07:002014-07-30T18:30:22.351-07:00The Sorcerer's Apprentice<span style="font-size: large;">Heather Ross Miller's newest collection holds poems about her professor (or teacher, as she names him) Randall Jarrell, her birth family and her married family, and observations of what lies around her and in her mind's eye. <i>Celestial Navigator: Writing Poems with Randall Jarrell</i> connects teacher and student in the work of bringing poems to life, the right word with the right line, the beauty of syllables and of laughter abounding through the lives of Randall and wife Mary.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Miller's classmates at what was then Woman's College of the University of North Carolina, drew upon inspirations that flowed from this poet, forming a unique sorority of young women captivated by a master of our language. I regret not having met Jarrell, and will be posting another blog about that oversight in my life, but now I want to say bravo to Heather Ross Miller for giving this man back to us in ways we could never do: through her poetry. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">She describes herself in "A Woman Things Happen To" as:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">". . . I'm an old woman</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">who tends the fire, waving aside smoke,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and dipping out the best morsels</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">so the children can eat."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">She introduces her mentor in "Speaking In Tongues" by this stanza:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"Dandelions ripened and flew while I drew</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">on the sidewalks my hopscotch, world wars,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and fierce new tongues, German, Japanese.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Then when I'd grown and gone to college,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I found a man who spoke these, wrote these,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">laughed them out loud, tongues he brought</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">together in one place, smelting sounds</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">in a Spartan kind of thing, a poem,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and he said I could too."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">And so she could. And so she does still. You need to read how she responds with her life-long words and poems. I've given you just a quick taste of what she learned from that Celestial Navigator.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-58879314054270923582014-07-29T11:04:00.002-07:002014-07-29T11:04:46.755-07:00Working with Words<span style="font-size: large;">Today is a sunny day, just right for spilling words into it. When the chaos of the world overwhelms, as it does: Gaza, Israel, Ukraine, Latin America, and leaders try to set things right again: Pope Francis, President Obama, the unnamed peacemakers throughout this world, I feel whelmed over. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I am a political animal who enjoys writing poems and flash fiction, and a reader of murder mysteries and friends' poetry collections. I read the newspaper, internet news,watch msnbc, and on the car radio I prefer music stations to news. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Saying all this, today I need to sit beside Katie, the beagle-jackrussell, and let her bark her little heart away at all the noises in the neighborhood.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The churches are in trouble. The country is in trouble. The world is in trouble. So today I plan to ignore all the troubles, until I come up with a solution. Or resolution. My next blog will probably have more to read about.</span>Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-29105539658523288052014-07-25T13:58:00.000-07:002014-07-25T13:58:31.717-07:00Labels Can Be Harmful<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">To begin my blogging again, I'll share this poem written a while ago because it seems to be relevant still, unfortunately:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> First I was, by birthright, a conservative like the</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> rest of my family, active in politics of the Right</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> during college and fearful of Communists. Then I</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> moved leftward after marriage until I claimed with</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> pride the label of liberal. I loved the word and did</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> all the things that would put me into the liberal</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> camp like make friends with the black community</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> during those dangerous civil rights times when to</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> question prejudices was unacceptable by the social</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> crowd I ran with, and to question the political</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> decisions by a Republican President got me in</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> trouble and I was no better off because my</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> alternate label in those days was radical feminist.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Then the L word became a smear from the</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> other side and eventually lost its wings but</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> soon it was modified to white liberal and</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> that was not something to be desired so I</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> changed vocabularies and became a</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> progressive. A naive progressive. An</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> innocent progressive. I was in the</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> progressive wing of the church and a</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> progressive activist in civic organizations</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> and so I progressed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Now that label is no good because the word is attached to </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> mystique which morphs into progressive myth which</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> leaves some ambiguity but overall I find myself confused</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> and unable to fit beneath any label so far except some that</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> I will not use lest they too become out of date and</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> misbegotten. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-23232086740084299362014-07-22T08:29:00.000-07:002014-07-22T08:29:30.618-07:00Time To ReturnAfter a very long hiatus from my blog, I have decided that it is time to start blogging again. I will be adding posts very soon, and sharing thoughts, activities, and other stuff on here.Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-38085444312054399152012-11-15T14:10:00.004-08:002014-07-22T08:20:29.075-07:00Ginger and Spot: Tips on Successful Writing<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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This is my last blog for
a while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wrote it some time in the
later ‘70’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems an appropriate way
to close down for a spell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I may get
back to blogging after a time out.</div>
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(the posted version seems to have some spacing problems between words that I can't change)</div>
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<br />
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> <b> </b></span></span></span><b>Hi there, Mrs. Moody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ready for your first creative consultation?</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Oh my . . . well, I suppose so, Mr.
Beardsley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I . . . I don’t know if this
little piece is what you want, but . . .</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>No problem, Mrs. Moody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Throw it out to me, and we’ll see how it
flows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Give me your first line.</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>(clearing her throat): “Hey, Leroy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Drop the shades and watch that cat zap up the
tree.”</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> <b>
</b></span></span></span><b>Mmnnh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>First of all, Mrs. Moody, a basic rule in writing is to know your
reading audience, and how you can communicate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now before we get into your line there, let’s see if you can give us a
catchy lead-in statement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The principle
character here seems to be a cat, right?</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Well, one of the characters, you might say.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>Mmnh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s
see then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What motivated the cat?</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span>I hadn’t gotten to that yet.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> <b> </b></span></span></span><b>But you <u>must</u>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How about . . . how about a dog?</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>That’s what I’m trying to . . .</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>OK.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now
take a step backward into the plot, and try again.</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>How about, “Leroy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ain’t I told you to get that damn dog out of
the house?”</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>Er, maybe you could move ahead one step.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who is looking at the dog and cat?</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Leroy and his friend Jefferson.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> <b> </b></span></span></span><b>All right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Give Jefferson something to say, like “See the dog.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the way, give him a name . . . Spot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now try again.</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Well, I hadn’t given this much thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Hey, Leroy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Old Spot’s chasing cats again.”</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>No no, Mrs. Moody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children can’t take in so much vocabulary
when they are beginning to read.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Simplify.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Simplify and clarify.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, please, Mrs. Moody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s give it the old professional try.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Write and re-write.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right?</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span>Yes sir.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Simplify.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re perfectly right, of course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s see now . . .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“See" . . . oh I have it:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“See Spot” . . . uh . . . “See Spot run.”</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"> <span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>Great!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now
your juices are flowing!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Repetition is effective.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Run it past the kids again for emphasis.</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>“See Spot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See Spot run.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Mr. Beardsley,
don’t you think . . .</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>You’re doing fine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now introduce you protagonist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t you think you should identify these
characters by name for the kids?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How about
Ginger for the cat?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I once had a cat
named Ginger. . . she got mangled by a Beagle and . . . but excuse me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is your story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep your style consistent, remember.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, you’re on your own here for the next
line, but keep it simple.</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>You mean like this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Hey Leroy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What’s your cat’s name?”</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> <b>
</b></span></span></span><b>No, no, no, Mrs. Moody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep it <u>simple</u>.</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Uh . . . “See Ginger” . . . uh . . . “See Ginger
run.”</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>Now you’re on to something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Action words . . . keeps things hopping.</b></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>But Mr. Beardsley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have trouble thinking in direct terms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do I have to get rid of the line I had to begin with?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b>To be frank with you,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mrs. Moody, that line has to go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No kids can get through it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another rule: clean out the excess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remove the garbage from your writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing is too good that it can’t be left out
of a story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’ve got to let go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, try some free association.</b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Well, here’s how I might try it: “See Spot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See Spot run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See Ginger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See Ginger run.” Now,
um . . . um. . . Oh, I think I’ve got the swing of it now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“See Jane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See Jane run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See Dick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See Dick run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See Mother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See Mother run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See Father run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See . . . </div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b>Stop right there, Mrs. Moody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t over-write.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Know when you’ve come to the end of your plot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leave them hanging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t resolve.</b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Yes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh yes,
Mr. Beardsley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My, what a great help you’ve
been this morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it weren’t for
you, no telling where I might have gone with that story.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b>That’s
what I’m here for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See you next week,
Mrs. Moody. </b></div>
</div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-30996276117628797932012-11-02T07:59:00.000-07:002012-11-02T08:15:13.486-07:00Counseling Session: Overflow of SorrowA flash fiction episode, not to be a continued story:<br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It happened between Rocky Road and Orange Sherbert . . .
my most memorable counseling opportunity. It happened this way. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I set up office
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</span>Her litany of pain is familiar: the bad hip, high blood pressure,
“sugar.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today there is a new one, the
one that has been hiding behind facades of facile reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“They fired me last week.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her eyes brim, tears overflowing onto frozen
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Having learned to listen, saying nothing, I stand there
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floating groceries as stock boys mop and shovel packages back into the bins
filled with near-frozen salt-laden pools of tears.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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supermarket aisles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Buyers and clerks
cannot pass through.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are all blocked,
and a crushing force of old wrongs begins to pour from the shoppers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We fall to our knees in grief and anger, our
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wail creeps through openings in offices and check-out counters, pours through
automatic doors into town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Memorable
moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unprecedented.</span></div>
Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-15562722447483153222012-10-07T18:22:00.001-07:002012-10-08T06:55:55.881-07:00Meeting God for the First Time . . .<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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I was five, and had
spoken rudely to my mother when she scolded me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Cora was there that day, and was ready to pounce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Don’t you speak to your mama like that!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You better tell God you’re sorry. .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>. Go on. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Tell God.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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I wasn’t sure how to go
about making such an apology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents
had not explained much to me about God, even though they were Southern
Baptists!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went outside, looked at the
sky, figuring God must be up there somewhere, and saw a cloud shaded with
darkness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe that was God frowning at
me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I scuffed my feet in the Arkansas
dirt for awhile, and then looked up quickly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“I . . . I’m sorry,” I said as fast as I could, and ran inside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a strange encounter with God, only
later to be more carefully defined.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Theologians might put
that incident under the rubric of “Repentance.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My unschooled mind would not have defined the moment as anything but a
way to say “I’m sorry.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It must have
been significant for me, however, because 74 years later I still remember it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve even used it as a sermon illustration at
times, but the major actor in the scene turned out to be Cora, not me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I credit her as the one who introduced me to
God, even though it was to the God Who Judges.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Not long after that, my
next-door neighbors, the Catholic twin sisters three years older than I,
attending parochial school, informed me that the trees and all that was in our
back yard belonged to God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus I
learned of God the Creator.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For several
days after that, I wandered through the yard pointing to each thing: “This is
God’s tree; this is God’s bush; this is God’s grass; this is God’s dirt.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was becoming a theologian.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
My next encounter with
God was when I entered first grade.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Miss
Briggs, our teacher, began each day with a story from a book of Bible stories
for children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day she read about
Samuel’s call in the Temple. Samuel, a little boy, was awakened one night by
repeatedly hearing his named called.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thinking it was the old priest Eli, the one he was apprenticed to, he
would run to answer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Finally, Eli told
him it must be God, and to answer with “Speak Lord, for thy servant hears.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Samuel heard the call in the night
again, he answered as he had been instructed, and received God’s call to him
and the message of what he was to do in response.</div>
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That afternoon I was
again in my favorite spot, the back yard, when I heard ever so softly, “Jean!
Jean!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I answered with the words Samuel
had used in the Temple, but finally realized the sound was only a breeze
through the trees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, however, I
heard, “Jean! Jean!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>answered, “Speak Lord, for thy servant hears.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this time it was the sound of a truck in
the distance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once more came the voice, “Jean!
Jean!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and my answer was again that of
Samuel’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I then discovered it was the
swish of small branches rubbing against each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus ended my Divine calling for that time.</div>
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It was 37 years later
that the actual call came to me, not as a voice speaking my name, but through
an inner sense, and this time I recognized it as valid. I answered by enrolling
in divinity school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since then my
journey has been in response to what I understood was God’s message to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may not have come to me at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it was why I continued believing in what
I was doing, and in some manner keep on doing but in new contexts. </div>
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I sometimes ask myself,
(but no one else), if God still calls in the middle of the night, or while I
shuffle and glance upward toward the dark clouds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The answer does not come. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m no longer five years old, but now I
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fantasy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s better than the paths I
did not take. </div>
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In his sermon titled “The
Calling of Voices,” Frederick Buechner says, “You hide your face in the little
padded temple of your hands, and a voice says, ‘Whom shall I send into the pain
of a world where people die?’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if you
are not careful, you may find yourself answering, ‘Send me.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may hear the voice say, ‘Go.’”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">go</i>.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></div>
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And so I did. </div>
<br />
<br />Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-57537153769815185792012-09-13T10:32:00.001-07:002012-09-13T10:33:56.879-07:00What I’ve Learned about Writing and Other Stuff <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
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<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
Now that I’m just a year
short of my 80’s, it’s a good time to reflect on what has been an important
part of my life for close to 78 years: stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My first recollection of stories goes back to sitting in my mother’s lap
as she told me about the Little Red Hen, Lambikins, and others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Summertime in Hot Springs, Arkansas and the
sound of cicadas and the sweet smell of <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>mimosas, the day dimming into night on the
front porch, and the rocker where my mother held me, all blend into indelible
memory and the beginning of my love for stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
I loved books because of
the mysteries inside them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before I was
able to read, I would thumb through my picture books, making up stories about
what I saw there, some of it remembered from what my brothers and parents had
read to me, some from my own inventions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The mystery of those letters of the alphabet that told of so many
wonders thrilled me and I have searched the mysteries ever since.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the time I was able to read and write, the
stories became my own as I developed plots and rhymes and people to inhabit
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I learned about writing because I
wrote.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
Eventually poems began to
join the stories I developed, and my deeper life became that of writer
regardless of what my outer life was experiencing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My first published piece was an essay in a
magazine for high school girls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Added to
that was a prize for an essay about peace in a national high school
publication.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My career was on the brink
of being launched.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A ninth grade
assignment was to report on a lifetime career that we were interested in, the
values of such endeavors, the requirements for entering that career, and
reasons for wanting to take that road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
chose to report on being a free-lance writer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No one else in my class had any such interest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My playwright uncle was willing to give me
pointers for the project, and somewhere in a trunk is that completed
assignment. </div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
In college I wrote for
two magazines and the student newspaper, serving as editor of the paper my
senior year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was certain my future was
clear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a file cabinet stored in our
garage are folders containing everything I’ve written since I was 12.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The files bulge as I added more and
more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I began submitting articles to
magazines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wrote my first novel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These were conceived as I was also conceiving
four children, so it was a productive era for me, at least in offspring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The writing, however, seemed to offer up
nothing but rejection slips.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
I then turned to poetry
almost exclusively and had some success in contests and publication, but
nothing spectacular.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A poetry group
provided critiques for me so that I learned more and gained some skills in that
field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But no grand break-throughs as a
recognized poet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did gain more
knowledge as I began to be part of various poetry groups and programs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These experiences were to serve me well many
years later when I returned to that genre.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
My first professional venture
outside the home was in teaching English, finally attaining a master’s degree
in that field, which was to be a great help for future endeavors and helped me
hone my own writing skills.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my 40’s,
I answered a call to the ministry, and I was ordained in the Presbyterian
Church. The bulk of my writing then consisted of sermons, newsletters, and
letters to the editor of nearby newspapers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I learned during those years that to be a dedicated writer was not
possible while working full time in another field, and so the literary efforts were
put aside for the most part, although I continued my letters to editors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These were to get me into trouble at times
with church folks, but I continued to express my concerns for peace and justice
in public venues.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
It all began to come
together after my retirement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Computers
were available—a great aid to my writing, helping me keep track of my
efforts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By this time I was also able to
draw upon what I had learned through my experience in ministry and enrich
stories and poems with new insights.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
That experience led to
publishing books, both as self-published with lulu.com, and through an
independent publisher, All Things That Matter Press.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the process of publishing book-length
works my education broadened rapidly, as I accumulated many new insights into
what is required in publishing for general readerships. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
In a nutshell then,
here’s what I have learned about writing and the little I might add about being
published.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t vary a great deal
from what other writers have also learned, but it took me a bit longer to
figure out all the corners and twists to this adventure with words.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span>Authors,
like actors and legislators, don’t find success overnight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stardom is achieved through hard and constant
work at our craft.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A first draft isn’t
worth much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It requires revision after
revision.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This blog has been revised
many times, re-writing sentences and getting rid of sentences and
paragraphs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unlike sculptors in marble,
our first cuts can be redeemed and polished until we have something worth sharing
with the public, or at least with a few others.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: left; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>There is a gold nugget in what we have
conceived, but we must mine the words and hone our language until it is
visible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do have a gem somewhere in
that pile of lines and paragraphs, but we must persevere to uncover it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t give up before you have completed the
task of developing your piece.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may
not be a masterpiece for the ages, but it is your creation and deserves its
proper editing to become what you envisioned.</div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
Our human nature seeks a
story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We learn through stories and we
teach through stories, if we are wise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We also know when we have read or heard a good story that does not cheat
us by leaving out important details, or swamp us with unnecessary details.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A poem can tell a story just as prose writing
can, but in a different way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We seek to
know who we are and why we do as we do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Good stories will lend light to that search.</div>
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As for publication, the
countless ways in which that can take place is more than I will enumerate here,
other than to note the categories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course
traditional publishing by a corporate publisher continues to be possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>New opportunities, however, exist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One can self-publish through a choice of
these methods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have done so through
lulu.com.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is also online
publishing known as “e-books” as well as various magazine publications.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My choice is to be published through an
independent publisher, such as the one I have found:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All Things That Matter Press.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is located in Maine, and takes on both
established and new authors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My book on
the experiences of children during World War II is with ATTMP, and another one,
about rescued animals, will be coming out with them soon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The authors are encouraged to promote one
another’s books, and we have an active community doing just that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have learned much about the opportunities
for publishing my own work through the experiences of others in our ATTMP
group, as well as simply browsing the internet to see what might be of help.</div>
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The best part of writing,
I have learned, is the satisfaction of seeing your hard work, created by
persistence, at last in print.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not all
that is published is of Pulitzer quality, but it is our own work and we have
proved to ourselves that we need no longer simply to tell friends that we are “writing
a book,” that never seems to be finished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My advice to anyone who has
something to share with others from your research and creativity is Go For It!</div>
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Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3460113588052870836.post-34248696404490028442012-08-21T09:15:00.000-07:002012-08-21T09:15:02.436-07:00Remember
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A recent issue of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Poetry</i> magazine contains an essay by
Mary Ruefle titled, “I Remember, I Remember.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The title is from a poem by the poet Thomas Hood, who begins his poem
with “I remember, I remember,/The house where I was born.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hood, a contemporary of Keats but of lesser
fame, was one of my favorite poets, as was this particular poem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ruefle uses those opening words as a prompt
for the long list of her own memories, each one using Hood’s words to begin a
memory.</div>
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Through many pages, she
chronicles her life in memories rather than dates, although they seem to run
chronologically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She refers to numerous
poets who influenced her, some whom she heard read and others she found on the
written page.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One comment struck me,
when she remembers the “single, simple reason” that she became a poet: “I liked
making similes for the moon.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My own
reason for my early poems had more to do with the boys I loved while in high
school than something so ethereal as poems about the moon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was only in the past year that I wrote my
own moon poem, which had nothing to do with romance. </div>
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What would you write, if
you began each paragraph with “I remember . . .”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I thought about trying it for myself, the
memories so quickly flooded into me that I was too swamped to decide just where
to begin. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, I just let each one
settle in my thoughts and then move on out so that the next one could enter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you remember your first grade
teacher?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mine was Miss Briggs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two years later, my mother, brother and I
were back in Hot Springs, AR, after having to leave Honolulu following the
attack on Pearl Harbor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was in third
grade then, and to my joy, Miss Briggs had in the interim since 1939 been
promoted to third grade also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had me
visit other classrooms to tell of what it was like to be in Hawaii at the
beginning of that war.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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I remember what my high
school years were like when we lived at Ft. Lewis, WA.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My father had been assigned to Madigan
General Hospital as a pathologist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We “Army
brats” were shuttled back and forth to high school ten miles away, and formed a
kind of community of commuters during those years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When our 50<sup>th</sup> class reunion took
place in 2001, a few days following the attack on the Twin Towers on 9/11,
several of us thought of visiting Ft. Lewis for old times’ sake, but the heavy
security at that time prevented our doing so.</div>
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Other memories are fed by
our family photo albums: our wedding, the birth of our four children and their
accomplishments over the years, beach and lake vacations with family and
friends, our many pets who were very much a part of our family, and trips we
took.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember, I remember, all the
joyful times, the times of grief and loss, the moves from one house to another
and the changing neighborhoods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charlie
and I began as a family in Bremerhaven, Germany, and have since visited our old
stomping grounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The return jolted our
memories, for so much had changed in the intervening 50 years.</div>
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During the years, our
careers changed, the children grew up with their own memories of family, and we
remembered former homes as places we could not find again in the same way as
they had been for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We learned that
even though we cannot go home again, home is still there in our memories,
embellished perhaps by what never really happened, or the way rooms did not
really look, but they are what we remember.</div>
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What are your
memories?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How would you list them,
beginning as Mary Ruefle did, and Thomas Hood did in his day, with “I remember,
I remember . . . .”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take your time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will all come flooding back, the
difficult memories, the good memories, all of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are yours forever.</div>
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Jean Rodenboughhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09999849157376809199noreply@blogger.com1