Joseph Sciuto's Blog: A Curious View: A Compilation of Short Stories by Joseph Sciuto, page 43

A CURIOUS VIEW: SALLY CARTWRIGHT THORNTON/ WITHOUT MALICE

Back in the summer of 1980, I took an English class that literally would change my life. The class was “Modern Poetry” and my teacher was Professor Peter Dolan.

Mr. Dolan, in his early forties, was a handsome, magnetic man, and it seemed like every one of the thirty women in the class was in love with him. His enthusiasm and love of poetry was so great that never in my life did a ninety-minute class go by so quickly.

I used to think how wonderful it must be to get paid to do something you love so very much and to have the adoration of so many beautiful women.

One of the assignments was for each student to memorize one poem; any poem of your choice, and you had the option to recite the poem either in his office or in class in front of all the other students. Another man and I chose to recite our poems in the classroom. I chose Robert Frost’s poem “Acquainted With The Night.”

I have been one acquainted with the night.

I have walked out in rain—and back in rain.

I have outwalked the furthest city light.

I have looked down the saddest city lane.

I have passed by the watchman on his beat

And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.

I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet

When far away an interrupted cry

Came over houses from another street,

But not to call me back or say good-bye;

And further still at an unearthly height,

One luminary clock against the sky

Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.

I have been one acquainted with the night.

The recital went quite well and I got a nice round of applause. It probably was the only time I was recognized by any of the students in the class. I chose that particular poem because it spoke to the type of person I was at that age and because I have always loved taking long walks in the late evening and night.

Occasionally, I have met some very interesting individuals while taking my long strolls and, over time, I have come to know them quite well. One lady is Sally Cartwright Thornton, who for the first three years I lived here, was our neighbor.

Sally is petite, very charming and pretty. She speaks with a wonderful southern dialect, and for over twenty-five years, she was an English teacher. Occasionally, we would run into each other during our evening strolls.

Sadly, she was forced into semi-retirement when she attempted to break up a fight between two students and, for her efforts, she had her back broken. The recovery was long and extremely painful, but like so many southern ladies, Sally is both mentally and physically stronger than you might think from their polite demeanors.

Sally stayed in touch with many of the students she had over the years, and it is not unusual to read a comment in the newspaper or online from a former student, thanking her for her continued encouragement and for the tremendous and positive influence she has had on his or her life.

During one of our walks, we ran into one of her former students…a young man whose reputation around town …and among people I knew… was far from stellar. Actually, I don’t know if I’ve ever heard anything positive said about him.

They talked for a few minutes and after we started walking again, she turned to me and said, “I felt so sorry for that boy. He was playing in a baseball game while he was a student of mine. His father showed up so drunk and made such a fool of himself that I was embarrassed for that child.”

She paused for a few reflective moments and continued, “I’m so happy to see that he’s doing okay.”

As I was soon to realize, Sally was one of the few individuals whom I have met who had conquered the greatest of human flaws: the conscious or unconscious willingness to talk negatively about acquaintances, friends, and family. She chose to see the better angels in our flawed natures.

She and her husband, Ronnie, used to drop off care packages during the holidays to residents in our community who lived alone. That is the type of thoughtful, caring people that they are.

Ronnie, with his able “companion/supervisor,” …Razz the dog…used to clear the driveways for others in the neighborhood after snowstorms. Ronnie and Razz just showed up and cleared away the snow without being asked, for which we always were grateful…” snow angels” of a different variety.

Sally, Ronnie, and Razz moved to Tennessee about two years ago to be closer to their aging and sick parents, and we miss them very much.

I haven’t done much walking in the last year because of an ailing back, but I hope to start again soon. After all, you never know what wonderful people you might meet on your solitary walks through life “when one luminary clock against the sky, proclaims the time is neither wrong or right.”

James Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room.”

James Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room” is truly a magnificent novel, a book 30 years before its time. It is both a psychological and sociological drama, set in Paris, France with a lingering commentary on American morals running throughout the book. It was published in 1956 and it is definitely one of the first novels that addresses homosexuality in a mature and intelligent manner. The characters are portrayed so honestly that the reader, despite one’s sexual orientation, is able to identify with the confusion the characters feel over their sexuality, the bigotry they encounter when they venture outside their communities and the loneliness and isolation they suffer as they come to grips with their uniqueness.

Mr. Baldwin’s novel is bold and powerful, superbly written, and I strongly recommend this amazing piece of literature.

John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men.”

The first novel I read by John Steinbeck was “The Grapes of Wrath” on an airplane from New York to Los Angeles. That was over thirty-five years ago and until today I have not read another one of his books. I can honestly say that I don’t remember if I liked or disliked that novel, but what I can say with certainty is that Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men,” is undoubtedly a real classic and, in my opinion, lives up to its reputation. It is absolutely a lovely and touching book and it once again proves that great literature comes in all lengths and sizes.

TARGETED DEMOGRAPHICS, a novel by Joseph Sciuto

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TARGETED DEMOGRAPHICS, a novel by Joseph Sciuto

available June 2018 in bookstores and online.

Joseph Rossetti, is a marketing guru…an expert…the very best in the business.

The man behind some of the most successful advertising campaigns over the last decade, boosting sales, respectability, and admiration for auto, pharmaceutical, oil, and tobacco companies, the U.S military, the LAPD, and top movie studios.

His motto is simple, “It’s okay if I know it’s a lie, as long as my target audience believes the lie and buys the product.”

It was a simple maxim to live by, and he made a lot of money.

Then, one fateful night while standing at a bar enjoying a few ice-cold beers, he meets Nancy…a dazzling beauty, with a superior intellect and an unshakable moral compass.

Nancy makes Delilah, the Biiblical female vixen…played by the beautiful actress Hedy Lamarr in the movie…look like a choirgirl…

…which is not to say Nancy is evil.

She is compassionate, but when she encounters an injustice or despicable individuals such as rapists or pedophiles, or people abusing cats or dogs or the elderly, the repercussions for those individuals could be lethal.

The chemistry between Joe and Nancy is combustible…

…and the consequences quite deadly.

About the author Click here to learn more about Joseph Sciuto, author of TARGETED DEMOGRAPHICS and HOLLYWOOD RIPTIDE

Charles Schulz’s “Happiness Is A Warm Puppy.”

Glorious! What else could it be but glorious? “Happiness is one thing to one person and another thing to another person.” Charles Schulz and the Peanuts gang are a national treasure. Amazing, what a group of eight year old children could teach all of us.

Agatha Christie’s “The Big Four.”

Another wonderful Agatha Christie novel with Captain Hastings, Poirot’s former partner, working beside him. Hastings is the narrator of the novel, and like always Ms. Christie’s novel is filled with wonderful characters, beautiful plot structure, plenty of mystery, and amazingly well written.

James Baldwin’s “Go Tell It On The Mountain.”

Wow! James Baldwin’s “Go Tell It On The Mountain” is powerful, triumphant, realistic, downtrodden, in the gutter brilliant. It is the literary equilibrium to Martin Scorsese’s movie masterpieces, such as “Mean Streets” or the “The Raging Bull.” It is so real and honest that at times the reader feels like a he is an unwelcome intruder into the characters’ lives.

Mr. Baldwin knows his subject matter so well that it is at times frightening. Whether writing about the treatment of blacks down south or up north in Harlem, it is so heart wrenching that it can only come from a writer who has experienced such injustices, and such ardent religious, spiritual, and moral dilemmas.

There are times in this book, especially the last forty pages, that the writing is so sublime that it reminds me of Joyce’s “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” and that is the highest literary compliment that I could give to a novelist.

Joan Didion’s “The Year of Magical Thinking.”

Joan Didion’s “The Year Of Magical Thinking” is a brutally honest recounting of the grief Mrs. Didion felt after losing her husband, John Gregory Dunne, after forty years of marriage. As someone who believes that “honesty” is the one essential quality every piece of great writing has in common, well then Mrs. Didion has hit the ball out of the park. Her writing is not only honest, but enthralling, and compelling. Yet, this is not the type of book I would recommend to everyone. For people dealing with grief or have experienced great grief one can easily relate and find a certain amount of comfort in the author’s experiences, yet if one is in a happy mood or chronically depressed I would not recommend this book. It is a heart wrenching story and sometimes it is better not to disturb one’s peace of mind.

Jon Meacham’s “The Soul of America.”

Jon Meacham’s “The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels” is a must read, especially for those among us who are not familiar with the racism that has infested our great nation since the time of the American Revolution. Thankfully, as Mr. Meacham has so poignantly pointed out, with each infestation there have been men and women who have stood up to such evil and kept our nation on a path toward righteousness from Presidents Lincoln, Grant, TR, Franklin Roosevelt, Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Reagan, and George Herbert Bush. And extraordinary citizens, such as Martin Luther King, Susan B. Anthony, John Lewis, and Eleanor Roosevelt.

To quote Mr. Meacham, who quotes Mr. William Faulkner, “The past is never dead; it’s not even past.” Voting, as is pointed out repeatedly throughout the book, is the most powerful tool against discrimination and ignorance.

Graham Greene’s, “The Power and the Glory.”

“The Power and the Glory” has been called Graham Greene’s masterpiece and after having read it I must admit I agree. I am hesitant to compare any novel to Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” but I would be remiss to say that it did not remind me of what many scholars consider one of the greatest novels ever written.

Set in a remote part of Southern Mexico where the Catholic Church and priests have been outlawed and hunted down by a political/military group called the Red Shirts (Communists), it reveals the undying faith of the peasant classes and the corrupt leaders and fat cats who are suppose to be God’s representatives on earth (the church, priests, bishops, etc.).

The lone priest left in the area, a person all to human with a woeful record of debauchery, is hunted down throughout the book by the Red Shirts and a reward has been placed on his head. It is through the priest’s capacity to allude capture that we learn how the situation in this part of Mexico developed. This book is based on real life events and Mr. Greene’s analysis of the situation (he was a reporter during the upheaval) is both fascinating, enthralling, and heart wrenchingly accurate. As a Catholic, it had me cringing and yet I would strongly recommend this book to all Catholics and all people of different faiths. An amazingly powerful piece of writing.