Lynn M. Dixon's Blog, page 68

Sandra Cisneros

I heard that author Sandra Cisneros would be reading from her books on the far north side of Chicago.  At the time, I was attending a workshop in Gary, Indiana with one of my sisters.  I told her about the event and she graciously agreed to drive that distance so I could hear Ms. Cisneros.

My sister displayed a lot of spirit and she didn’t mind dealing with the traffic. To me, it would have been unthinkable.  But she did drive the long distance and when we reached the bookstore, of course there was nowhere to park.  It’s a north side thing!

She drove around and around as we looked at the entry to the bookstore.  We finally agreed that I should go on in as she continued to look for a place to park. But here is the quencher.  After I went into the bookstore, it was so packed.  There was standing room only. I could hear her reading, but I couldn’t see her.  I wasn’t able to get a glimpse of her arm, hair, nothing. Just her voice!

I stood on my tiptoes and leaned both ways.  Nothing.  After trying that a few times, I went back out and caught my sister who was still circling the block.  I let her know that it wasn’t working.

And what does that say about a great writer? It shows that she is loved and revered by many who traveled and obviously found parking on the north side of Chicago.  And that is no easy feat.

Sandra Cisneros calls herself a Chicano writer and was born in Chicago.  Her stories deal with urban life in the Mexican community. I am familiar with The House on Mango Street and Woman Hollering Creek.

In House on Mango Street, Esperanza’s family has moved into several apartments on this street.  It is considered to be a coming-of-age story. She observes the powerless women around her and she vows that she will make different choices when she becomes a woman.  She sees them at the mercy of their husbands and boyfriends and they are unable to function independently.  She begins to write and this gives her an outlet as she searches for her own path in life.

Her other work, Woman Hollering Creek is a collection of short stories that deal with those living close to the Mexican border.  They are regularly affected by immigration.  Those women in abusive relationships seek freedom and must cross the border going either into Mexico or to the States. Sometimes, they have to leave children or family behind and there is a place in central Texas called Woman Hollering Creek.  It is said that the wails can still be heard there.

Different characters tell their stories in this work as they voice their hopes and acknowledge their shattered dreams. We care about each one and we become more sensitive to the pains of those who have to make such hard decisions as they look for a better life.

I enjoyed her works and I salute Sandra Cisneros during this Women’s History Month.

Lynn                                                                                                                March 14, 2015

Katherine Anne Porter

This post honors the writer, Katherine Anne Porter.  When people ask for one of my favorite novels, I always include her book, Ship of Fools.  I felt as if I had a private seat on that ship as she colorfully described the passengers. It was a bestseller in 1962.

Ship of Fools is about a voyage that Ms. Porter took in 1931 from Vera Cruz, Mexico to Germany.  She had plenty of time to observe those in her midst.  The ship was filled with people from a variety of ethnicities and cultures and each presented its own memorable story.   She accurately described a Spanish nobleman, a group of dancers, a couple of Mexican priests, an American divorcee and a German lawyer, to name a few.  They all have one common thread.  They are just people who had hopes, dreams and disappointments.  Yet, she found some of them to be rather absurd and quite comical.

Whenever a writer can make the reader feel like a spectator as the events unfold, then that writer has a gift and talent.  Porter said, “Most people won’t realize that writing is a craft.  You have to take your apprenticeship in it like anything else.”  Photographers share through pictures and painters tell their stories on canvases.  But those who are skillful with words create images that take the readers on many adventures.

There was no need to purchase a ticket or walk up the incline to board this ship.  Simply open this book and take the journey as chosen passengers reveal some of their character traits and flaws. She wrote, “I shall try to tell the truth, but the result will be fiction.”

Then, there is her short story, The Jilting of Granny Weatherall. I vividly remember this story. It opens with an older woman who is reminiscing on her deathbed and being attended to by a very young doctor whom she privately resents for being so young.  She is looking back over her life and though she has had a good life, she cannot forget when she was jilted or left at the altar as a young woman.

As her adult daughter, Cornelia waits on her, Granny Weatherall worries that she has not had time to tidy up some of her affairs.  She does not want her children to find her old love letters to both her fiancé and her husband.  When George did not show up at the wedding, John stepped in to console her. He became her devoted husband of many years until his death.

She has tried to not think about the jilting for 60 years, but now that she has plenty of time on her hands, the painful memories rush in and consume her.  She allows herself to remember the humiliating wedding day and finally faces what actually occurred. Some things stay with us just as this story has stayed with me over the years.

Katherine Anne Porter is another writer that influenced my decision to put pen to paper.  I add her to my drumroll of literary greats!  She was a Pulitzer Prize winner and is better known for her short stories.  She wrote, “A story is like something you wind out of yourself.  Like a spider, it is a web you weave, and you love your story like a child.”   Thank you for weaving your tales and sharing them with the world, Ms. Porter.

Lynn                                                                                                                               March 11, 2015

Toni Cade Bambara

When I moved to an apartment complex in College Park, Georgia outside of Atlanta, I was excited to hear that a famous writer and a popular singer lived there.  I never saw Toni Cade Bambara nor Peabo Bryson, but I felt that I had chosen well  by moving there.  It was scenic with a lake full of ducks and it had two large swimming pools and just knowing that there were a couple of artists in the midst made it that much more exciting!

A few years later, I did have the opportunity to meet Toni Cade Bambara.  I met her at the University of Memphis at a speaking engagement the first time and I saw her again at a literary conference in Chicago. The first time, she was highly animated and hilarious.  Her major collections of short stories are Gorilla, My Love and The Sea Birds are Still Alive. She also wrote a novel called The Salt Eaters and she  is known for editing literary anthologies.  She worked closely alongside Toni Morrison, who also started out as an editor.

I thought that she had written a two-sided book.  One side was She and the other side was He. It is called back-to back binding, but  I have tried to research that and have not found anything.  This technique gave me the premise for developing my first novella, A Golden Leaf in Time Revised. Phoenix’s and Trey’s stories unfold simultaneously before they actually meet at the end of the book.

However, I truly enjoyed her short stories. She grew up in Harlem and she used a narrator named Hazel to tell about the neighborhood children’s ventures.  I saw her read from the book, Gorilla My Love.  She tells the stories with a sense of humor and as she read, we laughed so hard.  She had the perfect intonations and emphases, which only the actual writer can do that well.

In the actual story called ‘Gorilla My Love’, the inner city kids have gone to the Saturday movie to see “Gorilla My Love,” or so they thought.  That is what the marquee said.  But when they got inside, another movie was shown and it had nothing to do  with a gorilla and was not even for children.  When the children started to protest, a large, wide female theatre attendant whom the kids called Thunderbuns ran up and down the aisles shining a flashlight in the children’s faces in an effort to make them calm down.  It did not seem to work!  Her descriptions had us in stitches.

I re-read ‘The Lesson’ also from Gorilla My Love. It  was about this community woman who was trying to expose the children to other sides of life.  Hazel, the narrator, is resentful and would rather be swimming.  Yet she does have to ponder what she learned after they were taken downtown to a FAO Schwarz toy store.  She remembered the prices of the toys and it made her think about poverty and wealth.

Ms. Bambara left us too soon, but I am so glad that I met her and heard her read her works.  That is the beauty of the printed word. It remains and that is how I could easily revisit her works.  I simply downloaded them and read them again. Nice!

Thank you to Toni Cade Bambara, another entertaining writer, whom I salute during this Women’s History Month!

Lynn                                                                                                                                            March 10, 2015

Amy Tan

Amy Tan is a detailed and thorough writer whose works I have enjoyed.  Her novels are lengthy, well-researched as she takes us into different historic eras of China.  I can safely label her books as sagas and we have enough time with her characters to feel as if we know them.

Most modern-day writers only wish that they could sit down and turn out works of this caliber.  Most of us are writing between jobs and fulfilling multiple daily demands in this high-paced society.  So, to write a book with over 600 pages is masterful in itself.

I read The Joy Luck Club in the early 90’s and I actually did a speed walk over to the University of Chicago when I heard that she would be speaking there.  I try to see every reputable writer to hear what they have to say and share to hopefully have the muses grace me as well.

The Joy Luck Club is a group of four Chinese immigrant mothers and their American–born daughters.  The mothers have bonded in an effort to heal from the horrors of what they experienced in China.  Tan describes some of the things that the women had to endure in their former lives.

The mothers want their girls or daughters to be stronger and they want them to understand how vulnerable and powerless they were in those situations.  The Chinese immigrant mothers want their girls to embrace their independence and to take advantage of the freedoms that their American births have afforded them.

One mother had to leave her twins behind under a tree during a war or conflict and another had to deal with her husband bringing his mistress into their home.  The movie,The Joy Luck Club, was one of the few that truly celebrated the writer’s message.  I am not sure if Ms. Tan would agree, but I enjoyed both the book and the film.  I think that all mothers and daughters should read and discuss the book and see the movie.  Daughters need to be able to see their mothers as young women filled with dreams before they became  mothers to better understand them.

I also enjoyed her book, The Hundred Secret Senses.  In this novel, two sisters meet when Kwan, Olivia’s half- sister comes from China to live with her in the States.  Kwan is filled with superstitious stories, but as Olivia tells the story, they learn each other’s languages.  Kwan ends up playing a major role in helping Olivia reconcile with her husband.

I grew up reading stories by Eleanor Lattimore who wrote stories about China.  She was an American who lived in China as a child while her father taught at one of the university.  She wrote several children’s books and they kept me entertained as a child.  Now, I have Amy Tan to keep me steeped in reading about different aspects of the Chinese culture.

I recently read her book, Valley of Amazement. It was about Violet, a Eurasian girl whose American-born mother ran a courtesan house for the very wealthy men in Shanghai. The mother returned to America and was supposed to meet her daughter at the train; but Violet is tricked, sold and is caught up in the life as a courtesan.  Her mother heard that she had died and never came back to look for her.

The readers will find themselves watching, hoping and praying for Violet who was such a privileged child.  She was a young teen when the entrapment began and she remains in that lifestyle for the majority of her life.

So much is learned about what the women were experiencing during this 20th century piece as we hope that the nightmare will end for Violet and that she will be set free.

Amy Tan has a fine hand for writing and she truly does her homework on certain eras of Chinese history.  Her writings prove that reading and writing go hand in hand.  She said, “Writing is an extreme privilege but it’s also a gift. It’s a gift to yourself and it’s a gift of giving a story to someone.”

Kudos to Ms. Tan for sharing her gift with me!

Lynn                                                                                March 8, 2015

Eudora Welty

During Women’s History month, I continue to extend my regards to women who have had a positive influence on my life.  This post is all about the Southern writer, Eudora Welty, whom I had the pleasure of seeing at a literary conference years ago.

I encountered most of her works in literary anthologies which reach a different audience from the mass market readers.  Most college students study these texts and they have the opportunity to analyze, dissect and critique chosen writers’ works.

During my freshman year in college, I read Welty’s A Visit to Charity.  A young girl scout has to visit a senior citizen home for points and she is amazed at how old the woman is.  She notices the woman’s wrinkled, spotted skin and learns a lot about the aging process.

As she leaves the home, she takes a bite out of an apple which symbolizes a loss of innocence.  Welty is known for her use of symbols and I never forgot how my instructor made us see the meanings of these tangible items in the short story.

Eudora Welty is known for writing short stories with a use of symbolism.   Many of her stories center around good race relationships in many everyday situations.  In A Worn Path, an older African-American woman called Old Phoenix is seen walking along a trail.  It is not clear where she is going but in spite of her age, she is determined to get to her destination.  She encounters a white man who first helps her after she has fallen and then tries to scare her.  She assures him that she is too old to be scared of anything and they part company amicably.

We find that she is traveling to get medicine for her sick grandson and after she is given two nickels, she goes to buy him a toy windmill for Christmas while in Natchez.  I had forgotten this story until I re-read it and was surprised that the character’s name was Phoenix.  That is the name of the main character in my two novellas.  We never know what is etched in our memory banks!

And then there is the story called Livvie.  It takes place in rural Mississippi, and it opens with young Livvie in the house with her dying husband, Solomon.  He is a very old man who is slipping in and out of consciousness as he holds on to his watch.  The watch symbolizes that time is running out for him.

He has locked Livvie away from the world because he did not want anyone looking at her.  He married her when she was very young but he is now old.  He is considered to be prosperous and owns a lot of land.

Livvie dutifully stands by his bedside and is at a loss, until the doorbell rings. Baby Marie, a white  saleswoman is selling cosmetics.  When she realizes that Livvie has no access to money, she gives her tube of lipstick. Livvie puts on the lipstick and feels young and vibrant.  Baby Marie asks to see her dying husband and cannot believe how old he is.

This gives Livvie a sense of freedom and she walks out of the house feeling that she is beautiful. She sees young Cash, a local field hand, who is donned in new clothes.  Together, they go and look in on Solomon.  Before he dies, he asks Livvie for forgiveness for his selfishness. He realizes that he has stifled her ability to be free and really live.  He gives them his blessing and Livvie and Cash walk out into the fresh air releasing the past and looking forward to the bright future.

I never forgot this story and I named one of my used cars Livvie, hoping to extend its life.  I think it worked!  Good writers leave impressions on us and we never know when we will pull up those things and use them again.  A sincere thank you to Ms. Eudora Welty!

Lynn                                                                                                          March 6,  2015

Zora Neale Hurston

Zora Neale Hurston has had a huge impact on my writings.  I hadn’t heard of her until the 80’s after Alice Walker uncovered her works.  Walker had Hurston’s books and short stories republished and traveled to Florida, found her unmarked grave and put a marker on it calling her “A Genius of the South.” (Wikipedia)

I had done a study of the Harlem Renaissance in college but no women writers were mentioned back then.  So when her works resurfaced around the same time that Toni Morrison and Maya Angelou were hitting the literary scene, I rushed out to get Hurston’s book, Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Once, I got pass the dialect, it proved to be a very rich tale about the loves and trials of Janie Crawford. Hurston showed me how a writer’s choice of words can create colorful images for the reader.  Janie is living in rural Florida in an all-black town.  She is on her second marriage to the city’s mayor.  Many envy her but they do not know what is going on behind closed doors.  The mayor finally dies and Janie begins to have an affair with a younger man called Teacake.

The story opens with Janie returning to her home after leaving town with Teacake.  It is told through flashbacks and the events unfold to tell all aspects of her life.  The book was recently made into a movie and I felt that it was a bit overly sensationalized.   I had to continually fast forward the steamy parts while attempting to show it to a group of 8th graders who had read the book.

The movie implied that the title had a meaning different from what I thought it meant.  The movie often showed Janie looking into the sky saying she was, ‘watching God.”  I thought that the title signified God’s wrath during a horrific storm which Janie and Teacake survive. Janie makes it through after he saves her, but Teacake becomes mad after being bitten by a rabid dog.  This book is a must- read!

It resembles some aspects of Hurston’s personal life which often happens with writers.  Her father was a mayor of an all-black town in Florida and also married a young vibrant woman, which may have given Hurston some ideas for this book.  Their Eyes Were Watching God will leave every reader with some opinions and that is the beauty of a good yarn.

Two of Zora Neale Hurston’s short stories also come to mind.  I taught “Sweat” and it had the young men and women in the class having some pretty  heated discussions  It centered around a loveless and abusive marriage but justice is truly served in the end.  The other is “Spunk” which tells about a woman with a lot of courage and attitude  I believe that this was Zora’s way of describing herself.  I saw both of the short stories staged and they did not disappoint me.  The Court Theater got it right!

Zora Neale Hurston stood against the wind and she remains eternally grounded in American literature. I salute her during Women’s History Month and I am so happy that her literary works fell into my lap.

Lynn                                                                                                                           March 4, 2015

Women’s History Month

In March, we celebrate the women of achievement as well as women who have touched our lives and shaped us.  A long list of names comes to my mind when I think of women who have helped me evolve into the person that I am today.

I will start with my mother of course.  She was a star teacher and a  great conversationalist.  She was always engaged in a book  and kept a legal pad filled with her written thoughts close by.  My morning rituals replicate what I watched her do as she spiritually prepared before going out to face the world.  I will start this piece my honoring my mother, Hazel.

There are so many women and here goes my list:  Gloria Steinem put me on the track of independence when I saw her speak at my college when I was 19.  I salute Alice Walker for allowing me to get inside of the mind and heart of a prolific writer.  I have traveled with her from her first books such as Meridian to The Color Purple and beyond. I have been fortunate  enough to see her on more than one occasion and most recently in 2013.

Then, there are my spiritual confidants. Her are some of them:  Catherine Ponder, Florence Scovel Shinn, Myrtle Fillmore, Mary Kupferle, Martha Smock, Louise Hay, Margaret Stortz and Mary Baker Eddy.  Their gentle words nudged me along the way as I traveled and continue to travel on my spiritual journey.  Their varied styles have taken on a huge significance in pointing the way for me.

I recently did an in-depth post on Maya Angelou.  To that portion of the list I will add these great writers:  Paule Marshall; Jamaica Kincaid; Toni Cade Bambara; Toni Morrison; Ntozake Shange; Sarah Ban Breathnach; Eudora Welty; J. California Cooper; Gwendolyn Brooks; Terry McMillan; and Nikki Giovanni.

For style and grace, I think of women such:  Jackie Kennedy Onassis; Katherine Hepburn; Phylicia Rashad; Debbie Allen; Lauren Bacall, Oprah Winfrey, Barbra Streisand and Barbara Stanwyck.  They all had a quiet strength and showed some true grit.

I know that I am leaving off names, but I tried to think of women that I have studied over the years whether they were in my life, a spiritual coach, a writer or in film.  They each had something that I have tried to emulate in some way.  I am an observer of people and if they have something that I like and admire, I learn, study and grow as I acknowledge their strengths of character.

To all of those women of courage, here is a poem called Strength.

‘We often ask for more strength,

When the trials run a long length.

We sigh under the tough weight,

Knowing answers come.  Not late!

We raise the banner of hope,

Tucking in corners to cope.

Strong, mighty, fearless and free,

Cleaving to faith.  Let it be.’

I am sure that each of these women had their own challenges, but they still put on that brave front as they served as a great role model for me.  We never know who is closely watching as we triple ax through this thing called life!

Lynn                                                                                                                             March 1, 2015

You’ve Got Mail!

Remember the movie You’ve Got Mail with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan?  It is a cute movie about two bookstore owners who fall in love through emails, not knowing the anonymous senders.  It came out at a time when the Internet was still new and quite the rave.  So each time, one of them heard that beep or signal to say there was mail, excitement filled the air.

Since, then, we have evolved and we are flooded with emails, texts, tweets, Facebook, Instagram and a host of other digital services.  They come in with such speed that we barely have time to reflect on a message before our inboxes have refilled with more messages.  We are truly in the information overload age as we connect with those in our circles throughout the day.

What if we had to wait a few days or a week for a response or wait until a letter came with some long-awaited information?  I wonder if there would be enough patience to play the waiting game and rely on old methods of communication.  Or, if a letter had to be handwritten, how many of us actually have stationery in the house?  How many have stamps on hand to mail the letter?

I have a pen pal with whom I have exchanged letters over the years.  She lives many miles away and I have always looked forward to reading her letters.  She keeps me updated on her family’s latest ventures .I have kept her letters over the years and she has archived mine as well.

But, then, we finally moved into the new millennium and I finally let her start emailing me.  I hesitated to go along because I knew we were losing a special art.  And that is simply sitting down and writing a letter.    After a conversation about the importance of writing in longhand, we both vowed to make a conscious effort to put something in the mail every now and then.

Emails are so impersonal.  Letters, better known in history as correspondence have served as records in Early American History letting us know what people were thinking and doing back then. The digital world is nice, but there is nothing like a paper record of a time gone by.

Seeing someone’s handwriting  reminds us of that person in a unique way.   It defines a part of who they are.  I recently ran across the handwritten letters from family members who are no longer with us, and it offered a warm feeling of remembrance. It was like having another chance for a brief chat.

Getting mail is still a special event. Even in 2015. We should not have to wait for Christmas nor a birthday to send a few lines to a friend.  It offers a feeling like no other.   So try it!   Go out and get some delectable stationery.  Buy some stamps.  Jot down a few lines to a friend, mail it and as the old song goes, “Make someone happy!”

Lynn                                                                                                                       February 27,2015

Mingling!

How do you feel about diversity?  When the first efforts were made to acknowledge different cultures, the buzz word was multiculturalism.   Now, it is simply called diversity.  Librarians scrambled to make sure that their collections met the new criteria.  They chose books where all children could see themselves and their families represented. This added to their self-worth and it gave them a place of representation in the world.

At the time, I did not quite understand the importance of the new push; but now I truly see the need for children to have shared experiences with children from varied backgrounds and cultures.  The mingling is a great opportunity for them to grow as they get ready to live and work in the real and multi-faceted world. It enriches them and helps them become more rounded.

I thought of this topic because of a news clip I saw earlier this week.   It talked about certain students who did well in high school but when they went on to college, they could not cope with the other cultures.  One, in particular, did not know how to cope nor interact. He felt isolated and contemplated suicide.  His former school is now putting some scaffolding methods in place to assist future students so that they can operate from a level of confidence.

Having conversations with others from all walks of life opens and widens viewpoints.  Reading and talking with others remind us that we are all alike.   We all have the same hopes, dreams, fears and emotions.  We are indeed universal, though we may look and sound differently.

 Children who have been exposed to diverse situations are more relaxed with all types and often ease the adult fears.  They are much more tolerant and understanding. The earlier children get to know other cultures, the better.  They will become adults who are comfortable with many types of people and less restricted in their thinking and feelings toward others.

We learn from each other and being in a diverse setting is the absolute best way to measure socially acceptable behavior.  When a group is from one background or culture, they may think that certain negative behavior is okay; but in the company of others, chances are that it will be more subdued.

Normally, in a diverse group, children and adults are more likely to put on their better manners and display behaviors that synchronize with the expectations.  A look, a stare, a gaped mouth are definite signals saying  that this will not do.

Those children who do make friendships with those from other cultures are richer for it.  They visit each other’s homes and learn different languages, foods and clothes. Oftentimes, these unions open the doors to travel, both in the country and overseas. 

So, mingling is a very good thing because too much of the same only brings a sense of loss of what is real.  Fling open the doors and let others show some new ways of living this life!

Lynn                                                                                                                     February 25, 2015

Maya Angelou: Honoring Our Greats!

It’s black history month in the States and before this short month of February slips away, I would like to pay homage to those who paved the way.  During the Academy Awards on Sunday night, Merle Streep did the portion honoring those stars that we lost in the past year.

The list was quite extensive but the ones who stuck out in my mind were Mickey Rooney (I grew up watching his movies); Lauren Bacall (I think she epitomized women’s liberation with her raspy voice, strong stance and her wearing of pants) and then there was Maya Angelou. She is the focal point, here.

I paused when I remembered that she passed last year.  What can be said of this woman and writer of over 20 books?  There is so much. As an avid reader, I journeyed through her life with her when I first read, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.  It was riveting as she shared her story of sexual child abuse and its devastating effects on her life.

I remembered reading a short piece on Mrs. Flowers.  I didn’t know that she had actually written a book with the same title until today. However, after her experience, young Maya became mute and did not speak until Mrs.  Flowers, a highly respected and educated woman in the community, coaxed her to read.   The way she described this woman’s clothes, make-up and the scent of her talcum powder reminded me of how children study every detail about us.

She told young Maya, “Your grandmother says you read a lot. Every chance you get. That’s good, but not good enough. Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with the shades of deeper meaning.”  She was able to get Maya to speak and thus her healing began. This one act of love helped her regain her courage and it put her on the path to becoming a great and powerful storyteller who showered us with the beauty of her words.

I read many of her books as they came out.  She shared parts of her life as she traveled around the globe and married men from different backgrounds and cultures.  She painted very vivid pictures in my mind as I kept up as her books came off the presses.  Her biographical books along with her poems kept me entertained as I followed her rich and illustrious life.

Here are a few of her books that I had until they were tattered and torn.  Just Give Me A Cool Drink…Diee; Gather Together in My Name; Singin’ Swingin’ and  Getting’ Merry Like Christmas;  All of God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes; Heart of a Woman; I Shall Not be Moved; On the Pulse of the Morning and the last book I read by her was, Letter to My Daughter.

I have quoted the poems, ’Phenomenal Woman’ and ‘Still I Rise’, throughout the years.  I had the distinct pleasure of seeing and hearing her at a gathering in 2003!  Thank goodness!

To Dr. Maya Angelou, I want to say thank you and kudos to you!   You exemplify the talent that only a loving writer can give to the world and I only hope that I can touch the baton that you laid down and leave a few footprints in the sand as well.

Lynn                                                                                                             February 23, 2015