The Gist
By G. F. Smith
Gist
/ jist /
noun: gist; plural noun: gists
1. the substance or
essence of a speech or text:
"…she noted the gist
of each message"
Synonyms: essence, substance, central theme, heart of the matter, nub, kernel,
marrow, meat, burden, crux
2. from Law:
…the real point of an action
When a potential Reader curiously glances at a
book, they are wondering about the gist: the general idea, theme, or essence.
They may immediately learn the “genre” of the work from a cursory scan of the
cover, but in truth, they really wish to know the heart of it, whether it holds
any significance for them, at all.
Through my characters and story lines, I seek
to emulate the substance of what I believe are the deep-seated curiosities and
concerns of everyday people. We found ourselves here, bent and shaped by our
history. We live in the indefinable NOW,
increasingly under pressure to balance our history with our hopes and dreams,
while apparently facing our own certainly inexorable and inescapable future
demise. Wondering—often with much fear and frustration—do I hold any significance, at all?
Fiction—be it books,
films, or plays—if written well, not only tells a good story with good
characters and fascinating settings, but will leave the Reader with something
to think about later on. Moreover, if that something turns out to be enduring,
it might just change the Reader’s entire perspective.
Perspective Determines our Perception…
I watched a film recently—the Walk. Based on the true story of Philippe Petit, the talented wire-walker who schemed for six years to illegally place a cable between the
north and south towers of the World Trade Center buildings and make his historic August
7, 1974
walk while thousands of flabbergasted onlookers anxiously watched from below. The
latter part of the film was unnerving.
Most of us common people could not imagine doing such a
thing. I have personally dangled under numerous parachutes in my life, at twice
that height, but I could not bring myself to do something like that even if my
life depended on it. From my perspective, I initially perceived Mr. Petit’s
stunt to be borderline insanity. Then after remembering a particular scene’s lines,
reflecting Mr. Petit’s own reasoning, my perception changed, and I took away
from the movie the true gist of his
actions.
It was Something I
Could Relate to…
Mr. Petit (through the voice of actor, Joseph Gordon-Levit) explained
that people are always thinking—regarding something like this—about death,
about dying. He said, he does not think about it that way at all, he simply chooses
to think…about life. In fact, he said
that this was the very purpose of his life.
Many have their opinions about Mr. Petit and his stunt. Some
say he was monomaniacal, highly obsessed, and many criticized him severely
because he did not concern himself with the possibility of dropping something
from the top of the towers, including himself perhaps, and killing someone down
below. However, it did not work out that way, and Mr. Petit ended up inspiring
literally millions of people, metaphorically speaking, to step out onto the proverbial
wire of their lives and simply…live.
What Wire do I Walk?
The original title for this blog entry was The Gist of Smartbrain, since it is a high focus on my part to facilitate the
marketing of the new book. However, as I wrote this blog entry I came to
question, yet again, just what is my
gist? What is my essence? What wire do I walk?
It then settled in my heart that in my life my wire is my
writing. It is my purpose, or perhaps better stated, the gist of my writing is my purpose. In my writing there appears the
recurring theme of encouraging others to examine this experience we call life,
in all of its apparent complexity and diversity, and brevity, and to look
deeply in order to find—or in most cases, choose—our
purpose, our own wire, and then…walk it!
However, this does not always happen on a given moment, and
from then on, you just know—as it apparently happened one day to Mr. Petit. It
is something that grows and changes and improves, and becomes a reality over a
lifetime.
All of my Books,
including Smartbrain, Reflect this Same
Gist. Here, see if You can Find it in
this Excerpt…
“…so what is the definition of a ‘smart brain,’ then?”
Jonathan Raker asked, going with the flow of the conversation. “How about you
this time, Ms. Whiting? You’ve been the quiet one throughout the afternoon.
What are your observations regarding the subject?”
Sarah looked intently at Furley.
Furley gestured back encouragingly with her eyes telling
Sarah to go ahead; it was her opportunity to answer the question this time.
Sarah smiled back and then turned to the crowd.
“Well, I think everyone here, in one way or another, has
touched on the definition of ‘smart brain.’ Condi said it when she mentioned
that reality and value are subjective things. Furley just stated it when she
said that it’s as simple as just doing the math. I think having a smart brain
requires us to critically review and assess our present circumstances based
upon the past conditions that brought us here, and then find the courage and
resourcefulness—the bigger purpose—in order to alter our thinking and behavior
so we can undergo the needed change, whatever that may be.
“The hard part is human nature.
We seem to have the tendency to want to remain in our ‘familiar’ zones at all costs,
until the last minute, selfishly, oftentimes to our detriment, as well as that
of others. But, if we’d just do the math, we’d see that we have to change, we
have to find the faith to do so, but first, we have to believe in ourselves,
that we all have a purpose in life.
And once you realize that—what your purpose is—that’s when life truly starts
for us. And that’s what makes all the difference. My father taught me that
since I was a little girl; at first I didn’t get it either, but he was right
all along. This Smartbrain technology may not have all the potential we think
it’s going to have, but we do, and
it’s only going to be as a ‘smart’…as we are!”
It may not be considered smart
to do what Mr. Petit did. However, if it were not for all the millions of
people who found their purpose, and the courage to step up to the edge and in
due course walk-the-walk, as they say, none of us would even be here. That is
the true gist of Smartbrain, by the way.
All the best,
G. F. Smith
