vernal equinox

as I type, the vernal equinox is occurring. today is a day where light and dark are equal, but tomorrow light will begin to predominate. may it be so.

the last few weeks have been horrendous on a global scale: war, earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster. I can barely contemplate no less write about such events without becoming overwhelmed with anxiety. and then guilt-- my little corner of the world is still relatively peaceful and fortune-blessed. my children and grandchildren are thriving, I have a job and a home. as far as I know my health is relatively good. how can I quiver with anxiety and fear when others suffer so? but that's just it, of course, the suffering of others leaves me weak with grief and helplessness.

I am of no use to anyone, family, students, friends and the world, if I am weak, and so I must endeavor to find strength--and light.

I welcome light.

The Other Life

My friend Ellen Meister's fabulous new book is out--and may soon be an HBO series! Read an interview with Ellen on Susan Henderson's Lit Park. And check out this review:

How many wonder what their life would be like if they chose a different path? This is the crux of Ellen Meister’s riveting novel, The Other Life.
Before Quinn Braverman was born, she experienced a trauma that followed her throughout her life. As she grew, she knew she could see herself in two different realities, an ability or “power” that deeply frightened her mother, Nan Gilbert, an up-and-coming artist who battled a bipolar disorder most of her life. Because of this trauma Quinn suffered in utero, she is able to cross over from one life to the other.
The prologue commences with Nan on the verge of suicide, even though very pregnant and almost at term for delivery. Segueing into the life of daughter Quinn, now 36 years old, we find her married to Lewis Braverman and the mother of six-year-old Isaac. Though Quinn loves her life and her family exponentially, she grieves the loss of her mother, whose suicide attempt was finally successful just before Isaac’s birth.
Deep inside, Quinn feels responsible for her mother’s death, believing Nan had been upset with her because of the life path she chose. She had not chosen to marry Eugene, a narcissistic, obsessive man on his way to stardom—whom Nan adored—and after a ten-year relationship with him, Quinn felt smothered by his neediness and selfishness. Though Lewis is everything Quinn wants in a life partner, Quinn believed her mother thought she sold out to marry an ordinary man, live in the suburbs, and raise a family.
When Quinn becomes pregnant with her second child, she learns her baby has a serious deformity. Needing her mother’s comfort and advice, Quinn decides to access her old life . . . the life she would have lived had she remained with Eugene—a life where her mother was still alive.
As pressure mounts with the decisions she must make about the baby she carries, Quinn finds herself more and more attracted to the life she once knew. Though that life had been fraught by Eugene’s demanding and smothering ways, she wonders if she would be better off with him rather than Lewis and Isaac. Which life should she choose?
This inimitable tale is mesmerizing with the twists, turns, and angst Quinn deals with at the loss of her beloved mother and the upcoming birth of her child. The author flips from Quinn’s to Nan’s point of view, though this is executed flawlessly so does not confuse or slow the plot. The depictions of emotions of pain and torment as well as blissful happiness are heartfelt and highly plausible—and the cliffhanger ending is sure to surprise.
~~~~~~~~~~~

Reviewer Nancy Carty Lepri is the author of a children’s chapter book, Tiny Angel, and is an illustrator and freelance editor. She has edited more than 20 books for national small publishers in various genres.

rest in peace, jim otterstrom

I came across jim o's blog via dharma bums, and though I was only an occasional visitor, I very much admired him and the sustainable life he built with his wife, peg, on their beautiful piece of california land. though I didn't "know" him, he seemed a kindred spirit. his words and photographs always resonated with me, and knowing people like him exist in this hard world makes me feel better when I am feeling low. and so I am deeply saddened to learn of his recent passing. I hope his family doesn't mind that I repost his final blog post here, because I think it is a beautiful, wise and fitting tribute to a good man.

namaste, jim. rest in peace.


For Gabrielle Giffords and all those whose lives were ruined on January 8th, by an act of hatred...
~VICTIMS OF HATRED~

I've been trying to come to terms with the contempt and hatred I feel seething through our society since I was a young boy.

I've also been consistently disappointed in my fellow human beings for as long as I can remember, and in myself for carrying within me seeds of that same toxicity which poisons hearts.

Is it any wonder we have so much insanity in a world where every innocence is promptly contaminated by the appalling gore of our collective misdeeds?

We are reaping the fruit of violence we have sewn into the fabric of history---even as we continue shouldering the burden of horrific destruction we still fund throughout the world, with our tax dollars, the sweat of our labor, and the lifeblood of humanity---all in disregard for every other species on earth.

Like the people in this collage [see original blog], we are all victimized by hatred, fear, and ignorance, including our own.
Whatever we think of the individuals pictured here, they were all moved by the cruelty and injustice they saw around them to speak their truths, with compassion for others, and for that, each one was assassinated.

They made mistakes. After all they were only human, woven from the same imperfect cloth as the rest of us, but their common thread was compassion, and they died because of it.
We are capable of becoming so much more than we are, and each of the persons above gave us a glimpse into possibilities.

As long as I live, no matter how ugly the world becomes, I will hold love and compassion in my heart, and do my best to reach beyond the atmosphere of contempt, bitterness, fear, and hatred which permeates our times...
...even if it kills me.

~Peace & Love~
Jim Otterstrom
Gabrielle Giffords favorite quote, from her facebook page:
"With malice toward none, with charity for all, let us strive to finish the work we are in." ~ Abraham Lincoln

writers: submit to this journal with confidence!

Clever, anyway. Journal of Universal Rejection.

interview

Talented and kind writer Michelle Garren Flye interviewed me on her blog, BREATHE, about naming characters. read it here.

Literary Savannah

Apparently I have a poem in the first edition of this new magazine. The poem was accepted over a year ago, and then the magazine was never published. In early Decemeber, a google alert notified me that, indeed, the magazine was out. Anyway,
my poem, Leap, appears on page 31.

Order a copy Here (at MagCLoud)

An article about it here.

Happy 2011!