A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner

Two different stories and several lives tied to a scarf might sound odd but it fits. Each story resonated with me and the characters could indeed be real in the telling.

It's hard to express how attached I now feel to this book so just let me share some lines that spoke to me.:

"... the freedom to love or be loved,  though it shook you to your core,  made life exquisite."

"Everything beautiful has a story it wants to tell."

Freedom Writers TV special

I recently watched "Freedom Writers" which is based on a true story. One teacher with passion for education and a classroom of students that were forgotten, neglected, abused, fearful of everyday life with good reason, hurting hearts, and each was valuable to her. This one teacher made a difference and offered a "Taste for Change" opportunity. The school did not provide support so this one teacher even took part-time jobs to buy books, supplies, funded field trips that introduced them to intolerance on a whole new level: WWII, Hitler, the Holocaust, and a young girl near their age by the name of Anne Frank. 

Yes, I am now looking for "The Freedom Writers Diary" published in 1999 to cement the story and sequence of events in my mind. The teacher Erin Gruwell is an educator that every child deserves and she also learned a few lessons for herself along this journey. She taught from the heart.

Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man by Fannie Flagg

What a delight of a book. It is written in the form of a diary beginning when Daisy Fay is 11 though about age 18 in the decade of 1950s in the southern state of Mississippi. 

So many situations for a young girl to experience and her optimism keeps her moving. I can appreciate how she handled her family dynamics, loss, variety of friendships, being a teenager, and the list goes on.

I laughed and smiled throughout the book. Her final words on a given day might seem at odds from what is happening but it is actually part of the charm of the book and so Fannie Flagg as an author.  

I admit to looking for more after the last page. After thinking about it I can accept the ending.  It is so Daisy Fay.

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

I just finished this book that was highly recommended in another Facebook reading group. It's even better than "Salt in the Sea" by the same author  and again I was unaware to this extent of the subject matter.  Twenty million lives lost!! When one thinks of genocide the Holocaust comes immediately to mind and Hitler.  Well Stalin wasn't far behind! 

 It will forever hold a place in my memories and as a favored reading experience. 

It's a work of fiction but based on facts and real stories from actual survivors. Imagine being targeted and sent to labor camps in Siberia because you are educated,  a doctor,  a teacher, stand up for what is right or your freedom, voice your opinion, and to dumb down and control a nation by fear and force tactics! 

It happened.

2021 June 20 Father’s Day

Yes, it is Father’s Day. Please accept my special thanks and prayers of thanksgiving to the real men who hold this role in the family by choice every single day. You are highly regarded by so many just like me.  I do not stand alone in my appreciation for each of you.  Enjoy the remainder of your day.

It takes love, devotion, commitment and sometimes a sense of humor to be a dad, daddy, or father.  Fatherhood is so much more than science or a biological function and a real man understands that and makes a choice, the responsible choice, in my opinion.

2021 May 9th Mother's Day

“Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate." ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭31:31‬ ‭NIV‬‬

My mother loved life and had an appreciation for everyone in her life. She was a daddy's girl and had many traits of her mother. She absolutely loved her siblings and encouraged her children to also love each other REGARDLESS. 

Thank you for loving me and forever setting an example for me as a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend.

I loved you then and still do. I miss you everyday and will definitely see you later.

Color Can Be Intimidating

You don't need to understand my intimidation at the walls of color in a nail salon but it is my reality. I worked with my nail polish therapist Shaina Sample for several months.  Her talents are many and I hope that she knows that I appreciate her skills as my personal therapist. I am smiling.

I now feel like a grown-up and it only takes me about five minutes to select a nail color which is a huge progress for me. The teal color just spoke to me as thoughts of my mother came to mind with her love of green and my favorite color blue. 

My daughter in-law really had been selecting some beautiful colors for me. In fact the nail techs would ask me as soon as I enter the room "What color did your daughter in-law pick for you today?" and I would hand my cellphone to her so that she can see the text. The memory still brings smiles to my face.

By the way nail color therapists don't really exist but my daughter in-law helping me is real. I just decided to put a spin on my difficulty in selecting nail polish colors. Whew! I feel better telling this truth.

If you could only see my happy feet fully adorned with color.

Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

This is fiction but based on a real event where 9k+ lives were lost when the Wilhelm Gustloff passenger cruise ship was deliberately torpedoed during WW2. It reads so true and each character is a reminder of the types of people who could have been on the ship.  People who loved and were loved and had plans for a future. People who were victims and victimized,  people who lost people precious to them all because they didn't fit the desired pattern for humanity by Hitler, Stalin, etc.

I feel emotionally exhausted after finishing this book. I barely recall learning about this sinking of this ship and the others that faced the same fate during WW2. This book is a reminder that thousands on board were trying to escape their respective war torn country with their families or the remainder of families. Hoping to be delivered to safety elsewhere but instead their loss of life was considered a victory for the country from which its military had created so much death, torture, and defilement.

To think that the commander of the submarine is considered a wartime hero dragged at my emotions. Then I sat back and understood that wars bring tragedy and the commander was supposedly carrying out his duty but at a later time the decision of that commander came into question. 

I was drawn into each character which was well written by the author.  I am not generally a fan of this style of writing but now I am pleased that it was not written as a one narrator.  The authors notes at the end plus comments from survivors and the divers that actually explored the ship really added to the overall appreciation of this book.

The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict

Beauty, brains, intelligence, and resilience. Hedy Lamarr had it all. 

Hedy Lamarr was not only beautiful but intelligent, extremely intelligent. She escaped an abusive marriage in another country and she managed to make it all of the way to our beloved USA,  Adolf Hitler was entertained in her home during her marriage to do business with her husband, Speaking of her husband he concealed her being Jewish for his business convenience and she knew that he could change is mind at any time. As a result of her intelligence she has greatly enhanced our everyday day life through her patent.

One of the inventions that she held a patent on could have saved  many lives during WW2. Through great persistence she finally was granted an audience with certain military staff to introduce her invention. The military agreed that it could be useful but because she was a woman they did not know how to introduce it for approval simply because of her gender. Our military should feel shame for the additional lives lost for their ignorance. Talk about gender bias!

I now think of Hedy Lamarr often when using my cell phone since its design and functionality is directed tied to her invention so many years ago..

Ernest Hemingway was indeed human

I learned a lot about him from reading "The Paris Wife" by Paula McLain. Interesting man who lived life by his own confused terms. The book put his life into perspective for me. He never really wanted children and fatherhood proved difficult for him, especially emotionally.

After recently watching the PBS special about his life, marriages, writing career and stages of writing, and his mental state through the end of his life I actually have a renewed interest in him and my opinion has somewhat changed but only marginally. Perhaps I can finally finish the book by Paula McLain titled "Love and Ruin" that I started over a year ago.  It is just not as interesting as the one about his first of four wives.  This one is about the third wife in the life of this hot tempered and abusive cheater.  He appeared to believe in marriage just not celibacy within marriage. 

Hemingway shared the wise words with us many years ago. His war time experiences, less than happy childhood, and depression drove him and haunted him which led to his suicide. These words from him take on a special significance for each of us and it's all about choices. Choose wisely. It is sad that he did not take his own advice but it does not at diminish the value of these words.  

"Before you act, listen.

Before you react, think.

Before you spend, earn.

Before you criticize, wait.

Before you pray, forgive.

Before you quit, try."

 

- Ernest Hemingway