In Great Britian the homeless are called "unfortunates" by many. In these economic times I see many unfortunates on the streets of Las Vegas. Every corner has a guy with a sign. In homes there are many people who are silently and secretly suffering. They are unfortunate with the current economy and job market. The TV commercials are almost unbearable here- dirty political ads, lawyers to handle your bankruptcy and charlatans seeking to cash in on the collective community pain. I know many who will file bankruptcy, lose homes and lose faith in themselves and others in the near future. I feel for them and of course I feel sorry for myself-times are tough.
I believe that so many suffer from depression and self doubt in these crazy times that they lose perspective. Depression is a cruel mistress and is often obvious to others and not to the sufferer. It is real and it is damaging to our souls. I know that we are here to embrace the moments of true joy in our lives. I know that pain is what allows us to understand happiness. We need balance.
Thank goodness for kind friends who seek to know and act-intervene on behalf of those in need. We all need a friend. When I see my true friends that show up for my family and seek my well being, I know I am blessed. If more people in this world could be so blessed.
If we want others to be happy- be compassionate! If we want to be happy-be compassionate! That is the advice of the Dali Lama and it must include compassion for ourselves. We must allow ourselves to make errors and be accountable for our errors. That will assist us to keep us balanced in life.
Next time you see a great success- be genuinely happy for the lucky soul. Respect their journey and effort-be a cheerleader for the positive and the good. Next time an acquaintance fails- be gentle, be genuine and show compassion. Tommy Lasorda, long time manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers stated, "80% of people do not care about your problems, the other 20% are glad that you have got them!" Find yourself in the minority-care! Embrace the success stories and forgive the failures. There is not perfection in any living person yet we are all redeemable. That concept must never, ever be forgotten.
Redemption-what a concept-what a story!
NINA's COMMENTS: PART 1
ReplyDeleteDr. Cheever,
Sorry for the delay! I was busy with that 300 page dissertation on "REENTRY SHOCK: Historical Transition and Temporal Longing in the Cinema of the Soviet Thaw." What a flawless writer, and I learned so much! Loved every minute of that gig!
Now for your writing...here are my thoughts on works from May through October 2010...
The principles that pop off the page in your writing are so rare to read today: compassion, fair and kind behavior, redemption, peace. What people think of as ordinary daily life turns zen-like in your text, very soothing, almost holy. It is as if you are writing some ancient pyrgi tablet creating a treaty not between the Romans and Carthaginians, but between man and his own reflection. It is not deliberate, which is what makes it so fresh and innocent. I think your father's kind gentle nature seeped deep into your own mind and soul as a child, and is now popping off the page with lines like, "I would stand in line to provide service and improve the lives of others." You are certaintly one of the hopefuls of the world and write that way.
My Grandfather (who won a Nobel Peace Prize) used to say "we are our own architects". I see this as you build emotional links with us, taking a perfect "stranger"- your audience - through the workings of your clever mind and leave us with the comfort of knowing it is safe to be your "friend". The human eye is so shortsighted, we are more comfortable seeing things clearly from far away. I think it is the sign of a good writer when he or she is able to get a reader to feel so close to something, so deeply, in such a short span of time. Just goes to show you that everyone is in walking distance, if you have the time.
There are some very sweet lines in your text like, "He always had his favorite foods with him and if he has eaten one tin of Kippered Snacks he has eaten a thousand" and some very deep lines, "depression is a cruel mistress...". From one spectrum to the next the words ring real and true.
I applaud what you have done. Looking forward to the next blog. You need more readers, perhaps alerting folks on "links in" may help to get a literary agent, not sure. I know you are already on Facebook (I am also on FB and links in).
So what to do now? The HARD PART: Literary Agent, Literary Award or Fellowship, Excerpt in a Magazine, Grant, Publishing House? I know Ethan Canin (medical fiction writer) got started when he won a Mifflin Literary Fellowship. I WILL CONTINUE MY COMMENTS in the next blog "I WOULD STAND IN LINE FOR THIS" BECAUSE THEY ARE PRINTING THAT MY COMMENT IS TOO LONG AND WILL NOT POST! Smile! -Nina
NINA'S COMMENTS PART II
ReplyDelete(I will try to post the remainder here in "REDEMPTION" rather than under "I WOULD STAND IN LINE FOR THIS" if they will let me!):
How can I help get you published? I was in the industry in the past, but not in publishing. I was in TV at Paramount Pictures,and feature film at Disney. I was signed with William Morris Agency as a playwright after winning the Eugene O'Neill National Playwriting Award. My mother, and grandfather wrote published books, but both have passed. My sister has a book out on autism, so I will ask her if she has any ideas.
Off the top of my head I would suggest looking into THE PUBLISHING HOUSES of some of the medical fiction writers of the 1990's:
1) MARINER BOOKS: Emperor of the AIR by Ethan Canin
2) SIMON & SHUSTER (A Touchstone Book): The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat...by Oliver Sachs (neural surgeon who also wrote the film, "Awakenings").
3) MICHIGAN STATE UNIV PRESS; HARCOURT BRACE; PICADOR; MARINER BOOKS are some of the publishers for Richard Selzer's books (not to be mistaken with the internet guy). I will cut and paste SELZER's BIO: Richard Selzer is a surgeon and author. He was born (1928) and raised in Troy, New York, United States. His father was Julius Selzer, M.D. a general practitioner who practiced from the ground floor of the family home at Fifth Avenue in Troy. His mother, Gertrude Selzer, was an amateur singer who performed in local productions of musicals and opera. Richard Selzer graduated from Union College in 1948, with a B.S. and received his M.D. from Albany Medical College in 1953. He served in the Army for two years as a lieutenant in charge of a medical detachment. In 1960, following a surgical internship and residency at Yale University, he joined the faculty of Yale as a professor of surgery, where he remained until his retirement in 1985. Beginning in the 1970s, Dr. Selzer became well known as an author as well.
Then there is also Perri Klass, M.D. , can't remember off hand who published her work...
Anyway, I will ask around, see if I can help you get published...if you need to contact me just go to FB or email me at ninibunch@aol.com.
Bravo! You are a joy to read! And thanks for the great dental work you did for the boys...Good luck!
Nina Bunche Pierce
(Mom of two patients, Dante & Georgie Ciccarone)
My apologies...the site I was referring to is "LINKED IN" not "LINKS IN"...-Nina
ReplyDeleteNina's Comments Part 3:
ReplyDeleteDr. Cheever,
Inspired to read earlier posts back to December 2, 2009, which are some of the most moving and beautiful of your words to date. Magestic, even. Your passions govern your writing, you speak from the heart and a divine source "May all on the earth seek peace and calm for their souls."
It is clear you are an "attentive observer" of pain, suffering and a great endorser of the power of God to heal while accepting the inevitability of human nature. I love how your introspections touch on the corruption of the American dream for freedom of speech and the need for moral redemption. It is like you are inviting us in (through your travels and experiences) to a place where pride and hedonism languish and die.
Your writing reminds me of moments in T.S. Eliot's THE LOVE SONG OF J. ALFRED PRUFROCK. Elliot fleshes out the human being: he opens with the image of our own paralysis, a patient etherized on a table unable to move, suffering from the disease of vanity and continues with "...And the women come and go talking of Michelangelo..."
Like your writing, it is all about SEEING & FEELING....I quote, "I hope I never forget how I feel at this time in my life". In a similiar way, T.S.Elliott invites us to take a walk through the REAL WORLD as he SEES and FEELS it:
Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question . . .
Oh, do not ask, "What is it?"
Let us go and make our visit.
In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo...
I think your work makes us want to wake up and smell the coffee, and try to live a genuine, spiritual, calm, compassionate and God willing, happy life. Bravo! -Nina
Forgot to mention! Really enjoyed the piece about Haiti and being in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic is a beautiful place, with beautiful people, and horrific poverty. It is nice that you do humanitarian missions there. In college, I took a vacation in the DR, to a private home with a staff of five. After I found out that each staff member was receiving $5 a week for round-the-clock service making my bed, cooking, cleaning and bringing me drinks by the pool, I changed my flight, gave all my possessions to the workers (including my "walkman"), and left for the States. I then went back to NYC, did an enormous amount of community service, and won the Belle Zeller Award for Outstanding Community Service To The City of New York. I owe it all to the poverty in the Dominican Republic! I hope you can go back to that island to provide assistance, it is so in need.
ReplyDelete