During our vacation to Paris and various locations in Switzerland in 2024, my wife and I spent the better part of a day in the lovely city of Bern. Although it is the capital of Switzerland, Bern is only the fifth largest city in the country, which means that it is not so bustling from a tourism standpoint. It is built on a peninsula formed by a sharp bend of the picturesque Aare River. The Old Town section traces its origins back to the 12th century, and the architecture is reminiscent of the medieval period at this UNESCO World Heritage site. We took the morning train to Bern from Zurich where we were staying during our time in Switzerland and hit the highlights of the city’s historic district completely on foot.
Old Town Bern, Switzerland
Our first stop was the iconic Zytglogge Clock Tower, a 13th century structure located at the end of the Marktgasse, which is a main thoroughfare in Old Town lined with charming sandstone arcades and traditional Swiss buildings. The Martgasse serves as an active hub for both locals and tourists, offering a variety of shops, cafes, and restaurants. This avenue is also a key part of Bern’s vibrant cultural scene, often hosting events and markets that reflect the city’s rich heritage. The Zytglogge tower contains an astronomical clock featuring moving puppets that perform a show just before the top of every hour.
Zytglogge Clock Tower in Bern, Switzerland
We followed another avenue called the Kramgasse then crossed the Aere River and climbed a fairly steep hill to visit the Rosengarten, which offers fantastic views of Old Town and the river. With approximately six acres of gardens, this lovely greenspace features over 200 varieties of roses along with other flowering plants, shrubs, and ornamental trees. There are water features, walking paths, large lawns, a playground, and a restaurant. We wandered all around the grounds, and I took way too many pics.
Rosengarten in Bern, Switzerland
Walking back down the hill, we paused for a few moments to get a drink and to check out the Bear Pit, or the Bärengraben. Featured in the city’s coat of arms, the bear is a symbol of the city and the surrounding canton. The plural for bear in German is Bären. According to legend, Duke Berthold V of Zähringen named the city he founded in the late 12th century because the bear was the first animal he hunted in the region, and Bern sounds like Bären. The city has kept bears in captivity along the river since at least the early 16th century.
Bärengraben (Bear Pit) in Bern, Switzerland
On our way back through Old Town, we stopped for a quick self-guided tour at Einsteinhaus, the former apartment where Albert Einstein lived when he developed his theory of relativity in 1905. Then we walked a couple of blocks south to see Berner Münster or Bern Cathedral. This Swiss Reformed Gothic cathedral is the tallest one in the country and features a 100 meter spire. The cathedral is filled with gorgeous stained-glass windows and one of the most complete collections of Late Gothic sculpture in Europe.
Einstein apartment in Bern, SwitzerlandBerner Münster in Bern, SwitzerlandBerner Münster in Bern, Switzerland
We ended our visit to Bern wandering around Bundesplatz (Federal Square), the impressive heart of the city that is dominated by the Swiss Parliament Building or Bundeshaus. The plaza features 26 fountains that erupt in random patterns from the stone pavement. Bundesplatz serves as the political and financial center of Switzerland. In addition to the parliament building, the plaza is flanked by the Central Swiss Bank on the east and the Berner Kantonalbank on the west. Before heading back to our train, we strolled along the Bundesterrasse or the Parliament Terrace, a spectacular, cliff-edge balcony located directly behind the Bundeshaus and perched above the river. This vantage point offers panoramic views of the Marzili public baths, Gurten Mountain, and the Swiss Alps far in the distance.
Bundeshaus in Bern, SwitzerlandViews from Bundeshaus terrace in Bern, Switzerland
Sometimes capital cities can be overwhelming: DC, London, Paris, Berlin, and Rome. It is refreshing to visit a nation’s capital that is compact, walkable, historic, and beautiful. Bern is such a city. Although it is easy to get around on foot, Bern boasts an excellent and punctual public tram and bus network. The city is a major transportation hub. It connects to Zurich in less than 90 minutes and to Interlaken in roughly one hour. We highly recommend at least a half day in the charming city of Bern for anyone visiting Switzerland.
Because of its central location in the state, the city of Macon is often called the Heart of Georgia. It is also known as the Cherry Blossom Capital of the World because there are more than 300,000 ornamental cherry trees growing there, which serve as the centerpiece for the annual Cherry Blossom Festival held in the city. Some consider it the birthplace of Southern Rock music because it was the home of the Allman Brothers Band and Capricorn Records, although I’m sure Jacksonville, Florida could make a strong counter argument as the hometown of Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Macon, Georgia (downtown, as I remember it)
I was born in Macon in 1960 and lived the first 21 years of my life there at home with my parents, both of whom had roots in Bibb County where Macon is the seat of government. I attended school and junior college while I lived there. My family and our close relatives were members of a Southern Baptist church in Macon, a strong denomination in central Georgia. My first jobs were at Winn Dixie and then Piggly Wiggly grocery stores on Napier Avenue in town.
Macon is where I learned how to play the guitar and began playing the piano. Near our house on the west side of town, I rode my bike everywhere, played with neighborhood kids, and spent too-short summers swimming and enjoying a whole host of other outdoor activities. I had cousins nearby, and we spent plenty of time at each other’s houses. I bought my first car in Macon, which gave me a real taste of independence and allowed me to take girls out and discover early romance.
Macon, Georgia – Cherry trees in bloom
Bibb County’s population was about 143,000 when I was growing up, so Macon was large enough to support robust retail centers, manufacturing, several hospitals, a shopping mall, a few museums, live performance theatres, and a multi-purpose arena. Mercer University and Wesleyan College were founded there in the early 19th century. Macon College was a two-year institution when I attended in the late 1970s but later became a four-year school. Macon was enough of a city when I came along to serve as a hub for central Georgia, bringing in labor and money from several surrounding rural communities.
The county’s population hasn’t grown much, with only about 158,000 according to the latest census records. Throughout my lifetime Macon has remained in the shadows of its ever-expanding sister 85 miles to the north, the sprawling metropolis of Atlanta. During my lifetime, Macon probably peaked in the 1990s, long after I had moved away. On the rare occasions I visit Macon these days, it looks a bit worn around the edges. Between 2011 and 2014 Macon lost two of its museums: the Georgia Music Hall of Fame and the Georgia Children’s Museum. There have been some efforts to revitalize the downtown area in recent years, and the north and northwest parts of town are still where most of the wealth is concentrated. However, many of the old neighborhoods I remember show signs of age and not enough care and attention. Violent crime escalated in the mid-1990s and has spiked several times since then, causing Macon to rank in the top ten most violent cities in the state. So it goes.
Regardless of its current status, I have fond memories of my formative years and becoming a young adult Macon. There was always such a rich music tradition in the city. It served as a springboard for people like James Brown, Little Richard, and Otis Redding. In addition to producing the Allman Brothers Band, Capricorn Records helped launch groups like the Marshall Tucker Band and Wet Willie. By the time I came around, Grant’s Lounge, the Capitol Theatre, and the Douglass Theatre were already legendary music venues hosting national acts of rock, R&B, jazz, and blues music.
Allman Brothers Big House Museum
Looking back, it seems that the Macon of the 1960s up through the 1980s was a city that appreciated its past while also looking to the future for inspiration, innovation, and vitality. There were still a few streets downtown paved with brick, but I-75 ran through the middle of the city. There were historic house museums listed as national landmarks but also multi-story hotels and office buildings. The ancient Indian mounds at Ocmulgee National Monument were well maintained and fully accessible, but there were also numerous public parks scattered around the city providing recreation and relaxation. The Macon Peaches was a minor league baseball franchise that lasted from 1923 to 1982, serving as affiliates for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs, and Philadelphia Phillies.
Macon, Georgia – The author all dressed up at home in November, 1967
During my time there, Macon was big enough to offer individuals and families a healthy slice of the American dream. At the same time, the city wasn’t so large that I ever felt lost in it or frustrated by crowds, traffic, or other pains of urban life. As my circle of friends grew from my neighborhood and church to my schools and work, I was comfortable forging my early path toward grownupness. If I could have changed anything about Macon, it would have been the weather. I have never lived in a place as hot or humid as middle Georgia in July and August. It’s like swimming through air. Otherwise, my hometown was a solid location to plant my feet and move forward.
River greenway projects have been around for over 100 years, but towns and cities began to capitalize on these natural byways for tourism and community revitalization in the late 20th century. Projects usually include walkways and trails, interpretive signage, benches, picnic areas, river access for floating or boating, amphitheaters, and other amenities. Some of the largest and most popular of these outdoor facilities are the Hudson River Greenway in New York, Schuylkill River Trail in Philadelphia, the San Antonio River Walk, and Cherry Creek Greenway in Denver. But smaller communities with water resources have also invested in developing parks and recreational areas for conservation, community enhancement, and tourism.
Joplin is a town with a population of about 52,000 located in the southwest corner of Missouri just a few miles from the Kansas and Oklahoma borders. Although it has a rich history of lead and zinc mining, Joplin is likely best known these days for the devastating EF-5 tornado of 2011 that cut a mile-wide path of almost total destruction right through the heart of the town. Now, Joplin is a thriving retail and commercial hub for the area, but the community has also poured money and resources into creating outdoor spaces such as the area adjacent to Shoal Creek, which is southwest of town just north of Interstate 44.
Shoal Creek, Joplin, Missouri
Shoal Creek looks more like a small river as it makes its way to a popular Joplin landmark called Grand Falls, which is the largest continuously flowing natural waterfall in the state. The fall plunges twelve feet down a 163-foot-wide ledge. Just above the falls on the north bank is McIndoe Park, which was purchased by the city in 1923 but in recent years has undergone considerable improvements to make it a destination for outdoor enthusiasts of all ages. Covering approximately 24 acres, McIndoe Park features a lovely paved walking trail that winds its way just a few yards from the banks of the creek. The park also has picnic facilities, pavilions, boat ramps, and plenty of fishing spots. There is ample parking in several spots close to the walking trail.
Grand Falls, Joplin, Missouri
When I visited, my first stop was Grand Falls where I spent about 30 minutes sitting on the yellow chert (or flint) rock ledges along the side of the creek just below the fall. I love the sound of crashing water, and this spot delivered in spades. I was there on a Wednesday shortly after Memorial Day (2026), and there were only a few people fishing and milling around. The area gets quite crowded on weekends and especially during the warmer months of summer.
Shoal Creek, Joplin, MissouriMcIndoe Park, Joplin, Missouri
I spent the rest of my time upstream walking the trail at McIndoe Park. I made my way north along the creek until I reached another treasure: Wildcat Park. Formerly a private park, this large section of land on either side of Shoal Creek was also purchased by the city of Joplin in 1923. It features a spring, a large glade, a nature center, picnic facilities, and a series of walking trails (paved and unpaved). There is access to the water for fishing and floating. There are some beautiful places in this park to just sit and enjoy the natural setting, which I did – a restorative experience.
This is not the type of song I typically write, which is based on actual historical events. It is my tribute to the Cherokee Indians who endured the infamous Trail of Tears, the removal of indigenous people from the hills of North Georgia and Tennessee to the newly established Indian Territory (later to become the State of Oklahoma) between 1838 and 1839. Historians estimate that approximately 4,000 Cherokee people died on this trail, which represented about one-fourth of the total number who traveled west during the forced migration by the United States government.
I wanted this song to honor the Cherokee Nation, so I specifically incorporated phrases from first-hand accounts of survivors, including Wahnenauhi (English name – Lucy Lowery Hoyt Keys), Jane Bushyhead, and Rebecca Neugin. I also found inspiration from the poem, “The Trail of Tears,” by Cherokee poet Ruth Margaret Muskrat Bronson (1897-1982).
Full disclosure: I claim no Cherokee or any North American indigenous heritage. To my knowledge, I do not have Native American or American Indian blood running through my veins. This original song is not an attempt to “put myself in the shoes” of those who suffered. I am not the narrator in this song. The imagined speaker is an amalgamation of many different male voices who experienced the horror and loss inflicted by the Trail of Tears.
During our extended winter retreat to Phoenix for 2026, my wife and I hiked some familiar trails but also explored a few we had never tried. We also took a day trip up to Sedona, one of our favorite spots in the state. We walked around some of the shops, bought some clothes and shoes, and had a fabulous lunch at the regional airport’s cafe, of all places. They had some cocktail specials we couldn’t resist, and the food was excellent. Before all that, we drove north of town on Highway 89A towards Flagstaff for a morning walk on West Fork Trail in an area called Oak Creek Canyon.
West Fork Trail of Oak Creek Canyon, Arizona
We had driven through Oak Creek Canyon many years ago but had never taken the time to explore the area, which boasts a landscape quite different from the desert environment of the Phoenix basin. The West Fork Trail is 14 miles long, but we only walked the first couple of miles. Literature and websites warn hikers to prepare to get their feet wet, which is fair considering the trail crisscrosses the creek numerous times. During our short walk we forded the creek three times over wet rocks and fallen logs. Even with our hiking poles, we decided a fourth crossing was pushing our luck, especially considering we didn’t bring a change of clothes along in case we slipped and took an unplanned dip.
West Fork Trail of Oak Creek Canyon, Arizona
The section of the trail that we walked is flat and sandy, following closely to the creek through forests of ponderosa pines, maples, and of course, oaks. Not far from the trailhead are the stone ruins of Mayhew Lodge, an old hunting cabin converted into a resort that attracted celebrities such as Jimmy Stewart, Walt Disney, Clark Gable, and President Herbert Hoover. It burned to the ground in 1980, leaving behind only the ruins that are adjacent to the first part of the trail, which is the most accessible portion of West Fork.
West Fork Trail of Oak Creek Canyon, Arizona
According to the Visit Arizona website, the trail becomes more challenging after the early creek crossings. “The canyon walls begin to close in, forcing the creek through a slot canyon. After wading through the creek to get back to the trail, hikers can expect bouldering, swimming and bushwhacking to complete the entire trek.” Visitors to Sedona who enjoy the outdoors will be well rewarded by taking the short drive north to witness the rock pinnacles, natural arches, and deep canyons on the West Fork Trail.
West Fork Trail of Oak Creek Canyon, ArizonaWest Fork Trail of Oak Creek Canyon, Arizona
US national flag at the pier – Pismo Beach California – 2012 (Wikimedia)
It is typical on or just before Independence Day to see people on social media posting photos of American flags or other patriotic images, accompanied by messages that express how this is the best country in the world. I have also made similar posts stating that, in spite of its faults, I can think of no other country where I would rather live than the United States. However, events and circumstances over the last nine years have forced me to qualify my assessment of living in America. Here is my current perspective: it’s great to be an American . . . if you’re lucky.
It’s great to be an American if you’re lucky enough to be male. During the first Trump administration, we watched a right-leaning Supreme Court decide that it is no longer a basic human right for women to have control over their reproductive health, specifically the right to abort a pregnancy. We have a historical precedent in this country that inalienable rights should be recognized and protected by the federal government and not decided on a state-by-state basis. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a prime example, even if it did take several hundred years for our government finally to acknowledge (not necessarily protect, mind you) equal rights for all races.
When it comes to the right of women to control their own bodies, conservative Americans led largely by evangelical Christians have been protesting ever since Roe vs. Wade that women must relinquish these rights, arguing that the embryo or fetus must be protect by the government. Even though most other first world countries do allow abortions, including religiously identified nations like Israel, conservative Christians in America still demand that women carry their pregnancies to term. In some states controlled by the most right leaning segment of the political spectrum, there are no exceptions to this rule, even in cases of rape, incest, or life-threatening conditions for the pregnant woman.
Even with modern medicine, childbirth is still a stressful event for a woman, mentally and physically. Giving birth is riskier than an abortion performed by a trained medical professional. I’m not suggesting that an abortion doesn’t cause physical and/or emotional distress; I’m only stating that women are no longer lucky enough in this country to be able to decide their own parental destiny. Not only are men exempt from the infringement of the right to control their bodies in this regard by nature of their sex, some fathers find all types of work arounds to avoid their responsibilities to care for their unwanted children. Women rarely have that luxury. Yes, adoption is an option, but the risks and stress of carrying and bearing a child are still present, and giving up a newborn can add considerably to the anguish.
It’s great to be an American if you’re lucky enough to be white, or at least obviously of European descent. White privilege still exists in the U.S., despite arguments to the contrary by mostly white people. Yes, I know there are people of color who claim that white privilege is no longer a thing in this country, but I suspect most of them live very comfortably and have not personally suffered from racial discrimination . . . yet. When I have had discussions with white people who refuse to acknowledge the advantages they enjoy because of their color, what shuts them down most effectively is a simple question: would you rather be black or brown than the color you are now?
Wealth and power are still concentrated in the hands of white people, and if given the opportunity, history has proven that they will tend to employ other white people, even over equally or even better qualified persons of color. White people make up about 75% of Congress and over 80% of state legislative bodies. White men still hold a majority of elected offices – again, you’re lucky to be a man in America. And anyone who still believes that elected officials, once they are in office, strive to represent all their constituents is terribly naïve. In his second term, Donald Trump has made it a priority to dismantle many of the protections instituted by previous administrations from both parties to fight racial discrimination, even at the highest levels of government.
It’s great to be an American if you’re lucky enough to be healthy. If there is one issue on which almost all Americans agree, it is the inaccessibility of quality healthcare. Oh, we don’t all agree on why it is so bad, but we all know it is abysmal. It’s not so much the quality of care that exists in America, because our advances in medicine over the last generation have been impressive. The problem is how to afford care and how to get it when you need it. There are endless debates from the halls of Congress all the way down to the rockers on the front porch of the country store about what president, party, law, program, or company is to blame for the high cost of healthcare.
For several decades, the cost of healthcare has been rising exponentially. There are a multitude of reasons for this increase, which are better saved for another post. The United States seems to have a deep phobia of anything that even has a faint odor of socialism, outside of Social Security and Medicare, that is. Democrats and Republicans alike have looked to any other option imaginable rather than embrace the concept of socialized medicine that so many other modern countries have adopted. People of means from those countries may come to America to be treated by a top-notch specialist, but very few come to our country specifically to sign up for health insurance, private or government sponsored.
Instead of some form of universal healthcare, we keep a firm grip on our capitalist ideals by trusting insurance companies to pay for medical costs in cooperative arrangements that are typically tied to employers. The irony of this system is how it stifles entrepreneurship. Most self-employed people cannot afford health insurance, and they certainly will not risk being without it. Most job seekers are more interested in their health plan than their salaries. The Affordable Care Act of the Obama administration seemed like a compromise, but it relied too heavily on buy in from the opposing party to work properly, especially on the state level. That type of across-the-aisle cooperation is long gone from American politics. The lucky Americans are either without serious illness, or they are wealthy enough to be self-insured – about the top 1% of the country. The rest of the population watches in dismay as more and more of their earnings go to pay premiums, copays, and deductibles, which brings up my final point.
It’s great to be an American if you’re lucky enough not to be born into poverty. The rags to riches story is closely tied to American idealism, but it is mostly a myth. Of course, there are exceptions, and some people who grow up poor experience a change of fortune due to hard work and ingenuity, but more often than not, luck is involved here as well. Children who are raised in poverty are less likely to eat nutritious meals, live in safe and clean conditions, have adequate medical care, get a good education, and be protected from crime and illegal drugs.
Breaking out of the cycle of poverty is extremely difficult in the United States. Without proper education and a network of family, friends, and neighbors, landing a job that pays above minimum wage is tough to accomplish. Role models are scarce, and bad influences abound. The problems are magnified in large urban areas where social services are overwhelmed and underfunded. The sense of community in rural areas can sometimes help the poorest people find resources they need to survive, but those conditions are rare in major cities. Unfortunately, poverty breeds more poverty, and by some estimates, over ten percent of Americans live below the poverty line.
For over eight years now, people in this country have been hearing and seeing the slogan, “Make America Great Again.” But what are the leaders who bought into this catchy phrase doing to bring back the greatness they believe has disappeared? Half the population is female. Are we making America great by protecting their rights to reproductive health decisions? Are we helping minorities gain equal footing in pursuing the American dream? Are we treating people outside the heterosexual population with respect and dignity, recognizing they are first and foremost human beings? Are we doing everything we can to give people in poverty the opportunity to succeed and perhaps even prosper?
As a white male who doesn’t have to worry too much about money, I fully recognize my place of privilege in this country. I’m comfortable living here. But I’m not comfortable knowing that so many people are not lucky enough to be in my shoes. Furthermore, it saddens me that it doesn’t have to be this way.
In his remarkable book, Badass Retirement, author Robert Pagliarini includes a chapter titled “Upgrade Health.” His message is simple for people who want to escape average retirement: think and act like an athlete. He posits that professional athletes “invest their time and energy into improving their performance.” They work hard at it to avoid injury, recover quickly if they do get hurt, and achieve the highest possible energy and stamina for years, even decades. He stresses that retirees should have these exact same goals – and I agree one hundred percent.
My wife and I are now in our second year of retirement, and one of our top priorities since we left employment is to get in better physical shape and maintain a healthier lifestyle than we did during our working years. We are paying closer attention to what we eat and drink (well, better than we once did). We are also wearing the right kind of clothes and shoes for our new lifestyle. We are paying more attention to our bodies and making sure we get the medical care we need. We believe in the value of vaccinations and medication.
Perhaps the most significant change in retirement related to our health is our increased focus on physical fitness. Much of our time is now discretionary, and we are devoting more of it to a variety of exercise options including weight training, cardio activity, Pilates, walking, and hiking. We both have trainers we work out with at least once a week. We have pickleball paddles and hope to learn how to play this game that has swept across America and is attracting all ages, not just seniors.
Dan Kinney Family Center, Springfield, MO
We are fortunate to live in a community that offers ample opportunities for indoor and outdoor recreational activities. Our city and county have an excellent trail system for walking, hiking, and biking. Some of the trails connect to surrounding towns. We have a nature conservation area, a botanical garden, a historical landmark park, and several outdoor green spaces with hiking trails, paved walkways, creeks, and ponds.
Springfield (MO) Botanical Center
Because we are both over age 60, we get an extra benefit through our local park board in the form of a deep discount on membership at their fitness centers. We can reach the one closest to our house in about ten minutes. This family center has a multi-use court for pickleball, basketball, volleyball, children’s inflatable bounce houses, and group exercise programs like SilverSneakers. There is a walking track on the second floor that circles the court. There is an outdoor paved walking track too. The center is equipped with a wide variety of dumbbells, weight machines, treadmills, bikes, ellipticals, stair steppers, and much more. The center also has meeting space and separate rooms for small classes and individual training.
We are making a concerted effort to exercise several times a week, with two days of weights, at least one day of cardio, and 2-3 days of alternate activity like walking or Pilates. We live in a subdivision that is great for walking. If possible, we also try to include exercise as part of our daily routine when we travel, taking advantage of hotel and condo fitness rooms or just walking nearby trails or in neighborhoods. We look for public gardens, arboretums, and greenways for walking too. When we are away from home for extended periods of time, we purchase a temporary membership at a fitness center so we can maintain our weight and cardio routines.
Springfield (MO) Conservation Center
Hiking has always been a favorite activity for both of us, even before we met and got married. I have written about our hiking adventures a few times in this blog. When we travel, we look for fun and scenic places to hike. Phoenix, the Sonoran Desert, San Francisco, Lake Erie, Joshua Tree National Park, Yosemite, Mount Hood, and various locations in the Ozarks and Appalachia are just a few places we have hiked. We have walked or hiked in temperatures from 13 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit, in light rain and sunshine, and in all four seasons.
Sometimes it’s not easy to get motivated, but we know we need to keep moving, strengthen our core, develop and maintain muscle tone, protect our bones, keep our hearts healthy, and improve our balance. Robert Pagliarini makes a valid point to keep in mind in his badass book on retirement. “The most important asset you have is your health, but knowing what to do when it comes to nutrition, supplements, and fitness feels like a moving target for a good reason. If there is one area that changes more than any other, it’s health.” Medical professionals agree that exercise is essential to staying healthy, and we intend on staying as healthy as possible as we age. After all, we’ve got places to go, people to see, things to do!
Here is a classic that I had never read, mainly because the subject was not of great interest to me. However, Sinclair somehow tapped into the consciousness of turn-of-the-century America with this fictional manifesto on the evils of capitalism and the virtues of socialism, although a great portion of today’s U.S. population would likely dismiss the novel, as socialism is considered the worst possible form of government, especially among conservatives. They may be surprised to know Sinclair’s book became a bestseller, originally released as a serial in 1905.
The novel was really intended to promote socialism as a just and successful alternative to capitalism, but the reading public apparently took it more as an exposé on the unsanitary and brutal conditions of the U.S. meatpacking industry, particularly in Chicago. The author doesn’t drive home his intended argument until the end of the book when several prophets are introduced literally “preaching” the gospel of socialism. The novel’s protagonist, a Lithuanian named Jurgis Rudkus, finally understands why socialism is the solution after his life has been ruined as an immigrant laborer. He contemplates how “the whole balance of what the people produced went to heap up the fortunes of these capitalists, to heap, and heap again, and yet again – and that in spite of the fact that they, and every one about them, lived in unthinkable luxury!”
One could argue that this novel still speaks to the great disparity of wealth that exists in America today, especially as the term “oligarchy” has become a common descriptor of the country’s economic condition. Instead of the hopelessness of independent small farmers presented by the author at the end of the book, the shrinking American middle class employee nevertheless identifies with being “held to a bare existence by competition in labor, and boasting of his freedom because he is too blind to see his chains.”
What is truly remarkable about The Jungle is the influence it had on government policy and regulation. Public outrage over the novel’s graphic descriptions of unsanitary conditions in the meatpacking plants directly led the U.S. government to pass the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act in 1906. This muckraking novel remains a powerful and relevant work that continues to be studied for its depiction of social injustice, workers’ rights, and the impact of industrialization.
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
This is another one of those classics that I never read, but I’m so glad I did. The Good Earth is in many ways a sad story with characters who are genuinely believable because they are all flawed in some way. And true to life, some of the most virtuous are the ones who struggle the most and have the worst luck. As the title implies, the lives of the characters in the generations leading up to the novel’s time have always been tied to the land, but there are always tensions close at hand that could end that bond.
Because of the time setting in the early 20th century, Buck’s story feels a bit like Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, only set in China. The writer’s style makes it feel more like a long parable that mimics a Biblical narrative – straightforward language that is short on adjectives and adverbs. The sentences almost sound like they could have been written in the 16th century. The book features classic storytelling and character development, worthy of the Pulitzer it won.
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
Edith Wharton was one of those writers who had an absolute mastery of the English language. I rank her skills up there with Thomas Hardy and Henry James. She was also a best-selling author, largely due to the success of this novel published in 1905. And although it is not the first feminist novel, it is one of the early notable ones to my way of thinking. In painting her portrait of the prescribed social structure of high society New York City in the late 19th century, she cast a slightly jaded eye toward the way women were at a significant disadvantage just because of their gender in a patriarchal world.
Although it is worth noting there are some very wealthy and powerful women in the novel, most often their status is tied back to the men in their lives. The leading “lady” of the novel, Lily Bart, sums it up very succinctly with this observation about marriage, “Ah, there’s the difference – a girl must, a man may if he chooses.” A little later Wharton has Lily contemplate further on the thought. “Why must a girl pay so dearly for her least escape from routine? Why could one never do a natural thing without having to screen it behind a structure of artifice?” These questions speak as much to the stifling societal pressures as they do to sexism, where manipulation and subterfuge among women in high places is ruthless.
In another reflective moment, Lily claims that all men have to do to get their way is to be passive and wait; while she has “to calculate and contrive, and retreat and advance, as if I were going through an intricate dance, where one misstep would throw me hopelessly out of time.” This is terribly ironic because a few missteps throw here way off balance.
Wharton reveals how self absorbed these high rollers are: “they had a force of negation which eliminated everything beyond their own range of operation.” The author even becomes a fortune teller at one point, predicting how a young Truman Capote would insert himself into this New York scene several decades later, when she describes one of the male characters “who meant to live on proof-reading and write an epic, and who now lived on his friends and had become critical of truffles.” It’s always about who you know, with whom you are seen and associated, and what you are wearing, especially for the women.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
Delicious! That is the best adjective I can come up with to describe Shirley Jackson’s writing, and this novel is a prime example. She is a worthy beneficiary of masters like Hawthorne and Poe in the American Gothic tradition. I have read her short stories, including her most famous, “The Lottery;” however, I think this is the first of her novels I have ever read.
In this rather macabre story, Jackson skillfully keeps her readers in the dark just enough to propel them forward to discover how the tragic events revealed in the beginning of the book unfolded and who is responsible. But this is no simple murder mystery. Jackson is opening metaphorical doors to hidden rooms filled with mob psychology, the complexities of family, sisterly bonds, and a touch of madness.
The concept of “innocence” and its multiple meanings are at the heart of this story. It is at times horrific, but not in the sense of a Stephen King novel. There is a sense of foreboding that seeps into our heads like an invasive vine that weaves its way through every space until, before we know it, we are surrounded by an inescapable terror.
Dear Edna Sloane by Amy Shearn
Of the four Amy Shearn novels I have read thus far, this is my favorite. She is somewhat of a writer’s writer, and Dear Edna Sloane is Exhibit A in that argument. Written from the viewpoint of multiple characters through the vehicle of various communications methods (letters, emails, phone texts, etc.), Shearn tells the story of a young female author whose first and only published book was a runaway bestseller. And then she disappeared from the public eye, and seemingly from all of society, for decades. Fast forward and a young aspiring but as yet unsuccessful writer is trying to find her.
Dear Edna Sloane is cleverly written and so perfectly spot on with the language, antics, anxieties, and drama of the twenty-something professionals from 2018. But when Sloane does re-emerge, although reluctantly, Shearn really turns up the volume and pulls out the magic. I see hints that Shearn may be familiar with the life of Flannery O’Connor when Sloane recalls her struggles with professors, editors, and agents, all of whom were male and not exactly upstanding gentlemen.
There are so many passages in this book that I marked. Shearn knows how to tell a story while also imparting some heavy truth through the voices of her characters. And she does it without preaching or knocking us over the head. She is an entertaining writer, which I find to be all too rare these days among authors of modern fiction. Shearn has a few sections in this book that could easily be read as a writer’s manifesto. Edna Sloane has such a jaded view of writing and publishing, but even more so of the reading public, most of whom judge the worth of a book based on whether or not it has been made into a blockbuster film.
Shearn touches on some of her familiar themes here from her other novels, such as the unrealistic expectations of wives, mothers, and professional women. For instance, here is a golden passage about a woman from the story who married a doctor: “It felt like a way of securing a life without having to make a living. But as generations of housewives and queens can attest, that doesn’t necessarily add up to living.”
And then there’s this nugget from the voice of Edna Sloane: “All I’m trying to say is, I’ve spent my entire adult life trying to regain that purity and perceptiveness I used to have — that sensitivity to everything that made me want to be a writer in the first place.” Sloane and Shearn fully understand the curse of the bestseller.
Here’s another: “. . . none of it felt as close to the bone, as true and full of meaning as crafting a single perfect sentence, well-tuned as a pitch pipe, glowing like a sculpted length of gold. Very few people, in fact, understand that.”
Before it’s over, this novel invites the reader to resist falling into the trap of an unexamined life. As Edna Sloane puts it, “It’s not about the answers. If you knew all the answers, you wouldn’t be a writer, you’d be a pundit. It’s ok to have the questions. And it’s ok to not know why you have the questions. You’re the wild animal, not the zookeeper.” Wow.
Badass Retirement by Robert Pagliarini
My wife and I listened to this book on a road trip, not knowing how relevant it would be to both of us as recent retirees. We have read several books on retirement over the last year or so, and a few of them were very helpful in getting our heads wrapped around the concept of leaving our careers behind. But Pagliarini’s book is a game changer. As a certified financial advisor, the author has had ample opportunity to study retirement up close through research and working with clients. He is also very disciplined about his own health and welfare. The main point he drills home (sometimes at the risk of being redundant) is that retirees have more time and resources than they’ve ever had, so they shouldn’t settle for a traditional retirement of resting and waiting to die!
Pagliarini also has a website by the same name as the book title with plenty of resources covering everything from finances to travel, from health and fitness to relationships. He really covers all the bases, and his book serves as a strong promotional tool for the site. He also has a blog and a podcast. He has basically created a virtual retirement community.
One of the most interesting discussions that hit home directly to us was his idea of thinking like an athlete in retirement, striving to be the healthiest we can be through diet, exercise, wellness, and monitoring our bodies so we can enjoy our retirement to the fullest. He stresses that retirees should be actively seeking ways to finding meaning and fulfillment, pouring our energy into what matters most to us knowing that the risk of failure is significantly diminished because our livelihood doesn’t depend on achievement. We can just go for it!
We liked the audiobook so much that we ordered a hardcopy of Badass Retirement. Anyone who anticipates retirement in the near future or is already there should consider reading this one.
Six White Horses: Poems by Sarah Gordon
Full disclosure: I was a student of Sarah Gordon back in the early 1980s as an undergraduate in English, so yes, I am unapologetically biased. I have always considered her a mentor and among the best teachers I ever had the wonderful fortune to encounter. This latest collection of poems received high praise right out of the gate with the cover endorsements, but I bet she heard from fans too since the book was released. I wrote her a rather long email praising the book.
I was intrigued by the poems in this collection that ponder origins, especially in “Antics” but in a few others, such as “Fixed Points,” and the speculative “A Priori.” I really like the example in “Ink,” in the last sentence that considers the genesis of writing. Gordon’s poems raise plenty of questions that inherently have no easy answers. They invite contemplation, a second or third thought, and a revisiting.
Here is a list of some of my favorites in the collection:
“A Priori” – the last phrase about Eve’s distracting apple, “for the poet who chanced upon it and with it struck and bruised the page.” That’s the stuff, right there!
“Bites” – These lines are power packed: “Later, of course, she learned to use that voice to set her world straight, and when she became strident, straight didn’t matter so much. Shouting did.” And yet still biting her tongue in the end.
“Diagramming” – the sexual metaphor of the declarative is especially on point, but the visuals throughout this poem work so well.
“Ach! The Shadow of the Spinster” – this one is about as raw as it gets in the collection, and applied to the “old maid” stereotype, the nitty gritty gets it done.
“Hiding Again from the Jehovah’s Witnesses” – my favorite poem title in the collection, and it is such a relatable poem to those of us who have found ourselves “leaning low and still on the other side of the wall . . . .”
I wish I were a better student of poetry. Admittedly, my thoughts here may not be profound, but I hope they convey my admiration for Sarah Gordon’s work.
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
Metaphors abound in this rich and contemplative work of poetic fiction. Harvey’s mastery of language is so impressive as she weaves together paragraphs and passages describing a day in the life of six international astronauts on a mission to the moon. She delves into their minds, emotions, and psyches but doesn’t dig so deep to get bogged down in their individual lives. They are representatives of humanity, coming to terms with what it means to be human and what our relationship is to the planet, and beyond. So much of the terrestrial crises resulting from greed and power lust seem to fade as they continually circle the globe, awed by breathtaking beauty, majesty, and natural violence that is indifferent to human life. Political strife and turf wars become insignificant the farther away we are from them. As the reviewer for the The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
Here is a classic that I had never read, mainly because the subject was not of great interest to me. However, Sinclair somehow tapped into the consciousness of turn-of-the-century America with this fictional manifesto on the evils of capitalism and the virtues of socialism, although a great portion of today’s U.S. population would likely dismiss the novel, as socialism is considered the worst possible form of government, especially among conservatives. They may be surprised to know Sinclair’s book became a bestseller, originally released as a serial in 1905.
The novel was really intended to promote socialism as a just and successful alternative to capitalism, but the reading public apparently took it more as an exposé on the unsanitary and brutal conditions of the U.S. meatpacking industry, particularly in Chicago. The author doesn’t drive home his intended argument until the end of the book when several prophets are introduced literally “preaching” the gospel of socialism. The novel’s protagonist, a Lithuanian named Jurgis Rudkus, finally understands why socialism is the solution after his life has been ruined as an immigrant laborer. He contemplates how “the whole balance of what the people produced went to heap up the fortunes of these capitalists, to heap, and heap again, and yet again – and that in spite of the fact that they, and every one about them, lived in unthinkable luxury!”
One could argue that this novel still speaks to the great disparity of wealth that exists in America today, especially as the term “oligarchy” has become a common descriptor of the country’s economic condition. Instead of the hopelessness of independent small farmers presented by the author at the end of the book, the shrinking American middle class employee nevertheless identifies with being “held to a bare existence by competition in labor, and boasting of his freedom because he is too blind to see his chains.”
What is truly remarkable about The Jungle is the influence it had on government policy and regulation. Public outrage over the novel’s graphic descriptions of unsanitary conditions in the meatpacking plants directly led the U.S. government to pass the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act in 1906. This muckraking novel remains a powerful and relevant work that continues to be studied for its depiction of social injustice, workers’ rights, and the impact of industrialization.
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
This is another one of those classics that I never read, but I’m so glad I did. The Good Earth is in many ways a sad story with characters who are genuinely believable because they are all flawed in some way. And true to life, some of the most virtuous are the ones who struggle the most and have the worst luck. As the title implies, the lives of the characters in the generations leading up to the novel’s time have always been tied to the land, but there are always tensions close at hand that could end that bond.
Because of the time setting in the early 20th century, Buck’s story feels a bit like Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, only set in China. The writer’s style makes it feel more like a long parable that mimics a Biblical narrative – straightforward language that is short on adjectives and adverbs. The sentences almost sound like they could have been written in the 16th century. The book features classic storytelling and character development, worthy of the Pulitzer it won.
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
Edith Wharton was one of those writers who had an absolute mastery of the English language. I rank her skills up there with Thomas Hardy and Henry James. She was also a best-selling author, largely due to the success of this novel published in 1905. And although it is not the first feminist novel, it is one of the early notable ones to my way of thinking. In painting her portrait of the prescribed social structure of high society New York City in the late 19th century, she cast a slightly jaded eye toward the way women were at a significant disadvantage just because of their gender in a patriarchal world.
Although it is worth noting there are some very wealthy and powerful women in the novel, most often their status is tied back to the men in their life. The leading “lady” of the novel, Lily Bart, sums it up very succinctly with this observation about marriage, “Ah, there’s the difference – a girl must, a man may if he chooses.” A little later Wharton has Lily contemplate further on the thought. “Why must a girl pay so dearly for her least escape from routine? Why could one never do a natural thing without having to screen it behind a structure of artifice?” These questions speak as much to the stifling societal pressures as they do to sexism, where manipulation and subterfuge among women in high places is ruthless.
In another reflective moment, Lily claims that all men have to do to get their way is to be passive and wait; while she has “to calculate and contrive, and retreat and advance, as if I were going through an intricate dance, where one misstep would throw me hopelessly out of time.” This is terribly ironic because a few missteps throw here way off balance.
Wharton reveals how self absorbed these high rollers are, “they had a force of negation which eliminated everything beyond their own range of operation.” The author even becomes a fortune teller at one point, predicting how a young Truman Capote would insert himself into this New York scene several decades later, when she describes one of the male characters “who meant to live on proof-reading and write an epic, and who now lived on his friends and had become critical of truffles.” It’s always about who you know, with whom you are seen and associated, and what you are wearing, especially for the women.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
Delicious! That is the best adjective I can come up with to describe Shirley Jackson’s writing, and this novel is a prime example. She is a worthy beneficiary of masters like Hawthorne and Poe in the American Gothic tradition. I have read her short stories, including her most famous, “The Lottery;” however, I think this is the first of her novels I have ever read.
In this rather macabre story, Jackson skillfully keeps her readers in the dark just enough to propel them forward to discover how the tragic events revealed in the beginning of the book unfolded and who is responsible. But this is no simple murder mystery. Jackson is opening metaphorical doors to hidden rooms filled with mob psychology, the complexities of family, sisterly bonds, and a touch of madness.
The concept of “innocence” and its multiple meanings are at the heart of this story. It is at times horrific, but not in the sense of a Stephen King novel. There is a sense of foreboding that seeps into our heads like an invasive vine that weaves its way through every space until, before we know it, we are surrounded by an inescapable terror.
Dear Edna Sloane by Amy Shearn
Of the four Amy Shearn novels I have read thus far, this is my favorite. She is somewhat of a writer’s writer, and Dear Edna Sloane is Exhibit A in that argument. Written from the viewpoint of multiple characters through the vehicle of various communications methods (letters, emails, phone texts, etc.), Shearn tells the story of a young female author whose first and only published book was a runaway bestseller. And then she disappeared from the public eye, and seemingly from all of society, for decades. Fast forward and a young aspiring but as yet unsuccessful writer is trying to find her.
The search for Edna Sloane is cleverly written and so perfectly spot on with the language, antics, anxieties, and drama of the twenty-something professionals from 2018. But when she does re-emerge, although reluctantly, Shearn really turns up the volume and pulls out the magic. I see hints that Shearn may be familiar with the life of Flannery O’Connor when Sloane recalls her struggles with professors, editors, and agents, all of whom were male and not exactly upstanding gentlemen.
There are so many passages in this book that I marked. Shearn knows how to tell a story while also imparting some heavy truth through the voices of her characters. And she does it without preaching or knocking us over the head. She is an entertaining writer, which I find to be all too rare these days among authors of modern fiction. Shearn has a few sections in this book that could easily be read as a writer’s manifesto. Edna Sloane has such a jaded view of writing and publishing, but even more so of the reading public, most of whom judge the worth of a book based on whether or not it has been made into a blockbuster film.
Shearn touches on some of her familiar themes here from her other novels, such as the unrealistic expectations of wives, mothers, and professional women. For instance, here is a golden passage about a woman from the story who married a doctor: “It felt like a way of securing a life without having to make a living. But as generations of housewives and queens can attest, that doesn’t necessarily add up to living.”
And then there’s this nugget from the voice of Edna Sloane: “All I’m trying to say is, I’ve spent my entire adult life trying to regain that purity and perceptiveness I used to have — that sensitivity to everything that made me want to be a writer in the first place.” Sloane and Shearn fully understand the curse of the bestseller.
Here’s another: “. . . none of it felt as close to the bone, as true and full of meaning as crafting a single perfect sentence, well-tuned as a pitch pipe, glowing like a sculpted length of gold. Very few people, in fact, understand that.”
Before it’s over, this novel invites the reader to resist falling into the trap of an unexamined life. As Edna Sloane puts it, “It’s not about the answers. If you knew all the answers, you wouldn’t be a writer, you’d be a pundit. It’s ok to have the questions. And it’s ok to not know why you have the questions. You’re the wild animal, not the zookeeper.” Wow.
Badass Retirement by Robert Pagliarini
My wife and I listened to this book on a road trip, not knowing how relevant it would be to both of us as recent retirees. We have read several books on retirement over the last year or so, and a few of them were very helpful in getting our heads wrapped around the concept of leaving our careers behind. But Pagliarini’s book is a game changer. As a certified financial advisor, the author has had ample opportunity to study retirement up close through research and working with clients. He is also very disciplined about his own health and welfare. The main point he drills home (sometimes at the risk of being redundant) is that retirees have more time and resources than they’ve ever had, so they shouldn’t settle for a traditional retirement of resting and waiting to die!
Pagliarini also has a website by the same name as the book title with plenty of resources covering everything from finances to travel, from health and fitness to relationships. He really covers all the bases, and his book serves as a strong promotional tool for the site. He also has a blog and a podcast. He has basically created a virtual retirement community.
One of the most interesting discussions that hit home directly to us was his idea of thinking like an athlete in retirement, striving to be the healthiest we can be through diet, exercise, wellness, and monitoring our bodies so we can enjoy our retirement to the fullest. He stresses that retirees should be actively seeking ways to finding meaning and fulfillment, pouring our energy into what matters most to us knowing that the risk of failure is significantly diminished because our livelihood doesn’t depend on achievement. We can just go for it!
We liked the audiobook so much that we ordered a hardcopy of Badass Retirement. Anyone who anticipates retirement in the near future or is already there should consider reading this one.
Six White Horses: Poems by Sarah Gordon
Full disclosure: I was a student of Sarah Gordon back in the early 1980s as an undergraduate in English, so yes, I am unapologetically biased. I have always considered her a mentor and among the best teachers I ever had the wonderful fortune to encounter. This latest collection of poems received high praise right out of the gate with the cover endorsements, but I bet she heard from fans too since the book was released. I wrote her a rather long email praising the book.
I was intrigued by the poems in this collection that ponder origins, especially in “Antics” but in a few others, such as “Fixed Points,” and the speculative “A Priori.” I really like the example in “Ink,” in the last sentence that considers the genesis of writing. Gordon’s poems raise plenty of questions that inherently have no easy answers. They invite contemplation, a second or third thought, and a revisiting.
Here is a list of some of my favorites in the collection:
“A Priori” – the last phrase about Eve’s distracting apple, “for the poet who chanced upon it and with it struck and bruised the page.” That’s the stuff, right there!
“Bites” – These lines are power packed: “Later, of course, she learned to use that voice to set her world straight, and when she became strident, straight didn’t matter so much. Shouting did.” And yet still biting her tongue in the end.
“Diagramming” – the sexual metaphor of the declarative is especially on point, but the visuals throughout this poem work so well.
“Ach! The Shadow of the Spinster” – this one is about as raw as it gets in the collection, and applied to the “old maid” stereotype, the nitty gritty gets it done.
“Hiding Again from the Jehovah’s Witnesses” – my favorite poem title in the collection, and it is such a relatable poem to those of us who have found ourselves “leaning low and still on the other side of the wall . . . .”
I wish I were a better student of poetry. Admittedly, my thoughts here may not be profound, but I hope they convey my admiration for Sarah Gordon’s work.
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
Metaphors abound in this rich and contemplative work of poetic fiction. Harvey’s mastery of language is so impressive as she weaves together paragraphs and passages describing a day in the life of six international astronauts on a mission to the moon. She delves into their minds, emotions, and psyches but doesn’t dig so deep to get bogged down in their individual lives. They are representatives of humanity, coming to terms with what it means to be human and what our relationship is to the planet, and beyond. So much of the terrestrial crises resulting from greed and power lust seem to fade as they continually circle the globe, awed by breathtaking beauty, majesty, and natural violence that is indifferent to human life. Political strife and turf wars become insignificant the farther away we are from them. As the reviewer for the New York Times put it, “It’s harder to see the world’s problems from 250 miles up.” What a wonderful book and worthy of the Booker Prize.
The Quiet Librarian by Allen Eskens
This book is a departure from Eskens’s other crime fiction. Instead of returning to familiar characters of his previous novels, Eskens focuses on a woman whose best friend has died suspiciously and the police detective trying to determine what happened. But there are plenty of secrets from the past complicating matters and relationships. The roots of the crime go back to the Bosnian-Serbia war, and Eskens does a fine job of switching the narrative back and forth between the eastern European conflict in the 1990s and present-day America. This may not be his best work to date, but it is a good story. And how could I resist a novel with a librarian as a main character?
They started appearing on our television during the first hour of prime time, usually beginning in early December and lasting until a few days before Christmas. They were advertised heavily because they were only aired once a year. They were typically thirty minutes long, but a few stretched out for an hour. Some were fully animated in the Disneyesque style, but the oldest one was actually a puppet based production using a technic called stop motion animation. These timeless Christmas specials, broadcast every year during my formative years in the 1960s, were as important in heralding in the holiday season as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Norelco commercial featuring Santa completely airborne before sliding into a village on an electric shaver. Some of my earliest Christmas memories involve making sure my homework and chores were all finished by 8:00 p.m. so I could plop on the floor in front of a television the size of a modern compact car to watch these simple but wonderful programs, in living color, no less.
“Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” was probably my favorite television Christmas special and happens to be the longest running of its kind in history, dating back to 1964. It was a groundbreaking production, introducing the stop motion animation mentioned earlier and the use of a recently invented LED light bulb capable of emitting visible red light, Rudolph’s incredible nose, of course. Sponsored by General Electric, the show was the brainchild of filmmaker Arthur Rankin, Jr., who went on to produce several other classic Christmas specials. With a cast of characters including Rudolph, Hermey, Yukon Cornelius, Bumble (the Abominable Snowman), and Santa Claus, the show came to life at the hands of Tadahito Mochinaga, a Japanese filmmaker inspired by Disney’s Mickey Mouse who invented the special type of animation used in the program. I can still remember feeling so sorry for the misfits of this story, from Rudolph and the dysfunctional unwanted toys to the poor elf whose dream was to become a dentist. Critics have argued that the story and the song written by Robert May and Johnny Marks on which the show is based are plagued by troubling ethical issues, but that was not my interpretation at all. I thought “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” was a delightful morality tale about diversity, inclusion, and empathy. God knows we could use a little more of all of that these days.
“Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”
A close second Christmas special for me was the 1966 fully animated “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” based on the children’s book with the same title by Dr. Seuss. Featuring the unmistakable voice of Boris Karloff as the Grinch, this is another one of those classics that is still running each season on network television. Like most of these television specials, this book and show were designed to teach children of all ages an important lesson: the joy of Christmas doesn’t come from material things but from community and love for one another. I certainly received that message as a child, but what I remember most about the show was the incredibly creative and hilarious song, “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch,” with lyrics by Dr. Seuss, musical composition by Albert Hague, and performance by Thurl Ravenscroft, best known for the voice of Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes hero, Tony the Tiger – “They’re GREAT!” Every year in early December on Facebook, I post a few lines from this memorable song to help usher in the Christmas season for my Friends.
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (photo credit: Common Media)
Third in line is another fully animated production by Arthur Rankin, Jr. “Frosty the Snowman” first aired in 1969 and has been a Christmas standard every year since. It features the recognizable narrative voice of Jimmy Durante and was his final film role. It also includes the unique voices of Billy De Wolfe as the selfish Professor Hinkle and comic actor Jackie Vernon as Frosty. One point of trivia about the animation is the fact that the narrator’s and Hinkle’s characters were drawn to look like their real-life counterpart actors. Once again, here is another Christmas special adapted from a song, which was written by Jack Rollins and Steve Nelson and first recorded by Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys in 1950 and later recorded by Jimmy Durante that same year. By the end of the show, we all know that greediness doesn’t pay and that there is a certain magic associated with Christmastime.
“Frosty the Snowman” (Photo credit: TV Guide)
My final favorite is likely at the top of many viewers’ lists and is perhaps quoted more than all the others combined. The fully animated 1965 production of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” features all the most familiar characters from the imagination of Charles Schulz and his long-running Peanuts comic strip. In addition to its memorable lines and scenes, the special also includes a very fine soundtrack by American jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi. The show received both Emmy and Peabody awards and is firmly implanted in holiday memories of millions of Americans. After all, who hasn’t looked at a pathetic Christmas tree and dubbed it a “Charlie Brown tree?” Like the lesson the Grinch learned, the Peanuts kids teach us that the true meaning of Christmas is about love, respect, and friendship.
“A Charlie Brown Christmas” (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I have posted about the rich music tradition that exists in the area around Springfield, Missouri, which is in a region of the country called the Ozarks (a moniker that can be both singular or plural – trust me on this one). Primarily located in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas, the Ozarks is characterized by rolling hills, deep hollows, caves, springs, plentiful rivers and streams, steep rocky bluffs, lush vegetation, and rich cultural traditions that can be traced back to Appalachia and further back to Scotland, Ireland, and even Germany. A major hallmark of Ozarks culture is a type of folk music handed down over many generations, a genre that is often referred to in the region as “Old Time” music. Dominant instruments include fiddle, banjo, mandolin, upright bass, and acoustic guitar. There are definite similarities to Bluegrass music, although purists will argue about distinct differences that exist between the genres and even marked variations in style within “Old Time” music according to location within the Ozarks, especially with fiddle playing.
Stringed instruments
The traditional Ozarks music may be old, but it is far from dead. There are plenty of bands and ensembles performing tunes that date back to the 19th century, and there are locations throughout the Ozarks that host regular jam sessions where musicians gather to play. One of the oldest is at a former general store in McClurg, a small crossroads in Taney County, Missouri. This weekly jam and potluck supper is hosted by the current owner of the venue, Tom Peters, who is the former Dean of Libraries at Missouri State University in Springfield and was my direct supervisor before we both retired at the end of 2024. One of the most encouraging aspects of Ozarks jam sessions and performances is how often young players in their teens and early 20s are participating. A new generation of “Old Time” musicians is carrying the tradition into the future.
McClurg Jam- photo by Kevin Cole
The Ozarks is a large geographic region that even stretches west to encompass small segments of Oklahoma and Kansas and east to include a sliver of Illinois (this is a contentious topic among Ozarkers, who tend to be quite opinionated about the boundaries of the area). Most of the Ozarks is rural, with small towns and villages scattered among the hills and plateaus. There are centers of larger population, such as Fayetteville, Arkansas, home of the state’s flagship university. In Missouri there are larger towns like West Plains, Rolla, Joplin, and Branson. The largest metropolitan area in the Ozarks is Springfield, Missouri. Naturally, there is considerable diversity in musical interest throughout the region, with an emphasis on “Old Time,” gospel, Bluegrass, and country in the rural areas. These genres are also popular in the population centers, along with folk, Americana, rock, pop, jazz, and little bit of everything else. Chappell Roan, one of the country’s latest sensational pop stars, is from Willard, Missouri, a suburb of Springfield.
Ozarks map by Curtis J. Copeland
Promoting and preserving the music of the Ozarks are admirable endeavors, and I am proud to have been involved in such efforts while I was working at the university. I conducted interviews of musicians and vocalists and edited videos of interviews and performances, all of which were featured on the university library’s YouTube channel. Our team explored a variety of music-related topics that are available to watch or listen to on this channel: past and present live music venues along historic Route 66 that crosses the Missouri Ozarks; African-American musical influences in the region; “Ozark Jubilee,” the nationally-televised country music variety show that was broadcast in Springfield from 1955 to 1960; the Gordon McCann folk music collection; and the Max Hunter collection.
Missouri State University Library in Springfield, MO
One of the playlists on the library’s YouTube channel is titled “Songs of the Ozarks,” which was part of the university’s scholarly content associated with its participation in the 2023 Smithsonian Institution’s Folklife Festival. The festival featured the history and culture of the Ozarks region, presented in part by the university, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The playlist includes 43 videos of musicians, vocalists, songwriters, bands, and ensembles who are active in the Ozarks region. The interviews and performances were conducted and recorded by Emalee Flatness-Combs, a musician, singer, and songwriter based in the Ozarks who is also an alumna of Missouri State University. The genres covered in this collection include “Old Time,” folk, Bluegrass, country, cowboy, gospel, Americana, rock, and pop.
The following is a sampling of the musical acts included in the “Songs of the Ozarks” playlist.
Randall Chowning – a founder, one of the lead vocalists, and the lead guitarist of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, a rock band formed in 1972 in Springfield.
John Fullerton – “Cowboy John,” a member of the legendary Sons of the Pioneers who has appeared with a wide range of celebrities including Roy Rogers Jr. and the High Riders, Three Trails West, Miss Devon & the Outlaw, and Riders in the Sky.
David Scrivner – a lifelong “Old Time” fiddle player and student of the great Missouri fiddler, Bob Holt; Scrivner won the Arkansas State Fiddle Contest in 2019 and plays fiddle regularly at the McClurg jam.
Sylamore Special – an award-winning Bluegrass band based out of northwest Arkansas that came together in 2021 and have played numerous times at Silver Dollar City amusement park in Branson, Missouri, and also at the Arkansas Country Music Awards.
David Warren – an accomplished Bluegrass musician and jig dancer who played several years with ensembles including the Bluegrass Buck Jumpers and the Bressler Brothers.
Pam Setser – a musician, singer, and songwriter whose career spans decades and has brought her in touch with music legends from Merle Haggard to Doc Watson and Maybelle Carter; she has performed on “Hee Haw” and has been on stage with Grandpa and Ramona Jones, The Whites, and Joni Bishop.
Sylamore Special performing at the 2023 Smithsonian Folklife Festival
There is a rich tradition of music in the Ozarks going back more than 150 years, and so much of that legacy lives on today throughout the region. There is also a lasting influence of indigenous music from tribes that inhabited the Ozarks for many generations before European settlers migrated into the area. And beginning in the late 20th century, new musical and dance styles were introduced as refugee and immigrant populations from around the world began taking up permanent residence in the Ozarks. The musical landscape is constantly changing in the Ozarks, but fortunately so far, the newcomers are not displacing the old standards. Cultural diversity is a treasure to be valued, and the Ozarks is blessed with an abundance of it.
If You Want My Opinion 