Recently, I’ve been doing an insane amount of reading. I’m pretty happy about that. Slowly my stack of unread books is joining the “other side”. They’re jumping the shark, they’re waving goodbye to their neglected friends and flipping them the bird on the way out.
“See ya suckers! She thought my dust flap seemed more interesting than yours!”
I’ve been working my old favorites in with my new books, which I know is counterproductive to reducing said neglected pile. BUT, it has made me revisit some old friends of mine. And I have had so much fun remembering what I loved about them in the first place.
My old friend Anne Shirley and I had a lovely time on Prince Edward Island, being witty and too sharp tongued for people to understand. And not to mention independent beyond our years. Then I hopped on over to visit Jo March in Massachusetts and spent some time remembering how important it is to remain passionate and committed to our goals and not to settle. Both of these two special friends reminded me how much I love to write (obviously!) and how easy it is for women now to express themselves and being independent and free. Example: this blog.
Moving on from these two lovely women, I stayed for a while with Anne Morrow Lindbergh in her beautiful cottage by the ocean, while she wrote beautiful observations and important lessons of life that no woman should be without.
And then, a few years back, I visited the dry, dusty and staggeringly beautiful land that my grandmother called home and wrote about, and learned the most important lesson I’ve ever been granted: to be true to me and what I love. Which means true to myself, and true to my loves, Mikayla and Zachary. And I am all of those things now.
I spent some time visiting and loving my lifelong literary heroines, and then it hit me. I’ve always found that the heroines I love the most, that stayed with me as little voices in my head (along with ALL the other voices!) were the women who wrote, the ones who had something that needed to be heard. The ones who were probably a little over passionate (if there is such a thing?) and lived their life that way. As feeling, loving, sometimes hurting, empathetic people. So with that knowledge, I did a very scientific and very technical survey. On Facebook.
I asked people to share with me their literary heroes or heroine. And to tell me why, if they would. And I came to a pretty neat conclusion. That typically, people's chose heroes much like themselves. Most people who answered, I’ve known for years and have been blessed to watch them grow. If I haven’t known them for years, I am extremely close to them. I’ve been able to observe them “before” and “after”, or at pivotal times of their lives. I’ve been blessed to know these lovely, literary women through some hard times and wonderful times, and through both of us growing up. But I am never one to name names, but you each know who you are. And to be clear, I LOVE you for who you are.
I found the responses really interesting. Readers, and friends, I’m sure you’ve caught on that I love my life as a “people study”. People amaze me, and my friends and family are nothing short of mystical to me.
One friend who I have known for over a decade chose Atticus Finch. A hero who is generally revered as intelligent, fair and righteous, patient and respectful of people and children. And he strives to teach people valuable life lessons. Go figure that this friend possesses the best of Atticus, she is fair, she is intelligent and patient with all, and she is a teacher by profession. And loving first and foremost.
Another chose the young boy from “The Giver”. He was blessed with an easy but unfeeling life. The people in his life lived in their version of “ignorant bliss”. He instead chose the enlightened although much more difficult path. He chose to look inside, and look starkly at the world around him. To embrace and learn from it in order to make himself better and more empathetic. This is a woman I have watched grow so much, and she has grown wonderfully in to what she was always meant to be. She is also, hands down, one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever known, inside and out. She could have easily chosen the easy path, as beautiful women from a nice upbringing can. Marry rich. Act mindless and stay quiet. But she didn’t. She knew greatness awaited, and that you can’t achieve that without some suffering along the way. And in turn, she has chosen a profession bringing enlightenment to others. I am fiercely proud of her.
And lastly is someone I know very, very well and love a ton. She had no problem naming her heroes. Most of them were the same as mine, which is not at all surprising. She threw one in that I hadn’t thought of, because traditionally people tend to think of her as a bit of a shrew. But with more thought, I realized she had traits overlooked by the “traditional” thought processes, but appreciated in modern women. And that woman was none other than Scarlett O’Hara. And yes dear, I give a damn. I couldn’t resist saying that. But I’ll move on now.
Scarlett redefined herself based upon the situation she finds herself in, she’s a survivor. She is a passionate lover but yet calculated and even keeled when needed. She proves herself in a man’s world. She is loyal and devoted, very much like my friend, in all the good ways. She also names Jo March, and I know she is a Jane Austen lover like I am. And Jane Austen fans are, by and large, fans of strong women, devoted friends and appreciative of family.
And last but so far from least, are the women related to me. Who answered in quirky (for modern readership) ways. And they chose wisely, true to their upbringing by a very literary minded, educated and thoroughly loving, quirky and unique mother. But more so, they chose characters who were, perhaps, slightly quirky themselves. And very unique and clever. And everything that I consider my favorite female relatives to be. Quirky, intelligent, true and just lovely through and through.
So what did I learn? Easy answer. That people, not all but most, have chosen heroines/hero’s that they admire and perhaps have emulated in their adult life, without even noticing. That possess traits that they want to live up to, and strive for. After all, isn’t that what has made them our hero’s?
So that is the lesson that I would push you all to realize. You don’t have to do what I do with a book…which is to push my nose into their pages and smell them, love them, make them a part of you. (My favorite book store probably has a picture of me doing this. Don’t be shocked if you see me in the paper in some weird article..Just saying). But what I AM saying is to appreciate everything these books have to offer. Lifelong friends and role models. Attributes that you can appreciate and work for. Life is ongoing, a constant learning process. Why not have people along for the ride?
So, by the way, here are some of my recommendations:
Anne of Green Gables, by Lucy Maude Montgomery (especially wonderful for a redhead!)
Gift from the Sea, by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, who lost her son in that famous kidnapping. She is remarkably feeling and embraces life for what it is. A gift, every single day.
Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott.
The Awakening, by Kate Chopin. Not for anyone less than an adult.
Grand Ambition, by Lisa Michaels. About Glen and Bessie Hyde and their adventure on the Colorado River.
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman. My favorite author and my very favorite book. (Photo of movie version below).
